Hollyhock – Identify Seedlings

Q: These two identical plants sprouted in my flower bed after a flood. Even though they look familiar I cannot seem to identify them. Can you?

A: They look like hollyhock to me. Hollyhock plants drop numerous seed after they bloom. Your flood might have deposited seed in your flower bed from another part of the yard.

Hollyhocks are biennial by nature. That means they need a short season of growth, then cold weather, then warm weather, in order to bloom.

You can transplant these seedlings when it gets warm in April. They will survive winter just fine and will produce a tall stalk covered with blooms in May.