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Alcea rosea
| Common name: |
Hollyhock |
Family: |
Malvaceae |
| Author: |
L. |
Botanical references: |
100, 200 |
| Synonyms: |
Althaea rosea ((L.)Cav.) |
| Known Hazards: |
None known |
| Range: |
The original habitat is obscure, it is probably of hybrid origin. A garden escape in Britain[17]. |
| Habitat: |
Not known in a truly wild situation. |
| Edibility Rating (1-5): |
3 | Medicinal Rating (1-5): | 2 |
| Other Possible Synonyms: | From various places across the web, may not be correct. See below. |
| Althaea ficifolia[G]
|
| Other Common Names: | From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below. |
| Garden Hollyhock [H], Gul Hero [E], Gulhatmi [E], Hollyhock [H,P,B,L,MS], Jung K'Uei [E], Khatmah Barri [E], Malva Real [E], Shu K'Uei [E], Ward Al Khatmi [E], Wu K'Uei Hwa [E], |
| Epithets: | From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets |
|
rosea = rose colored
|
| Systematics: | From a USDA Plants Database |
|
Order: Malvales. Mallow family
|
| Other Range Info: |
From the Ethnobotany Database |
|
Chile
China Iraq Kurdistan Spain Turkey
|
Physical Characteristics
Perennial growing to 2.4m by 0.6m . It is hardy to zone 6 and is not frost tender. It is in flower from July to September, and the seeds ripen from August to October. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs).
We rate it 3/5 for edibility and
2/5 for medicinal use.
The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils.
The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils.
It cannot grow in the shade.
It requires dry or moist soil.
Habitats and Possible Locations
Woodland, Cultivated Beds, Sunny Edge, Dappled Shade.Edible Uses
Flowers
Leaves Root Stem Tea.
Young leaves - raw or cooked[2, 55, 177]. A mild flavour, but the
texture leaves something to be desired[K]. They have been used as a pot-herb,
though they are not particularly palatable[4]. They can also be chopped up
finely and added to salads[K].
Inner portion of young stems - raw[101].
Flower petals and flower buds - raw. Added to salads[183].
A nutritious starch is obtained from the root[183].
A refreshing tea is made from the flower petals[183].
Medicinal Uses
Disclaimer
Antiinflammatory
Astringent Demulcent Diuretic Emollient Febrifuge.
The flowers are demulcent, diuretic and emollient[4, 21]. They are
useful in the treatment of chest complaints[4], and a decoction is used to
improve blood circulation, for the treatment of constipation, dysmenorrhoea,
haemorrhage etc[218]. The flowers are harvested when they are open and are
dried for later use[238].
The shoots are used to ease a difficult labour[218].
The root is astringent and demulcent[240]. It is crushed and applied as a
poultice to ulcers[218]. Internally, it is used in the treatment of
dysentery[240].
The roots and the flowers are used in Tibetan medicine, where they are said
to have a sweet, acrid taste and a neutral potency[241]. They are used in the
treatment of inflammations of the kidneys/womb, vaginal/seminal discharge,
and the roots on their own are used to treat loss of appetite[241].
The seed is demulcent, diuretic and febrifuge[240].
Other Uses
Compost
Dye Litmus Oil Paper.
A fibre obtained from the stems is used in papermaking[189]. The fibres
are about 1.9mm long. The stems are harvested in late summer, the leaves are
removed and the stems are steamed until the fibres can be removed. The fibres
are cooked with lye for 2 hours and then ball milled for 3 hours or pounded
with mallets. The paper is light tan in colour[189].
The flowers are an alternative ingredient of 'Quick Return' herbal compost
activator[32]. This is a dried and powdered mixture of several herbs that can
be added to a compost heap in order to speed up bacterial activity and thus
shorten the time needed to make the compost[K].
The seed contains 12% of a drying oil[114, 240].
The red anthocyanin constituent of the flowers is used as a litmus[114].
A brown dye is obtained from the petals[168].
Cultivation details
Succeeds in most soils[1]. Poor soils should be enriched with organic
matter[1, 111]. Prefers a heavy rich soil and a sheltered sunny
position[200].
Plants are hardy to about -15° c[200].
A very ornamental plant, it is usually grown as a biennial due to its
susceptibility to the fungal disease 'rust'[1, 200]. There are many named
varieties[238].
Young plants, and also the young growth in spring, are very attractive to
slugs[K].
Propagation
Seed - sow April/May or August/September in pots or in situ[200, 238].
Easily grown from seed, which usually germinates in about 2 - 3 weeks at
20°
c[133, 268]. When large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into
individual pots and plant them out in the summer.
Division after flowering. Only use rust-free specimens.
Root cuttings in December.
Basal cuttings at almost any time of year.
Cultivars
- ''
- There are many named forms for this species, but these have been developed for their ornamental value and not for their other uses. Unless you particularly require the special characteristics of any of these cultivars, we would generally recommend that you grow the natural species for its useful properties. We have, therefore, not listed the cultivars in this database[K].
