From Tiny Seeds to Tall Purple Trumpets
A friendly guide to sowing, growing and enjoying Malope 'Purple Queen' in Hungary.
Come Into the Garden With Me…
Today, we're growing Malope - specifically the wonderfully dramatic 'Purple Queen'.
If you have never grown Malope before, you may look at the seed packet and wonder why this flower is not in every summer garden. It grows quickly, reaches around 90 cm, carries large silky flowers on strong stems and asks for surprisingly little in return.
The flowers are the part that stops you. They are broad and trumpet-shaped, in a rich purple to purple-pink colour, with darker veins running through the petals as though someone has drawn them in by hand.
Malope belongs to the mallow family, so the flowers may remind you of hollyhocks or other mallows. But this is not a perennial mallow waiting years to settle in. Malope trifida is an annual: seed to flower to seed again in one growing season.
That makes it especially satisfying for a beginner. We sow in spring, watch the seedlings grow with astonishing speed, plant or thin them into place, and by summer we have tall flowering plants that can fill gaps in a border and provide stems for the vase.
For Hungarian gardens, the timing suits us beautifully. The Buzzy packet sold by Holland Kerteszet recommends sowing outdoors from mid-April into May. By then the soil is warming, days are lengthening and the plant can grow into the warm part of our season.
So this book is going to follow one complete Malope year: from that first spring sowing to the last flowers, the seed pods and the moment when autumn finally closes the season.
Ready? Let's grow something tall, purple and wonderfully uncomplicated.
1. Meet Malope
The botanical name is Malope trifida. It belongs to the Malvaceae family - the same broad family that includes many familiar mallows and hollyhocks.
The species comes from the western Mediterranean region, including parts of Portugal, Spain, Malta and north-western Africa. That background helps explain why it enjoys sunshine and warmth, yet still appreciates soil that does not become bone-dry for weeks at a time.
Malope grows upright and bushy, usually around 90 cm tall in the garden. The stems are strong, the leaves are green and lobed, and the flowers appear along the upper parts of the stems through summer.
The flowers look delicate because the petals are thin and silky, but the plant itself is not delicate. This combination - graceful flower, sturdy plant - is one of Malope's great charms.
Annual means one glorious season
Malope 'Purple Queen' is an annual. It germinates, grows, flowers, forms seed and finishes its life cycle within one season. That does not mean you only ever see it once. If you allow some seed to mature, you can collect it for the following year, and in favourable places you may even find a few volunteers appearing on their own.
|
GOOD TO KNOW Malope is sometimes called annual mallow or mallow-wort. Do not confuse it with the perennial mallows in the genus Malva. For our garden, think of Malope as a fast-growing summer annual with the look of a mallow flower. |
2. The Malope We Grow With You
At Holland Kerteszet, the Malope in our current seed range is Buzzy Malope 'Purple Queen' - 1.5 g. The variety is listed at about 90 cm tall and is intended for outdoor sowing in April and May.
Why 'Purple Queen'?
The name is well chosen. The flowers are a deep purple to purple-pink, with strong darker veins radiating from the centre. In bright sun those veins make every flower look almost hand-painted.
The flowers are large enough to show clearly from a distance, which matters on a plant nearly a metre tall. From across the garden you see a tall haze of purple; close up, you see all the fine detail in the petals.
The stems are strong and generally self-supporting in ordinary garden conditions. In a very exposed, windy garden, a little support can still be sensible, but this is not normally a plant that needs elaborate staking.
It is also useful as a cut flower. That gives us two gardens at once: one outside, and a little piece of it brought indoors in a vase.
|
GROW WITH US Our packet is Buzzy Malope 'Purple Queen' - 1.5 g. Sow outdoors from mid-April to May, grow it in a sunny position, and expect plants of roughly 90 cm. It is a particularly good choice for a tall border, cottage-style planting or a cutting patch. |
3. Finding the Right Place
Before sowing, walk around the garden and look for light. Malope performs best in full sun. A little light shade is tolerated, but if you want strong stems and abundant flowers, sunshine is your friend.
In Hungary, a sunny border, a vegetable-garden edge being used for flowers, a cutting bed, or the back half of a mixed annual bed can all work beautifully.
