Hollyhock

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Hollyhock

The hollyhocks comprise about 60 species of flowering plant

Flowering plant

The flowering plants or angiosperms are the most widespread group of Embryophytes. The flowering plants and the gymnosperms are the only extant groups of Spermatophyte....
s in the genus Alcea (Ál-ce-a
Syllable stress of Botanical Latin

Syllable stress of botanical names varies with the language spoken by the person using the botanical name. In English-speaking countries the Botanical Latin places syllable stress for botanical names derived from ancient Greek and Latin broadly according to two systems, either the Reformed academic pronunciation, or the pronunciation develop...
) in the mallow family Malvaceae

Malvaceae

Malvaceae, or the mallow family, is a family of flowering plants containing over 200 genera with close to 2,300 species. Judd & al. The largest genera in terms of number of species include Hibiscus , Sterculia , Dombeya , Pavonia and Sida ....
, native to southwest and central Asia

Asia

Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent. It covers 8.6% of the Earth's total surface area and, with over 4 billion people, it contains more than 60% of the world's current human population....
. They are biennial

Biennial plant

A biennial plant is a flowering plant that takes two years to complete its biological lifecycle. In the first year the plant grows leaves, stems, and roots , then it enters a period of dormancy over the colder months....
or short-lived perennial plants growing to 3.5 m tall, with broad, rounded, palmately lobed leaves

Leaf

In botany, a leaf is an above-ground plant Organ specialized for photosynthesis. For this purpose, a leaf is typically flat and thin, to expose the cells containing chloroplast to light over a broad area, and to allow light to penetrate fully into the tissues....
and numerous flower

Flower

A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproduction structure found in flowering plants . The biological function of a flower is to mediate the union of male sperm with female ovum in order to produce seeds....
s, pink or yellow in the wild species, on the erect central stem.

Alcea species are used as food plants by the larva

Larva

A larva is a young form of animal with indirect developmental biology, going through or undergoing metamorphosis .The larva can look completely different from the adult form, for example, a caterpillar differs from a butterfly....
e of some Lepidoptera

Lepidoptera

Lepidoptera is an order of insect that includes moths and butterfly. It is one of the most speciose orders in the class Insecta, encompassing moths and the three superfamilies of butterfly, skipper , and Hedylidae....
species including Bucculatrix quadrigemina and the Painted Lady

Vanessa cardui

The Painted Lady is a well-known colourful butterfly, sometimes known in North America as the Cosmopolitan.It is one of the most widespread of all butterflies, found on every continent except Antarctica....
(Vanessa cardui).

t 60 species, including:

Uses
Hollyhocks are popular garden

Garden

A garden is a planned space, usually outdoors, set aside for the display, cultivation, and enjoyment of plants and other forms of nature. The garden can incorporate both natural and man-made materials....
ornamental plant

Ornamental plant

Ornamental plants are typically grown in the flower garden or as house plants. Most commonly they are grown for the display of their flowers. Other common ornamental features include leaves, scent, fruit, Plant stem and bark....
s, cultivar

Cultivar

A cultivar is a cultivated plant that has been selected and given a unique name because of its decorative or useful characteristics; it is usually distinct from similar plants and when Plant propagation it retains those characteristics....
s selected, particularly from A.

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Encyclopedia

The hollyhocks comprise about 60 species of flowering plant
Flowering plant

The flowering plants or angiosperms are the most widespread group of Embryophytes. The flowering plants and the gymnosperms are the only extant groups of Spermatophyte....
s in the genus Alcea (Ál-ce-a
Syllable stress of Botanical Latin

Syllable stress of botanical names varies with the language spoken by the person using the botanical name. In English-speaking countries the Botanical Latin places syllable stress for botanical names derived from ancient Greek and Latin broadly according to two systems, either the Reformed academic pronunciation, or the pronunciation develop...
) in the mallow family Malvaceae
Malvaceae

Malvaceae, or the mallow family, is a family of flowering plants containing over 200 genera with close to 2,300 species. Judd & al. The largest genera in terms of number of species include Hibiscus , Sterculia , Dombeya , Pavonia and Sida ....
, native to southwest and central Asia
Asia

Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent. It covers 8.6% of the Earth's total surface area and, with over 4 billion people, it contains more than 60% of the world's current human population....
. They are biennial
Biennial plant

A biennial plant is a flowering plant that takes two years to complete its biological lifecycle. In the first year the plant grows leaves, stems, and roots , then it enters a period of dormancy over the colder months....
or short-lived perennial plants growing to 3.5 m tall, with broad, rounded, palmately lobed leaves
Leaf

In botany, a leaf is an above-ground plant Organ specialized for photosynthesis. For this purpose, a leaf is typically flat and thin, to expose the cells containing chloroplast to light over a broad area, and to allow light to penetrate fully into the tissues....
and numerous flower
Flower

A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproduction structure found in flowering plants . The biological function of a flower is to mediate the union of male sperm with female ovum in order to produce seeds....
s, pink or yellow in the wild species, on the erect central stem.

