Lavateria is so beautiful. Will it grow for ever more if left to its own devices?

Question

Is miniature relatively new or has it been around for some time ?

Answer 1

Lavatera has been around for ages. The variety Lavatera x clementii 'Barnsley Baby' is one dwarf cultivar and it's fairly new (within the last 5 years or so).

These are classified as a perennial herb/shrub so they persist year after year. They are hardy to around USDA zone 5. They grow fairly quickly and produce striking blooms that are similar to hollyhocks and attract butterflies. The unfortunate thing is that they are not very long lived and can sometimes mysteriously just up and die on you. It will be going fine and then suddenly it will just drop dead. Very strange. The good thing is that they grow quickly and are not that expensive so you can start over again easily.

http://plants.thompson-morgan.com/uk/en/...

Hope this helps! :)

Answer 2

Yes, it is a perennial shrub and will grow each year usually bearing beautiful lilac coloured flowers. If you have a very large garden you can just let it go. If you have a smallish garden you need to prune it quite heavily in October before the frosts come. Cut out all the old dead wood and then cut back say one third of the branches above a leaf joint and it will recover and give you a wonderful show the following year.

Answer 3

Lavatera[1] is a genus of about 25 species of flowering plants in the family Malvaceae, native to the Mediterranean region, central and eastern Asia, and Australia. A number of species previously listed in this genus have now been transferred to the related genus Malva. Lavatera species are known as tree mallows, or rather ambiguously as "rose mallows", "royal mallows" or "annual mallows".

The genus includes annual, biennial and perennial herbaceous plants and soft-wooded shrubs, growing from 1-3 m tall. The leaves are spirally arranged, and palmately lobed. The flowers are conspicuous, 4-12 cm diameter, with five white, pink or red petals; they are produced in terminal clusters.

Lavatera species are used as food plants by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species including Bucculatrix lavaterella, which feeds exclusively on these plants. Flowers of several species are also used as food by humans.

Annual

Botanically, an annual plant is a plant that usually germinates, flowers and dies in one year. True annuals will only live longer than a year if they are prevented from setting seed. Some seedless plants can also be considered annuals even though they do not flower

Biennial

A biennial plant is a flowering plant that takes two years to complete its lifecycle. In the first year the plant grows leaves, stems, and roots (vegetative structures), then it enters a period of dormancy over the colder months. Usually the stem remains very short and the leaves are low to the ground, forming a rosette. Many biennials require a cold treatment, or vernalization, before they will flower. During the next spring or summer, the stem of the biennial plant elongates greatly, or "bolts". The plant then flowers, producing fruits and seeds before it finally dies. There are far fewer biennials than either perennials or annuals.

A perennial plant or perennial (Latin per, "through", annus, "year") is a plant that lives for more than two years.[1] When used as a noun, this term applies specifically to perennial herbaceous plants, even though woody plants like shrubs and trees are also perennial in their habit.

Perennials, especially small flowering plants, grow and bloom over the spring and summer and then die back every autumn and winter, then return in the spring from their root-stock rather than seeding themselves as an annual plant does. These are known as herbaceous perennials. However, depending on the rigors of local climate, a plant that is a perennial in its native habitat, or in a milder garden, may be treated by a gardener as an annual and planted out every year, from seed, from

Answer 4

i have one in my garden and i have to keep cutting it back otherwise it runs wild,don't know about miniature soz  :)

Answer 5

No Lavateria (tree mallow) has been around for a long time. It'll do fine each year so long as you check that it's base is secure as they have a tendency to be prone to "wind Rot" Basically the wind blows it about and loosens it in the ground in spite of it's size and this causes the trunk to rot. Try to plant it in a sheltered spot that isn't very windy.