Give it room to be tall
At around 90 cm, Purple Queen is not a front-of-border plant. Put it behind low flowers such as alyssum, dwarf marigolds or compact calendula, or weave it among medium-height annuals where its flowers can rise above the surrounding foliage.
Soil: ordinary is fine
Malope is not particularly fussy about soil type. Moderately fertile garden soil is enough. The important part is that water can drain away rather than sitting permanently around the roots.
If you garden on heavy Hungarian clay, do not automatically add huge amounts of fertiliser. Instead, focus first on structure and drainage. A slightly raised planting area can be more useful than feeding an already rich soil.
If your soil is sandy and dries very quickly, adding mature compost can help it hold moisture more evenly.
|
A COMMON MISTAKE Putting a tall annual in the only empty space without asking why that space is empty. If the spot is deep shade, permanently wet or extremely exposed to wind, Malope may struggle even though it is an easy plant elsewhere. |
4. Let's Sow
This is one of the nicest things about Malope: we can keep the sowing simple.
The Buzzy instructions recommend sowing outdoors from mid-April through May in a seedbed, then planting out after roughly five to six weeks. You can also direct-sow into the final position if you are careful about spacing and weeds.
A Hungarian spring note
Mid-April can feel like summer one day and early March the next. Malope is a hardy annual, but newly germinated seedlings are still small and vulnerable. If a sharp late frost is forecast just as your seedlings are emerging, temporary fleece protection is sensible.
If the soil is cold, saturated and sticky, wait. A seed does not care what date is printed on the calendar. It cares whether the conditions around it allow germination.
By late April and into May, conditions are usually much more dependable across much of Hungary.
Step by step
Prepare a patch of fine, weed-free soil. Break down large clods and rake the surface level.
Sow the seeds thinly. Do not pour the entire packet into one small hole. Spread them so each seedling has a chance to develop without immediate competition.
Cover lightly with soil and water gently so you do not wash the seed into piles.
Keep the seedbed evenly moist while germination begins. Once seedlings are established, gradually move toward deeper, less frequent watering rather than constant surface sprinkling.
|
DON'T PANIC Not every seedling appears on the same morning. Give the seedbed time, keep it gently moist and resist the urge to dig around looking for seeds. Gardening contains a surprising amount of waiting. |
5. From Seedling to Strong Plant
When Malope gets going, it grows quickly. The first seedlings may look modest, but soon the stems lengthen and the leaves begin to give the plant real presence.
Thin before they crowd each other
If you direct-sowed too generously, thinning is not a failure. It is good gardening. Crowded plants compete for light, water and air, and they often become weaker and more prone to problems.
Aim for roughly 25-30 cm between plants. If you sowed in a seedbed, transplant the strongest seedlings after about five to six weeks into their final positions at similar spacing.
Water after moving them and keep the soil from drying completely while new roots establish.
Do we need to pinch?
Malope naturally branches and usually produces plenty of flowering stems without complicated training. If a young plant is becoming very tall and unbranched, a light pinch can encourage branching, but it is not essential. For a first season, I would keep things simple and let the plant show you its natural shape.
|
WHAT I WOULD DO Grow a small group rather than one lonely plant. Five to seven Malope plants together create a much stronger effect, give you more stems for cutting and make it easier to see how the variety behaves in your own garden. |
6. Summer Arrives
By early summer the plants begin to look substantial. Buds form, stems stretch, and then the first purple flower opens.
This is when Malope earns its place. The blooms are large, open and silky, but because they are held on upright stems they do not make the border feel heavy.
Watering in Hungarian heat
Established Malope tolerates warm weather, but abundant flowering is better when the plant does not repeatedly wilt from drought. During prolonged hot, dry periods, water deeply rather than giving a tiny splash every evening.
A deep watering encourages roots to explore a larger volume of soil. Surface sprinkling encourages the opposite.
Mulch around established plants if your soil dries quickly, but leave a little breathing space around the stem base rather than piling mulch directly against it.
Feeding
In ordinary garden soil, Malope should not need heavy feeding. Too much nitrogen can give you an impressive quantity of leaves at the expense of flowers. In poor soil or containers, a modest balanced feed can help, but this is not a plant that needs constant fertiliser attention.
|
A COMMON MISTAKE Seeing a 90 cm plant and assuming it must need rich feeding. Height is part of Malope's natural character. Feed the soil reasonably, then let the plant do the rest. |
7. Flowers for the Garden - and the Vase
In the garden
Deadhead faded flowers if you want the plant to keep directing energy into new buds. You do not need to inspect every flower daily; a quick pass once or twice a week is enough.