Alcea species are used as food plants by the larva
Larva

A larva is a young form of animal with indirect developmental biology, going through or undergoing metamorphosis .The larva can look completely different from the adult form, for example, a caterpillar differs from a butterfly....
e of some Lepidoptera
Lepidoptera

Lepidoptera is an order of insect that includes moths and butterfly. It is one of the most speciose orders in the class Insecta, encompassing moths and the three superfamilies of butterfly, skipper , and Hedylidae....
species including Bucculatrix quadrigemina and the Painted Lady
Vanessa cardui

The Painted Lady is a well-known colourful butterfly, sometimes known in North America as the Cosmopolitan.It is one of the most widespread of all butterflies, found on every continent except Antarctica....
(Vanessa cardui).

Species
About 60 species, including:
Alcea biennis
Alcea ficifolia - Antwerp Hollyhock
Alcea heldreichii
Alcea lavateriflora
Alcea pallida
Alcea rosea
Alcea rosea

Alcea rosea is an ornamental plant in the Malvaceae family .It was imported into Europe from China in the sixteenth century. William Turner, an herbalist of the time, gave it the name "holyoke" from which the English name derives....
- Common Hollyhock
Alcea rugosa
Alcea setosa - Bristly Hollyhock
Alcea striata
Alcea sulphurea

Uses

Hollyhocks are popular garden
Garden

A garden is a planned space, usually outdoors, set aside for the display, cultivation, and enjoyment of plants and other forms of nature. The garden can incorporate both natural and man-made materials....
ornamental plant
Ornamental plant

Ornamental plants are typically grown in the flower garden or as house plants. Most commonly they are grown for the display of their flowers. Other common ornamental features include leaves, scent, fruit, Plant stem and bark....
s, cultivar
Cultivar

A cultivar is a cultivated plant that has been selected and given a unique name because of its decorative or useful characteristics; it is usually distinct from similar plants and when Plant propagation it retains those characteristics....
s selected, particularly from A. rosea. The flowers have been selected for variations in colour, with dark purple, red and white-flowered plants available in addition to the colours found in wild plants.

Hollyhocks are very drought resistant, and do well in full sun locations that might be too hot or dry for other plants. They produce large, flat coin-shaped seeds (1/2" diameter) that seem to grow easily wherever they drop. While an individual plant might only live a handful of years, by that time chances are good it will leave plenty of descendants. They have very long taproots which make transplanting difficult.

Culture
Remains of hollyhocks have been found in a Neanderthal burial site at Shanidar
Shanidar

The cave site of Shanidar is located in the Zagros Mountains of Kurdistan in Iraq. It was excavated between 1957-1961 by Ralph Solecki and his team from Columbia University and yielded the first adult Neanderthal skeletons in Iraq, dating between 60-80,000 years Before Present....
.

The flower was incorporated into the official seal of the Tokugawa Shogunate
Tokugawa shogunate

The Tokugawa shogunate, also known as the , and the , was a feudalism regime of Japan established by Tokugawa Ieyasu and ruled by the shoguns of the Tokugawa family....
in Japan, and through this influence has maintained importance in modern Japanese culture. For example, it has become the name and symbol of a professional soccer club
Mito HollyHock

is a Japanese professional football club, currently playing in the J-league Division 2. The team's hometown is located in Mito, Ibaraki, Ibaraki Prefecture....
located in a city formerly led by the Tokugawa family. In addition, in the Japanese graphic novels Lone Wolf and Cub
Lone Wolf and Cub

is a well-known gekiga or manga created by the writer Kazuo Koike and the artist Goseki Kojima. Its story led to the creation of six films starring Tomisaburo Wakayama, four plays, a television series starring Kinnosuke Yorozuya, and much more....
the seal is worn by Ogami Itto, the protagonist of the series, whilst he is in service to the shogun.