Marsh-mallow

Marshmallows were once made from this

Marsh mallow, the native hollyhock, is velvety soft to the touch and rises far above the surrounding vegetation. This rare species grows in brushwood and along ditches, mostly on (formerly) brackish ground. In ancient times the leaf, flower and white, somewhat slimy, roots were used for infections of the airways and urinary tract, mouth and throat. The species name Althaea is derived from the Greek word altho (cure). The name ‘marsh mallow’ is presumably a play on the name Hibiscus, another genus from the same family. Marsh mallow was also used in the past for food and fibre: the roots for salads, the vessels for rope and paper. The famously spongy marshmallow sweet, made of sugar, corn syrup, beaten egg white, gelatine Arabic gum and flavourings, traditionally used an extract of marsh mallow root.

Ecology and habitat

Marsh mallow occurs from central Asia across to west Europe, but in the Netherlands it mainly grows in the delta region and (in the past) the brackish part of Noord-Holland. Marsh mallow prefers sunny sites on damp to very wet, nutrient-rich, mostly brackish clay or peat land. In coastal regions it prefers rubbish tips, higher parts of salt marsh, and immature beach flats that are surrounded, to a greater extent, by dunes.

Threat

Marsh mallow is very rare in Zeeland, in the lowland peat bogs of Noord-Holland and along the IJsselmeer in Zuidwest-Friesland. It has disappeared from polders that have lost their brackish nature. The limited availability of brackish habitats has led to the marsh mallow being classed as vulnerable although it is not directly threatened with any imminent disappearance.  It is benefitting from the opening up of coastal regions in the Dutch delta region that is leading to an expansion of brackish habitats that serve to buffer the true fresh water and salt water environments.