Malva sylvestris
Royal mallow, large mallow, wild mallow, “little cheese”: this last nickname comes from its round, ridged fruits, which children in the past nibbled while calling them “little cheeses.” Its large purple flowers veined with dark lines make it one of the most beautiful perennials for roadsides, long cultivated in herb gardens.
Characteristics:
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Large veined flowers: purple to violet, marked with darker veins, from June to September.
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Short-lived perennial: it lives for two to three years but self-seeds so generously that it becomes a lasting fixture.
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Very undemanding: once established, it does not need watering and requires no maintenance.
Sowing advice:
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Position: sunny; it tolerates light partial shade.
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Soil: ordinary, rather poor and well drained; it tolerates lime perfectly. Important: it flowers noticeably better in poor soil than in rich soil, where it mainly produces foliage and becomes susceptible to rust. Do not fertilize.
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Method: sow directly in place in spring, lightly covering the seeds. Its taproot does not tolerate transplanting well: avoid sowing in pots. Thin to 40 cm apart. No soaking or stratification. See how to sow your seeds.
Care advice:
- Almost none. Cut it back after flowering, or let it go to seed for natural self-sowing. Keep the base of the plants well ventilated to limit rust, its only real weakness.
Beneficial pairings:
Benefits for biodiversity:
- Highly attractive to pollinators, it draws bees and bumblebees over a long summer flowering period.
- Like all mallows, it is a host plant for butterfly caterpillars, notably the painted lady, a migratory species that crosses the Mediterranean every year.
Uses:
- The flowers and young leaves are edible: the colorful petals decorate salads, while the leaves can be prepared like spinach. See our edible flowers.
- A plant traditionally used as an infusion since Antiquity. See our medicinal plants to sow.
Harvesting your own seeds:
Wait until the small wheel-shaped fruits turn brown and dry on the plant, then detach them: each one separates into segments containing a seed. Mallow self-seeds so well that it returns on its own every year. See how to save your seeds.
Commitment to Quality: at SemiSauvage - Permaculture, we grow and select our seeds with respect for living things as our guiding principle. Based near the Volcanoes of Auvergne, we choose open-pollinated, non-hybrid varieties, test them for germination rates, and carefully sort and package them without any chemical treatment. Our conviction: to give gardeners back the ability to resow, year after year, seeds that truly belong to them.
Add these royal mallow seeds to create a lively garden that welcomes bees and butterflies.
