Alcea "Alcea" species are used as food plants by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species including "Bucculatrix quadrigemina" and "Vanessa cardui", the painted lady. The mallow flea beetle ("Podagrica fuscicornis") is a pest that makes tiny holes in the leaves. Cutworms, aphids, and capsid bugs use the plant as a food source in hotter and drier conditions. A number of weevils use "A. rosea" as their host plant, including "Rhopalapion longirostre", "Alocentron curvirostre", and "Aspidapion validum". The plants are also susceptible to the pathogenic fungus "Puccinia malvacearum", the hollyhock rust. A hollyhock flower, known in Japan as , was incorporated into
Kocuria rosea Kocuria rosea Kocuria rosea is a gram-positive bacteria that is catalase-positive and oxidase-positive. It has a coccus shape and is a strict aerobe that grows best from 25–37 °C. "K. rosea" has also been found to cause urinary tract infections in people with weakened immune systems. "K. rosea" has been found to be able to biodegrade malachite green, azo dyes, triphenylmethane, as well as some other industrial dyes. Due to its ability to biodegrade these dyes, it has become of interest as a potential means to biodegrade dyes that would otherwise take a long time to naturally break down. It