This is the way I have always thought too grow hollyhocks but not so according to W. Robinson of the English Flower Garden - 1895.
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| Peder Mønsted (Danish painter) 1859 - 1941 A summer day in front of a thatched old farmhouse with hollyhocks and an elderly woman peeling peas, 1931 And I shall quote his words "One of the noblest of hardy plants... for breaking up ugly lines of shrubs or walls. So, too it is valuable for bold and stately effects among or near flower beds. Cottage bee-keepers would do well to grow a few hollyhocks for bees are fond of their flowers" Culture: Deep cultivation, much manure, frequent waterings with occasional soakings of liquid manure" Preferably guano! In the days when people had gardeners, and if you were rich, several gardeners would be in attendance. The plants would have been treated like royalty. But today we just wander around garden centres and buy our plants. And a tip; Cut out the top while the lower blooms are in perfection. Once the tops were removed, and rather spoiling the tallness, but flowers grew from every axial of the plant, giving it the look of a pyramidal tree. |
In my small very small space for gardening, I have sat and watched bees and tiny wasps feast on the nasturtiums and other flowers, but sadly the flowers go over quickly once pollinated. Not that I begrudge the bees their pollen.
As I said at the dinner table, sex is for reproduction not for recreation! ;)
Mention and thanks should go to Christa Zaat on Facebook, who has compiled a great bank of paintings on her site. They float through daily, and here is the one I picked the day before a subject so current at the moment.
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| "GARDEN CAT": Gustav Klimt (1862~1918) Austrian Symbolist |
And they are so large. I love Hollyhocks.
ReplyDeleteFlowers for a good old fashioned cottage.
DeleteI grew some very dark purple almost black ones from seed in Italy, this their second year they were wonderful. I explained to everyone they are traditional English cottage garden plants.
ReplyDeletewww.mylifeinflipflops.blogspot.com
There is a mallow I grew several years ago, a dark purple which was very attractive and probably like the dark hollyhock. I think you have hot weather in Italy in your garden and the hollyhocks are happy. The weather at the moment is rainy and windy with the odd thunderstorm thrown in.
DeleteI too love Hollyhock but sorry to say all thought of it went out of my head!!! I am captivated and totally in love with that Klimt cat. I wonder if I can get a prunt anywhere.
ReplyDeleteI have looked Pat, but it seems a difficult one, not sure if the cat in the original painting was cropped out and enlarged from the flowers.
ReplyDelete