margaret, i wouldn't worry too much. i don't do any maintenance at all with my hollyhocks, and they still never sprout up in the same spot every summer. they seem to spread by seed, so instead each summer i'm pleasantly surprised when the hollyhocks pop up in new and unexpected areas:)

it's gardening margaret - don't worry so much. have fun with it!

You may get another bloom this year, depending upon your zone. Hollyhocks can bloom three times a year (if you are lucky). The first bloom is the largest, and each subsequent bloom has less flowers. Cutting the stem is not a problem. They are biennial, which means they should live for two years. In some zones they live longer. I live in New Mexico now. I lost a five year old hollyhock to rabbits this year. When I lived in California, my hollyhocks only lived for two or three years.

Lorna

Thanks so much for your help Bobby and Lorna, I really appreciate it.
I guess I never paid attention to when and how my mother planted and took care of them..........
The part of the plant that's left is doing wonderfully and I probably wont get another bloom, our weather should start to cool off here in another couple of weeks.

Lorna, my husband and I were just in you neck of the woods, (well, last year that is) we went to the Balloon Fiesta. We had our 5th wheel and camped in the camp ground out there. It was such a wonderful fiesta, there were so many balloons and the weather was perfect. Have you been to the fiesta yet since you moved down there? My husband's niece lives in Albuquerque, it was nice to have someone close who lives there.

There are several different kinds of hollyhocks, and of course climates vary. Some hollyhocks will throw up smaller, secondary stems when the first ones are removed. Some will live for two or three years if they are happy. Most will scatter seed far and wide and create new plants for years.

And if none of these things happen, you can always try again next year.

Rosefolly

Nana, no, I haven't been to the Balloon Festival. I don't care for crowds. My home is about twenty-five miles south of central Albuquerque. We sometimes have a smaller balloon festival out here, in March.

One day during the March festival a bunch of balloons travelled over my property. I was really surprised at how much noise they make, when the gas is fired up. Scared the heck out of most of my dogs! All but one dog fled into the house to hide. The bold one, a Samoyed, sat on the deck and barked at the balloons which passed over the house. A couple of the balloonists leaned over their baskets and called out to the dog. The look of surprise on the dog's face was priceless.

One balloonist had to set down across the street, pack everything up and be transported off by a small pick-up truck. It seemed a number of people in trucks were following the balloonists. Throughout the day I saw other hot air balloons being transported back on the roads.

I haven't seen many balloons this year. Usually this is a popular area for recreational ballooning. Probably the price of the fuel is too high.

Lorna

Margaret,
I always cut the stem at the base when most of the flowers are finished. It's good for the plant. I also will cut the leaves back if they start taking up too much room. They always grow new leaves after that.

Sue

Margaret, you were fine cutting the stem at the base of the plant. You should soon see new leaves and quite possibly new blooms. If so, your new flower stalks will most likely be shorter than your first round but the plants should be fuller. Cooler weather shouldn't stop them from blooming. I've had them bloom into Dec. The first snowfall usually does them in but I've even had some survive that if the temps warm up right away.

I have hollyhocks in all my beds and cut them down usually at the end of July. They start growing new leaves within days and some have already started blooming again. I like the way they look at 3-4 ft. almost as well as when they are towering over my 6'4" son's head. : )

I bet they come back for you, too. You may even be surprised to see they don't disappear completely in the winter. They are one tough cottage plant!

Diana

Hi,

Are you trying to tell me. If I cut my stems down. I will get new flowers! I've never done this. I live in suburban NY. Is it too late now. Most of my flowers have the seed pods ripe now. My hollyhocks were short this year. I think they were crowded. I have this one plant with notched leaves. It kept forming buds that turned brown and fell off.