If you enjoy a looser, more natural garden, allow some flowers to remain and form seed later in the season. That gives you material to collect for next year.
For cutting
Malope is genuinely useful as a cut flower. Choose stems with fresh, newly opened flowers and additional buds developing along the stem.
Cut early in the morning if possible, use clean snips and place the stems into clean water promptly. Remove any foliage that would sit below the waterline.
Purple Queen combines beautifully with white cosmos, ammi, pale snapdragons, grasses, dahlias and airy herbs. You do not need an enormous bouquet. Three Malope stems with something light and green can be enough.
|
TRY THIS Cut a few stems even if you think the border looks too beautiful to disturb. Cutting encourages you to look closely at the flowers, and the plant usually has plenty more waiting to open. |
8. Designing With Purple Queen
Purple is easy to combine, but Purple Queen is a strong purple, so I like giving it partners that either calm it down or deliberately make the colour sing.
Soft and romantic
Combine it with white cosmos, pale pink annuals, white snapdragons or silvery foliage. The result is soft, slightly old-fashioned and perfect for a cottage-style border.
Bold summer colour
Pair it with orange calendula, yellow marigolds or warm dahlias. Purple and orange are opposites on the colour wheel, so together they look vivid and energetic.
Natural and airy
Mix Malope with ornamental grasses, cornflowers, annual scabious and other meadow-like annuals. Keep enough space between plants that you can still see the individual stems rather than creating one solid wall of foliage.
|
DESIGN IDEA Repeat Purple Queen in two or three groups through a long border. Repetition makes the planting look intentional and allows the eye to travel through the garden rather than stopping at one isolated purple clump. |
9. Growing Malope in Containers
Can Malope grow in a pot? Yes - but remember the mature size. A 90 cm annual deserves a substantial container, not a tiny balcony pot.
Choose a deep, stable pot with excellent drainage. A broad base also helps prevent the whole arrangement becoming top-heavy in wind.
Use good-quality container compost and place the pot in full sun. Container plants dry more quickly than plants in open ground, so watering becomes more important during July and August.
In a large container, one Malope can become the tall centre or back element, with shorter trailing or mounding flowers around the edge.
On an exposed balcony, use a discreet cane or place the pot where a wall gives some wind protection. Strong stems are helpful, but no tall container plant enjoys being battered by repeated gusts.
|
BALCONY NOTE A sunny Hungarian balcony can become extremely hot. Check the compost with your finger rather than watering automatically by the clock. Water when the upper layer has begun to dry, and water thoroughly enough to moisten the root zone. |
10. When Something Goes Wrong
Aphids
Aphids can gather on tender shoots and buds. Check new growth regularly. Small infestations can often be washed away or removed by hand. Encouraging ladybirds, lacewings and hoverflies gives you natural help.
Rust
Malope can occasionally be affected by rust diseases, which may appear as discoloured spots or pustules on leaves. Give plants sensible spacing and air circulation, water the soil rather than repeatedly wetting foliage, and remove badly affected leaves.
Tall, weak growth
If plants are stretching and leaning, first look at light. Too much shade encourages weak growth. Excessive nitrogen can contribute as well. In a very windy position, support may simply be practical.
Not many flowers
Check sun, feeding and water. A healthy plant in strong light with moderate nutrition should flower well. Constant drought stress can reduce the display, while excessive feeding may produce foliage instead.
|
DON’T DIAGNOSE FROM ONE LEAF One yellow leaf does not mean the plant has a disease. Look at the whole plant, the soil moisture, recent weather and new growth before deciding there is a serious problem. |
11. Saving Seed for Next Year
Annuals have one final gift after the flowers finish: seed.
Choose a few healthy flowers near the end of the season and stop deadheading them. Allow the seed structures to mature and dry on the plant as far as weather allows.
Collect on a dry day. Place the seed heads into a paper bag or open container and allow them to finish drying somewhere airy and sheltered.
Separate the seed from dry plant material, label it clearly with the variety and year, and store it cool and dry.
