Malva sylvestris

‘Brave Heart’

BRAVE HEART

FRENCH HOLLYHOCK MALLOW

No WA

Malva sylvestris ‘Brave Heart’
BRAVE HEART FRENCH HOLLYHOCK MALLOW

Malva sylvestris ‘Brave Heart’ is tough and beautiful.
Not permitted for entry to WA.

Velvety lilac flowers boldly striped with dark purple veins 

With velvety lilac-pink flowers boldly striped with dark purple veins.
Making large saucers of flowers, filled with plush colour.

Set off by velvety grey-green leaves

Rich flowers and grey-green velvet textured foliage, make an elegant combination.

Elegant but tough & hardy as old boots

Malva sylvestris ‘Brave Heart’ is actually as tough and hardy as old boots, despite the good looks.
It has a tough constitution, useful edible flowers and foliage, plus companion plant qualities.

Showy spires through spring, summer & autumn

Blooms are stacked upon 1m. tall flower spires.

Specially selected for abundant long blooming

‘Brave Heart’ bravely blooms and blooms and blooms for months.
And is considered one of the best Mallows because of its abundant, constant and lovely blooms.
This exceptional beauty occurred as a chance seedling and was almost lost.
But was fortunately spotted by legendary garden designer Valerie Finnis, who made sure it was propagated for future gardeners.

Like unusual striped Hollyhocks – But neater

Many people mistake ‘Brave Heart’ for some sort of unusual, striped Hollyhock.
Indeed the whole plant does look and behave like a well mannered Hollyhock, and the French claim them as Hollyhocks (hence the common name French Hollyhocks).
Malva sylvestris ‘Brave Heart’ is equally hardy, tough, and easy to grow, as any Hollyhock.
And equally spectacular in bloom as any Hollyhock – with those amazing deep velvety striped flowers.

Self supporting & not prone to blowing over

So this is the fake Hollyhock everyone can have, even in windy and exposed sites.
The branching flower spires do not usually need staking, unless they are over-fed or heavily shaded.
‘Brave Heart’ performs much better on a lean diet.

Cut spires for floristry

Stems of Malva sylvestris ‘Brave Heart’ are excellent for vases – lasting well when cut.

Edible flowers & foliage

The French Hollyhock Mallow is also a boon for cooks.
Because the flowers, foliage and seeds are all edible.

Use as a savoury vegetable

Toss tender young leaves into salads, and cook older leaves like Spinach (delicious with pine nuts & melted butter), cook with tomatoes and onions, dress pasta, or use them in soups and casseroles.
Malva is often used in traditional Mediterranean country cuisine as a thickener for soups.

Or in herbal teas & drinks

While the flowers are used to make herbal teas, traditionally believed to have anti-inflammatory benefits.
Or the leaves used to make anti-inflammatory poultices.
The seeds are also eaten raw or roasted as a healthy snack.
And the flowers and foliage have long been used to distill liquors.
While in some regions around the Mediterranean the tea or liquor is also regarded as an aphrodisiac.

For dye & papermaking

The foliage and flowers are traditional dye plants and used for paper-making.
This is the plant that just keeps on being useful.

Nectar feast for bees & pollinators 

The nectar rich striped blooms also drag the useful pollinators into your garden, and keep them there with such a long blooming season.

Traditional companion plant for fruit & vegetables

So it has always been a traditional companion plant for vegetable and fruit gardens.

Rabbit & deer resistant

Happily rabbits and deer do not like the taste of Malva, unlike we humans.

Care free & low maintenance

Malva sylvestris ‘Brave Heart’ is blissfully carefree to grow, and untroubled by any pests and diseases of consequence.
As long as it is planted in full sun.
It will also tolerate a little dry shade if you need (but it will become lanky in too much shade).

Heat & dry tolerant

‘Brave Heart’ is very valiant in hot summers, flowering away in heat and dry, with good drought resistance.
While just a little extra water will produce even more abundant blooms.

Highly tolerant of air pollution & poor soils

It is also highly tolerant of urban air pollution.
And copes well with soils of low fertility, and of a wide pH range from acid to alkaline; sandy, gravel or loam soils; as long as the soil is well drained.

Frost hardy & drought resistant

Malva sylvestris ‘Brave Heart’ is undaunted by frosts and well able to tolerate temperatures down to -20°C.
Similarly it is able to tolerate high summer heat, as it is native to areas of extreme temperature ranges, such as northern Africa.

Water-wise

It is a water-wise plant, needing very little additional watering to cope with dry seasons.

Low maintenance & neglect proof

While the ‘Brave Heart’ can survive quite well without any help from a brown-thumbed gardener.

Repeat blooming spring, summer & autumn

Your ‘Brave Heart’ can be kept busy with repeated branches of bloom – by cutting it back hard after each flowering. This brings on lots of lovely new fresh branches of blooms.
Cut back hard to ground in winter again, to make room for wonderful new growth in spring and another year of flower spires.

Hardy perennial

1m. tall when in flower spires  x 60cm. wide clump of velvety grey-green foliage.

SEED SOWING ADVICE: QUICK & EASY

Suitable for beginners & gardening with kids

Seeds of Malva sylvestris ‘Brave Heart’ can be sown in spring or autumn,
or at any time indoors when suitable temperatures can be provided (18-22°C).
OR
Scattered directly in the garden in autumn, late winter or early spring.

Sow Indoors for early plants: Sow the seeds in a punnet on the surface of good quality seed raising mix.
Now gently pat the seeds to the surface to ensure good contact.
Then lightly cover with mix or fine sandy grit.
You can now just keep them warm and moist and wait for nature to take its course, but there is a Tip to get things happening more quickly.

Tip for improving germination rates & speed: Seeds of Malva sylvestris ‘Brave Heart’ have a much better germination rate and speed, if they are pre-conditioned with a period of warm-cold first.

So thoroughly moisten the sown punnet by standing it in a shallow water bath.
And allowing the moisture to percolate up to the surface of the mix from below.

Then place punnet in a warm, well-lit position (not in any direct sunlight) for 2-4 weeks.

Temperatures of 18-22°C approx. are best for this warm pre-conditioning period (or you can just keep them here till they begin to germinate).
You can use a heat mat if you have one, but it is not essential.
The seeds often germinate at this stage without further treatment.
But if they are shy to germinate – then give them a pretend winter.

A pretend winter

So after the period of warm, wrap the moist, sown punnet in cling-wrap or a plastic bag and place in the fridge (not freezer) for 4-6 weeks.

Then remove and return to the warm, well lit position (not in any direct sunlight) at 18-22°C.

Continue to keep consistently moist by misting regularly from a spray water-bottle.
Placing a plastic lid or bag over the sown punnet will also help to maintain consistent moisture.
Remove cover as soon as germination has commenced.

Seedlings emerge in approx. 14-21 days.

Scatter seeds directly in the garden:
Scatter in a full sun position in soil that drains well and rake in gently.|
Continue to keep consistently moist for germination.

Seed Count: 20 seeds per pack approx.
(We always aim to exceed the stated seed count and give a generous serve).

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