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Malvaceae FAMILY

Lavatera thuringiaca

Lavatera thuringiaca

Edibility
3/5
Medicinal
0/5

Safety & Hazards

None known

Cultivation Details

HabitPerennial
GrowthFast

An easily grown plant, succeeding in any ordinary garden soil[1]. Prefers a light well-drained moderately fertile soil in full sun[2]. A soil that is too rich encourages foliar growth at the expense of flowering[2]. Tolerates maritime exposure[2]. Plants are hardy to about -20°c[3]. There are many named forms selected for their ornamental value[2]. The cultivar 'Barnsley' usually produces new shoots from the base in the autumn and winter. It is therefore a potential winter salad plant, though the texture of the leaves is not that wonderful[PFAF].

Propagation

Seed - sow spring in a cold frame and only just cover the seed[2]. Germination is usually quick and good. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle and plant them out in early summer[PFAF]. Basal cuttings in spring. Cuttings of softwood in early summer/July[4]. Cite as: Temperate Plants Database, Ken Fern. temperate.theferns.info. 2026-02-21. <temperate.theferns.info/plant/Lavatera+thuringiaca>

Pollinators

Insects

References

  1. [1]RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 — F. Chittendon. · Oxford University Press · 1951 · ISBN - ↩︎Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaced in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [ 200 ]).
  2. [2]The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. — Huxley. A. · MacMillan Press · 1992 · ISBN 0-333-47494-5 ↩︎Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
  3. [3]Perennials. Volumes 1 and 2. — Phillips. R. & Rix. M. · Pan Books · 1991 · ISBN 0-330-30936-9 ↩︎Photographs of over 3,000 species and cultivars of ornamental plants together with brief cultivation notes, details of habitat etc.
  4. [4]The RHS Gardener's Encyclopedia of Plants and Flowers — Brickell. C. · Dorling Kindersley Publishers Ltd. · 1990 · ISBN 0-86318-386-7 ↩︎Excellent range of photographs, some cultivation details but very little information on plant uses.
  5. [5]Flowers of Europe - A Field Guide. — Polunin. O. · Oxford University Press · 1969 · ISBN 0192176218 ↩︎An excellent and well illustrated pocket guide for those with very large pockets. Also gives some details on plant uses.
  6. [6]Flora of Turkey. — Davis. P. H. · Edinburgh University Press · 1965 · ISBN - ↩︎Not for the casual reader, this is an immense work in many volumes. Some details of plant uses and habitats.
  7. [7]Flora of the USSR. — Komarov. V. L. · Israel Program for Scientific Translation · 1968 · http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org · ISBN - ↩︎An immense (25 or more large volumes) and not yet completed translation of the Russian flora. Full of information on plant uses and habitats but heavy going for casual readers. It can be downloaded from the Internet.
  8. [PFAF]Plants for a Future — pfaf.org ↩︎