Hollyhocks -- Alcea setosa
Job 30:4 talks about the people collecting mallows. Today, we know these plants as Malva and Alcea plant genera. The leaves from these plants were used in soups and salads. The wild hollyhock (originally called Holy Hocks by the Crusaders) is seldom available as seed today. Most gardeners will settle for our cultivated hollyhock, Alcea rosea to represent this plant family. Special note: This plant is ravaged by leaf miners every year. It is best to surround this plant with others that will conceal its foliage. Find one of the "single-flowered" cultivars rather than the newer "powder puff" cultivars since it will be closer to the original wild variety. [Usually acts as a biennial.]
Cultivation: Plant in any good garden soil. It is winter hardy to -30°F
Holy Thistle -- Silybum marianum
The thistle discussed in Genesis 3:17-18, Isaiah 34:13, and Matthew 13:7 is most likely the one we call Holy Thistle or Lady's Thistle or Milk Thistle. This is an attractive plant with variegated leaves. Thompson & Morgan carries a cultivar named 'Adriana' which has white flowers. Be sure to plant it at the back of the border and away from paths because it is thorny. Some people eat the young shoots as a vegetable. The seeds are dried and used in herbal medicine.
Cultivation: This plant will grow anywhere thistles are likely to grow. It is best to treat it as an annual and remove it completely each year.
Hyacinths -- Hyacinthus orientalis
The Song of Solomon 6:2 mentions the gathering of lilies. Botanists believe the lilies referred to were really wild hyacinths. These are sweetly scented and bloom in blues, purples, and bluish whites. They are native to Palestine. The Dutch took them home and have developed many brilliant colors for us today. For the sake of authenticity, grow only those that bloom in the blues and purples of the wild variety. [A word of caution when planting: use gloves because many people experience allergic reactions to handling the bulbs.]
Cultivation: Plant in any well-drained soil. Plant at least 6 inches deep in a full sun location. Plant about 5 bulbs per square foot.
Iris -- Iris pseudacorus
Hosea 14:5 is translated various ways. After careful study, Bible botanists concluded that the plant mentioned here is Yellow Flag Iris, a plant well known in Palestine. One translation describes them as plants with roots like a popular. Poplars send up suckers from their roots. It seems logical that the people observed how the Iris spread by what we call rhizomes today. They grow on the banks of streams, rivers and lakes. Their bloom is bright yellow. That makes them visible for quite a distance.
Cultivation: Iris grows best in a moist, quick draining loam. Plant them 3-4 inches deep where they will receive full sun or slight shade. Potential problem: iris borers (pinkish-brown pupas) in soil around roots destroy entire plant. Replant iris in a different garden location. Iris bloom only on the tips of the rhizomes. They need to be divided every few years with the older rhizomes discarded.