Purple Queen is a named variety, but seed saved in a garden where other Malope varieties are flowering nearby may not always reproduce every detail exactly. That little element of surprise can be part of the fun.
|
LABEL IT NOW Do not trust February-you to remember what August-you put into an unmarked envelope. Write 'Malope Purple Queen' and the year on the packet before you walk back into the house. |
12. A Simple Malope Calendar for Hungary
MARCH Choose the planting place, clear weeds and prepare the soil. If you want an early protected start, a small sowing indoors is possible.
APRIL From mid-month, begin sowing outdoors as soil and weather conditions improve.
MAY Continue sowing. Thin direct-sown seedlings or transplant seedbed plants after about five to six weeks.
JUNE Plants grow rapidly and the first flowers may begin. Water young plants during dry spells.
JULY Main flowering. Deadhead, cut stems for the vase and water deeply during prolonged heat.
AUGUST Keep cutting and deadheading. Allow selected flowers to begin forming seed.
SEPTEMBER Flowering can continue in favourable weather. Collect mature seed on dry days.
OCTOBER After frost or natural decline, remove spent plants and compost healthy material.
NOVEMBER-FEBRUARY Store seed dry, make notes about what worked, and decide where Purple Queen will return next year.
|
THE RHYTHM OF THE PLANT Malope is a one-season story: sow in spring, grow fast, flower through summer, save seed in autumn. That simple rhythm is exactly why it is such a satisfying annual for beginners. |
13. Your Malope Cheat Sheet
• Variety: Malope 'Purple Queen'
• Botanical name: Malope trifida
• Life cycle: annual
• Height: about 90 cm
• Position: full sun
• Soil: moderately fertile, moist but well-drained
• Main sowing period: mid-April to May outdoors
• Transplant from a seedbed after around 5-6 weeks
• Final spacing: roughly 25-30 cm
• Water more carefully while young and during prolonged drought
• Deadhead to prolong flowering
• Excellent for tall borders and cut flowers
• Strong stems usually need little support
• Watch for aphids and occasional rust
• Save seed from mature dry seed heads for next year
|
IF YOU REMEMBER ONLY FIVE THINGS Sun. Sow in spring. Give it space. Keep cutting or deadheading. Save a little seed at the end. |
14. Frequently Asked Questions
Is Malope the same as mallow?
Not exactly. Malope and Malva both belong to the mallow family, but they are different genera. Purple Queen is Malope trifida, an annual grown for one summer, while many garden mallows are biennial or perennial.
Can I sow Purple Queen directly where it will flower?
Yes. Malope responds very well to direct sowing. Prepare a clean seedbed from mid-April into May, sow thinly, cover lightly and thin the seedlings so the final plants have room to branch.
Will it flower again next year?
The individual plant will not, because Malope is annual. But you can save mature seed and sow again in spring. In a suitable garden, a few self-sown seedlings may also appear.
|
BEGINNER'S ANSWER If you can grow cosmos or cornflowers from seed, you can grow Malope. Give it sun, a spring sowing and ordinary well-drained soil, and it will do most of the rest itself. |
15. And Then One Morning…
There is a flower.
After weeks of green growth, one bud opens and suddenly the plant makes sense. The purple petals unfold, the darker veins become visible, and that ordinary patch of soil you sowed in April has become part of the summer garden.
Then more flowers open. The stems rise through the border. Bees investigate them. You cut a few for the kitchen table. A plant you may never have heard of a few months earlier becomes one you start planning for next year.
And because Malope gives seed at the end, the story does not have to stop when autumn arrives.
One last walk around the garden
We began with a packet of Buzzy 'Purple Queen' seed. We found a sunny place, sowed as spring warmed, thinned the seedlings, watered thoughtfully and watched a tall summer annual fill itself with purple flowers.
Now you know the difference between Malope and perennial mallow, when to sow in Hungary, how to use Purple Queen in a border or pot, how to cut it for the vase, what to watch for when something goes wrong and how to save seed for another year.
Your own garden will teach you the details no book can: whether your best sowing date is mid-April or early May, which corner gives the strongest stems, how much water your soil holds in July and which flowers look best beside that deep purple.
Until then, enjoy the flowers. And whenever you're ready to grow something new… Come into the garden with me.
We're growing Malope.
