Oh, Those Hollyhocks!

Beautiful June day with cool breezes and sunny skies in the afternoon. I divided a houseplant and took a look around the garden to see what was new.  The hollyhocks had bloomed.

What wasn't new was the rust that has invaded them due to the rainy weather in the past two weeks. 

This busy bee didn't mind the spots on the leaves--but I do!  The rust spreads and saps energy from the plants.  The hollyhocks had rust last year also, but not this early, or this extreme.

So I got busy as a bee on the Internet trying to find an organic solution.  I had been using a fungicidal spray from Paul & Sandy's but didn't want to use any more chemicals on the plants--or me.  I may have to pull the hollyhocks up and throw them out...

I found this recipe in various places on the web and hope it works.  It's worth a try for a couple of weeks before I give up and destroy the plants.

1 gallon of water
1 teaspooon of liquid soap (Ivory)
1 tablespoon of canola oil
1 teaspoon of baking soda
1/2 cup of white vinegar

Mix it up and spray it on the upper and under sides of leaves weekly. Shake well and often while spraying. Do not spray in the hot sun.

I also found that you can sprinkle corn meal on the ground and moisten it to absorb the fungus spores.

Otherwise, the garden was in good condition.

The pansies under the garden faucet in the shade are still perky.

The roses are in full bloom.

The Cleome or spider plant I just planted with Cosmos are doing well.

The astilbe is blooming. The reader looks like she's reading a hosta leaf.

The hosta is going to bloom soon.

And also the butterfly bush is ready to reveal its color for the hummingbirds and butterflies and bees.

And, of course, Mr. Sparrow, King of the Garden

since he has threatened all other birds away from the flower bed,

is happily mating and rebuilding the nest for his next family.

I'd like him to go but it's just too cruel.

Pulling hollyhocks is hard enough,

but throwing out nests in even harder.