Malva thuringiaca
A tall, long-flowering pink mallow of steppe and dry meadows; it yields good nectar and abundant pollen all summer.
- Nectar
- Good
- Pollen
- Good
- Flowering
- JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
- Pollen colour
- Height
- 1-2 m
- Life cycle
- Perennial
🐝 Add to my apiary
Log in to add it to your apiary.Value for beekeeping
Malva thuringiaca is a large, pink-flowered perennial of the mallow family growing on steppe, dry grassland and roadsides from central and eastern Europe to Anatolia, the Caucasus and Central Asia. The flowers offer easily reached nectar and plenty of coarse-grained pollen; honey bees and bumblebees visit regularly all summer. The tree lavateras common in gardens are hybrids of this species and its close relatives.
Flowering
From June to September it keeps opening new flowers at the branch tips, providing a long-lasting source.
Honey and pollen
No single-flower honey is produced; it contributes to steppe honeys. The pollen loads are whitish.
Note for the beekeeper
In current classification the genus Lavatera has been merged into Malva. Being drought-tolerant and long-flowering, it can be recommended among the perennials to plant around the apiary against the summer dearth.