Growing Mallow (High Mallow): A Complete Profile
By Growing Home Greens Team · August 19, 2026
High mallow is a biennial, which puts it in a small group here: it occupies its square for two seasons and flowers in the second one.
The first year looks like nothing happened
A spring sowing typically makes leaves and not much else. Flowers arrive from mid-summer to early fall, and Illinois Wildflowers records that bloom period lasting about two months once it starts. If you want colour in year one, this is the wrong plant. If you want something that holds a square through winter and starts early the following summer, it is a good fit.
One of the few that prefers dappled light
Most of the flower list here wants full sun. High mallow is recorded as preferring partial or dappled sunlight in fertile, loamy soil with steady moisture, which makes it useful for the north side of a taller crop or a bed that sits in a building’s shadow for part of the day. At two to three feet it is tall enough to shade its neighbours, so it belongs on the north edge itself.
Naturalised here, not native
Worth knowing before you plant it: high mallow came from Europe and has naturalised across scattered parts of North America rather than being native to it. Illinois Wildflowers notes it rarely persists in the wild, so it is not on any invasive list, but it does self-seed in a bed. Pull the volunteers you do not want while they are small.
The plant is sold on seed racks under several names, including French hollyhock, which is a reasonable description of the flower and no relation to the hollyhock here.
Source: Illinois Wildflowers, High Mallow.
Companion planting guide for Mallow (High Mallow) · Find your planting dates
Typically viable in USDA zones 4-8. Not sure your zone? Look it up by ZIP code.
Mature height: 2-3 ft
Method: Direct sow: Direct-sow outside. It doesn't transplant well, or doesn't need the extra time indoors.
When to plant mallow (high mallow), by zone
Every zone mallow (high mallow) grows in. Pick your zone in the header and it will be highlighted here. Each zone links to its full page.
| Zone | Start indoors | Sow or plant out | Bloom |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4a & 4b | Not usually | May 15–May 22 | Sep 2–Sep 9 |
| 5a & 5b | Not usually | May 10–May 17 | Aug 28–Sep 4 |
| 6a & 6b | Not usually | Apr 25–May 2 | Aug 13–Aug 20 |
| 7a & 7b | Not usually | Apr 10–Apr 17 | Jul 29–Aug 5 |
| 8a & 8b | Not usually | Mar 25–Apr 1 | Jul 13–Jul 20 |
Bloom dates are about 110 days after the sow or plant-out date.
See exact start-indoors, direct-sow, and harvest dates for your zone →
How many Mallow (High Mallow) plants fit per square foot?
Spacing: about 4 square feet per plant (square-foot-gardening spacing). Mature height: 2-3 ft.
Where to buy mallow seeds
None of the seed suppliers we list carries mallow seeds right now. A local garden center or a specialty seed house is the place to look.
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See it growing
Search YouTube for "growing mallow (high mallow)" videos → (a live search, not a hand-picked video; results vary and aren't vetted by us)
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Growing Mallow (High Mallow): A two to three foot biennial that flowers in its second summer and tolerates the dappled shade most flowers refuse.
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