An Unusual Hollyhock. the Flowers of Late Summer May Be Colourful but They Do Not Stir the Heart Like the Jewels of Spring and the Rich Opulence of June

An Unusual Hollyhock. The flowers of late summer may be colourful but they do not stir the heart like the jewels of spring and the rich opulence of June. However there is one late summer plant which always attracts interest and covetousness. X Alcalthaea ‘Parkallee’ looks like a hollyhock but in fact it is not. It flowers in August and September when the hollyhocks are all but finished. This gorgeous plant is sometimes listed as an Alcea, (hollyhock) and sometimes as a Malva, (mallow). It is neither of these; nor is it a Lavatera or a Kitaibelia which has similar shaped flowers. It is genetically close to all of these, as it is said to be a hybrid between Alcea rosea, (hollyhock) and Althaea officinalis. (Marshmallow.) Its correct name is x Alcalthaea suffrutescens ‘Parkallee’. Marshmallow is an increasingly rare wild flower although I have seen it growing wild in marshy ground around Dunwich. It has healthy blue-green leaves and pale pink flowers. There is though, a great deal of confusion about the parentage of ‘Parkallee’. It has been suggested that rather than marshmallow it could be a cross between Kitaibelia vitifolia and Alcea rosea. The flowers certainly look very similar to those of a Kitaibelia. Another suggestion is that it is a cross between Alcea rosea and Althaea cannabina. I have even seen it suggested on a French website that it is a cross between a hollyhock and Hibiscus syriacus. It is difficult to understand why there is so much confusion about the parentage because it was bred in Hungary in 1953 by Prof. Zoltan Kovats and then propagated in East Germany and made available in the 1990s Whatever its ancestry this plant has delectable satiny flowers in the palest peach, turning creamy with age. It flowers over a long period on very tall bushy plants. The flowers are not actually double but they have a centre frill of smaller petals. It has a very similar sister called x Alcalthaea suffrutescens ‘Parkrondell’ which is dark pink. There is a soft pink one called ‘Parkfrieden’ and also there is a‘Parktraum’ but that seems to be available only in Germany. There is also a lovely pink form called ‘Freedom’ which looks like a sport of ‘Parkallee’ The aim in producing these lovely plants was to combine the disease resistance of the wild marshmallow with the lovely colours of the hollyhock. Most hollyhocks of course become disfigured by rust; a fungus called Puccinia malvacearum, but these plants which become more like bushes with age are very rust resistant. They grow to over 3 metres tall so need to be well staked or they topple over. They do not set seed as they are hybrids so I was surprised to see a website offering seed of them. They are very easy from cuttings though, I have had 100% success rate with this means of propagating them. Most hollyhocks are short-lived perennials but my plants are now three years old and lovely big healthy plants. Like all hollyhocks they have a long taproot so they are difficult to move, but as they are so easy from cuttings this is not a problem. This is certainly a plant to give your garden a bit of late summer glamour. Liz Wells.

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