Hollyhocks

One of my favorite summer flowers is in full bloom. The hollyhock is a tall, spindly flowering plant with showy, unscented blooms on the top third of its stalks. The flowers pop in late July and early August here in northern Michigan.

There are over 80 accepted species of hollyhock, and the reds and pinks are a great draw for hummingbirds, bees and butterflies.

The name Hollyhock is derived from the Anglo-Saxon term, 'holy-hoc' or holy mallow – mallow being a common name of the Greek, altheo, meaning, to cure – a reference to the medicinal virtues of the plant. The hollyhock symbolizes both ambition, abundance and fertility. Native to Asia and Europe, hollyhocks are celebrated at festivals throughout Japan.

But I love them simply for their reliability. They are the statuesque beauties in my garden, returning year after year and adding that wonderful pop of color in late July as many of the annuals and earlier-blooming perennials are beginning to fade.

Hollyhocks are sturdy plants. Their open, trumpet-like flowers seem to be showering color on the surrounding garden. It almost looks like they are megaphones for the beauty and warmth of a summer’s day.

August is the Sunday of summer, they say. As we head into August (Elokuu in Finnish), let us soak up that warmth as the seasons move on.