FlowerHollyhock
Chaters Double Mixture Hollyhock
Chater's Double Mixture Hollyhock is a showstopping perennial that transforms garden backdrops with massive, fully double blooms in a mix of colors. These hardy plants reach 48 to 60 inches tall and flower reliably in zones 3 through 8, making them a cornerstone of cottage gardens and fence lines. The blooms can reach up to 5 inches across, creating the kind of garden presence that stops neighbors mid-stride. Second-year plants deliver the fullest display, rewarding patient gardeners with spectacular results.
Photo © True Leaf Market
Growing Conditions
USDA Zone
3-8
Sunlight
Full Sun
Water
Moderate
Soil
Well-drained, Fertile Loam
Growth Stats
60 in
Height
TypeBush
Spacing
18
Plant Profile
Sunlight
Full Sun
Water
Moderate
Zones
3-8
Size
60in H x ?in W
Growth
—
Care
High
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Highlights
Chater's Double Mixture produces enormous fully double flowers that look more like roses than traditional hollyhocks, each bloom reaching up to 5 inches across. The mixed color palette gives you variety from a single seed packet, and the robust 4 to 5-foot height makes these plants architectural elements that anchor the back of borders or create living walls along fences. Cold hardy through zone 3, they thrive where many ornamentals struggle, and they tolerate the summer heat that flattens less resilient perennials.
Common Uses
Chater's Double Mixture hollyhocks serve as dramatic vertical accents in garden design, prized for positioning along fences, at the back of perennial borders, and as living screens that add height and structure. The abundant double blooms make them popular cut flowers for arrangements, and their cottage garden aesthetic works equally well in formal and informal garden settings.
Growing Timeline
No timeline data available yet for this variety.
Care Instructions
Start Indoors
Start seeds indoors 6 to 8 weeks before your last spring frost, sowing them on the soil surface or just barely covered since they benefit from light exposure during germination. Maintain soil temperature around 70 degrees Fahrenheit for reliable sprouting.
Transplant Outdoors
Transplant seedlings outdoors after the last frost date when they have developed 2 to 3 true leaves. Harden off plants gradually by exposing them to outdoor conditions over 7 to 10 days before moving them to their permanent location. Space transplants 18 inches apart.
Direct Sow
Direct sow seeds in autumn in mild climates or early spring as soon as the soil is workable, pressing them into the soil surface where they can receive light for germination.
Pruning
Remove spent flower stalks after blooming to encourage continued flower production and maintain plant appearance. Deadhead regularly throughout the flowering season. In late fall or early spring, remove any dead or damaged growth from the previous season to make way for fresh stems.
Growing Calendar
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Companion Planting
Pests & Diseases
Ecology & Traits
Scientific Classification
Alcea rosea
Family
Malvaceae
Genus
Alcea
Growth Habit
Bush
Native Status
L48 (I)PR (I)CAN (I)
History & Origin
“The Chater's strain of hollyhocks represents a major horticultural achievement in the 19th century, when breeders first developed fully double varieties from the simple single-flowered Alcea rosea. These improved strains became prized among Victorian gardeners who valued the abundant, rose-like blooms for their formal borders. The Double Mixture carries that heritage into modern gardens, allowing contemporary growers to experience the same floral abundance that captivated previous generations of gardeners.”