White Flowers 193 



beds. Set bulbs 3-4 in. deep, in full sun, and stake before flowering. 

 It needs mulch about the roots if the season is dry, and plentiful water- 

 ing. After flowering, cut off the seed-vessels, and lift when the tops are 

 withered, after frosts come. Dry in a cool shed out of the sun and store 

 in a dry, warm place through the winter. For other var. see Yel., Pink 

 and Red Per. 



HIBISCUS, MARSH MALLOW (H. moscheutus, var. Crimson Eye). 

 4-6 ft. A tall plant bearing white flowers often 4-6 in. across, with a 

 center of rich deep red. It does best in a rich moist soil. Propagated 

 by seed and division of the root. A new variety has been made by 

 hybridizing which claims to be a great improvement on the usual type. 

 Also pink var.; see Pink Per., August. 



HOLLYHOCK (Althea rosea, var. alba). 5-8 ft. One of our finest 

 hardy plants, a biennial in some places, with me a perennial. It forms 

 a thick clump of large leaves from which rise stout stalks bearing 

 enormous wheel-shaped flowers of many colors. The erect growth 

 makes a good background for lower bushy perennials, or they can be 

 grown in broad rows without other plants, or as the foreground of a 

 high hedge or shrubbery. Seeds should be sown in early spring and the 

 young plants removed to a permanent position in August or September. 

 I allow mine to seed themselves, and thus obtain strong plants, each 

 year finding enough to reset in early spring, where they get well estab- 

 lished by another season. Top-dress with manure when about to 

 flower; give plenty of water and full sun. If plants are weak, allow only 

 one stalk to a plant and stake early. If in a locality where they winter- 

 kill, cut back to within 6 in. after flowering, lift the plants and winter 

 in a cold frame. Some recommend a mulch a foot deep of coal ashes 

 as a winter protection. Of late, hollyhocks have been affected with the 

 rust, an orange-colored fungus growth that appears on the lower leaves 

 first, and spreads upward, in time destroying the entire foliage, and 

 injuring the bloom. If discovered early, we are advised to spray with 

 a weak solution of permanganate of potassium; if advanced, spray 

 with a weak solution of Bordeaux mixture, neither of which helped my 

 plants. Try my special remedy, page 130. Remove all infected leaves 

 and burn them carefully, and change the bed; or one can save the seed 

 and let hollyhocks go for a year or two, and try afresh. It is said that 

 the single varieties are less affected than the double ones. Give a deep 

 rich soil, underdrained with stones if possible. May be also propagated 

 by division of strong roots. 



