when is the best time to plant them My daughter gave me some and I realy don't know any thing about them other than I like them .and would like to grow them in the back yard for next year
Gloria
Hollyhock seeds
Hi Gloria, it's me tootsie :) Hey, I just pick the seeds and put them in little baggies and shove in the freezer until spring, then I either plant them in soil containers or just plant them in the garden and watch em grow :) They have to have the cold to kill the little varments that are in the seeds, and cause they are perennials :) This year I had dark red ones and some lighter pink ones growing that I winter sowed.
:)
stick them in the freezer?
WHEN TO PLANT, SPRING OR FALL?
Hollyhocks must establish a root system first, and then they can produce the stalk(s) of flowers you love so much. Often they are planted in the fall to give them a chance to establish a system during the winter months. While other plants are loafing and going into dormancy, the hollyhock foliage is still green! When spring arrives, your fall planted babies will burst into growing and produce blooms that summer. This is why most people plant them in the fall, but it is not a must. It is vital that you keep your baby hocks watered regularly to ensure a strong and healthy root system to carry it through the winter cold.
In fact, I almost prefer to begin mine in the spring because then you see them growing, you know they are growing, and if you need to, you can move them into their permanent positions before they get too comfortable. Though the spring planted may not bloom that year (some varieties do, but not much of a show) They have the entire season to grow root systems and foliage. The next spring, look out. Your plants will be HUGE and the number of flower stalks increased.
Fall planting is nice, too, but if you are looking for impact, spring planting one year before is (my opinion) the best way to go.
Spring planted the previous season will increase the bloomage.
Trying to start Hollyhocks on a heated germination mat is not advised. Don't try to rush your hollyhocks, they will come up when they get ready to. Don't assume that since package 'A' popped up in three days that all of your seeds should. The best way I have found to grow hocks is to lay the seed on the surface of well-tilled soil, then using a screen mesh collander, shake soil on top of the seed, a little less than 1/4" layer of sifted soil. Keep moist and do not let your seeds dry out once planted. Be patient and don't give up!
Backtracking on the fall planting, freshly harvested summer seeds sprout quickly,
while seeds which have been collected for spring planting are a bit slower to sprout.
But then again, you've got better things to do than stare at a tray of seeds, right?
Sweep that greenhouse, dust those cobwebs, time to garden!
http://www.wuvie.net/hockwhento.htm
Hi Tootsie I never heard of freezing holy hock seeds!!
good info Loon so I can treat them kind of like my Fox glove?
Do I leave them in the pod till I plant them or do I take them out for the winter and freeze or not? I don't have very many so I don't want to loose to many and I know where they will live so moving them wont be an issue I'll more than likely plant this fall I"m starting on the back yard now so they will have a permanent home when they go in I love starting a whole new site!!!lol
Gloria
Yes, like I said they have those tiny little insects in them I use the cold treatment to KILL THEM DEAD :) BTW, what color seeds do you have? Here in BC I have had very pretty yellow/peach colors blooming, just the light pink and maroon ones at the Midland house:P
Tootsie I don't know she got them from m dil in up state N.Y. and just knew I needed them so they picked seed pods and don't know what color they are and I diden't ask from where they picked them!!LOL
Gloria
Loon/Tootsie - thank you so much for the info.
Perhaps this is an ignorant question, but I am curious about the humidity level in your area.
I have had rust problems with my hocks year after year. I am located east of Seattle, & yes - it's true about the quantity of rain we receive.
I recognize their need for heat & good air circulation - but still have the rust, resulting in frustration to the point of not growing them. Germination has never been a problem here, but we don't get the extreme winter temps that you do.
Any thoughts/suggestions on how best to deal?
Dealing with hollyhock rust
Q: For the last two years, my hollyhocks have been plagued with rust, although their flowers are abundant. What can I do to prevent and treat the rust without hurting the flowers? Are there varieties that are less susceptible?
Ann Daly, Camden, ME
FPRIVATE "TYPE=PICT;ALT=" Orange spots signal hollyhock rust. Sanitation is the key to the control of this common fungal disease. Photo/Illustration: Allison Starcher
A: Jim Chatfield, Ohio State University Extension specialist, responds: Hollyhock rust is indeed a common fungal disease, caused by the fungus Puccinia malvacearum. Signs of this fungus include orangish rust pustules on the undersides of leaves, progressing to bright-orange spots with red centers on the upper leaf surface and on the shoots of hollyhocks (Alcea rosea cvs.). Eventually the rust pustules on the underside turn a reddish chocolate-brown color. When disease is severe, leaf drop may occur.
Sanitation is the key to preventing hollyhock rust. Remove all infested plant parts at the end of the season to limit the amount of fungus that will survive the winter. If not cleaned up, this infested plant debris will be the source for infecting the remaining hollyhocks in your garden come spring, as well as those you plant in the future, those that reseed, and of course, your neighbor’s hollyhocks. Once removed, the infected debris should be burned or bagged and added to your garbage or taken to a yard-waste disposal site.
It is also important to remove any leaves that become infected during the growing season, because this fungus produces new rust spores that continue to cause infections. Finally, sanitation also includes the weeding out of round-leaved mallows (Malva rotundifolia), another host for this fungus. In addition to sanitation, keeping water off the hollyhock foliage and providing room for good air movement helps in rust prevention.
As for fungicide controls, products containing chlorothalonil, mancozeb, and sulfur can help. But since infections start in spring and continue during rainy weather into the fall, numerous preventive applications at 10- to 14-day intervals may be necessary to completely prevent rust. This is why proper sanitation is so critical. If you do use a fungicide, apply it only to foliage and stems, and of course use it cautiously and strictly according to the directions. To answer the last part of the question, we are still looking for hollyhocks with good genetic resistance to rust.
http://www.taunton.com/finegardening/how-to/qa/dealing-hollyhock-rust.aspx?nterms=74882
thanks Loon now tell me are they worth the trouble?
Gloria
I will try anything once. If I really really love it.......I will even try it twice. I've even been known to be stubborn and try it three times............BUT
if I have to coddle something along and constantly fuss over it...........well..........I'm just too lazy to bother.
For ME..........it's easier to grown things that do well in my zone and climate. There are so many thousands of flowers, shrubs and trees that what won't work or is too much trouble can easily be replaced with something equally as beautiful. I sort of favor things that can survive on their own..........good tough old perennials peppered with a spash of colorful annuals.
hay my kind of girl thats pretty much how I garden I wish I had time to fuss but right now I don't I want something with height for the back of the back yard got any ideas we have to put a well in this fall so won't plant to much till spring
Gloria