Suppliers
For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.
Web References
- Details of Medicinal Uses, Habitats, etc. in M. Grieve A Modern Herbal (1931) [4]
- [H] Details of Scandanavian and European Common names in Henriette's names database
- [E] Ethnobotany Data
(common names, uses, countries) from the Ethnobotany Database.
- [V] Images
from the Vascular Plant Image Gallery of the Texas A& M Bioinformatics Working Group.
- [B] Data
(Latin & Common names, other references) from the BONAP's Synonymized Checklist of the Vascular Flora of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
- [C] Taxon data.
from the CalFlora database.
- [G] Data
(Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
- [P] Data.
(uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.
- [HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database
References for Althaea rosea (a possible synonym).
References for alcea rosea (a possible synonym).
References for the family Malvaceae.
See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.
Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.
[K] Ken Fern
Notes from observations, tasting etc at Plants For A Future and on field trips.
[1] F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951
Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaces in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).
[2] Hedrick. U. P. Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. Dover Publications 1972 ISBN 0-486-20459-6
Lots of entries, quite a lot of information in most entries and references.
[4] Grieve. A Modern Herbal. Penguin 1984 ISBN 0-14-046-440-9
Not so modern (1930's?) but lots of information, mainly temperate plants.
[17] Clapham, Tootin and Warburg. Flora of the British Isles. Cambridge University Press 1962
A very comprehensive flora, the standard reference book but it has no pictures.
[21] Lust. J. The Herb Book. Bantam books 1983 ISBN 0-553-23827-2
Lots of information tightly crammed into a fairly small book.
[32] Bruce. M. E. Commonsense Compost Making. Faber 1977 ISBN 0-571-09990-4
Excellent little booklet dealing with how to make compost by using herbs to activate the heap. Gives full details of the herbs that are used.
[55] Harris. B. C. Eat the Weeds. Pivot Health 1973
Interesting reading.
[100] Polunin. O. Flowers of Europe - A Field Guide. Oxford University Press 1969 ISBN 0192176218
An excellent and well illustrated pocket guide for those with very large pockets. Also gives some details on plant uses.
[101] Turner. N. J. and Szczawinski. A. Edible Wild Fruits and Nuts of Canada. National Museum of Natural Sciences 1978
A very readable guide to some wild foods of Canada.
[111] Sanders. T. W. Popular Hardy Perennials. Collingridge 1926
A fairly wide range of perennial plants that can be grown in Britain and how to grow them.
[114] Chakravarty. H. L. The Plant Wealth of Iraq.
It is surprising how many of these plants can be grown in Britain. A very readable book on the useful plants of Iraq.
[133] Rice. G. (Editor) Growing from Seed. Volume 1. Thompson and Morgan. 1987
Very readable magazine with lots of information on propagation.
[168] Grae. I. Nature's Colors - Dyes from Plants. MacMillan Publishing Co. New York. 1974 ISBN 0-02-544950-8
A very good and readable book on dyeing.
[177] Kunkel. G. Plants for Human Consumption. Koeltz Scientific Books 1984 ISBN 3874292169
An excellent book for the dedicated. A comprehensive listing of latin names with a brief list of edible parts.
[183] Facciola. S. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications 1990 ISBN 0-9628087-0-9
Excellent. Contains a very wide range of conventional and unconventional food plants (including tropical) and where they can be obtained (mainly N. American nurseries but also research institutes and a lot of other nurseries from around the world.
[189] Bell. L. A. Plant Fibres for Papermaking. Liliaceae Press 1988
A good practical section on how to make paper on a small scale plus details of about 75 species (quite a few of them tropical) that can be used.
[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
[218] Duke. J. A. and Ayensu. E. S. Medicinal Plants of China Reference Publications, Inc. 1985 ISBN 0-917256-20-4
Details of over 1,200 medicinal plants of China and brief details of their uses. Often includes an analysis, or at least a list of constituents. Heavy going if you are not into the subject.
[238] Bown. D. Encyclopaedia of Herbs and their Uses. Dorling Kindersley, London. 1995 ISBN 0-7513-020-31
A very well presented and informative book on herbs from around the globe. Plenty in it for both the casual reader and the serious student. Just one main quibble is the silly way of having two separate entries for each plant.
[240] Chopra. R. N., Nayar. S. L. and Chopra. I. C. Glossary of Indian Medicinal Plants (Including the Supplement). Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, New Delhi. 1986
Very terse details of medicinal uses of plants with a wide range of references and details of research into the plants chemistry. Not for the casual reader.
[241] Tsarong. Tsewang. J. Tibetan Medicinal Plants Tibetan Medical Publications, India 1994 ISBN 81-900489-0-2
A nice little pocket guide to the subject with photographs of 95 species and brief comments on their uses.
[268] Stuart. M. (Editor) The Encyclopedia of Herbs and Herbalism Orbis Publishing. London. 1979 ISBN 0-85613-067-2
Excellent herbal with good concise information on over 400 herbs.
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