The Ballarat Page
Welcome, fellow garden-lovers of Ballarat! Hollyhock Hill is a locally owned and family-operated part of your community. What does that mean for you? Exclusive offers and free local delivery! For you, we offer more than seeds and gardening tools; we also offer a lawn-mowing and gardening service, exclusive cool-climate-friendly and locally-raised potted heirloom tomatoes and vegetables in spring and frost-hardy herbaceous perennials year-round, and we regularly meet you at the local farmers’ market. Scroll down to see our current offers, check out our weather and climate updates, and know a little more of our story.
Jan 2026: Our most extreme weather ever recorded for January.
On 27 Jan the thermometer reached 42.2°C, not only a January record but our second hottest day ever, beaten only by Black Saturday. January's mean daily temperature sat at 20.8°C, our equal hottest January ever, tied with 2003. And with less than 3mm of rain for the month, the gauge moved closer to drought on 1 Feb.
Please note: Hollyhock Hill’s ‘Drought Meter’ is an independent assessment of past weather in Ballarat, based primarily on rainfall data for the previous 3 months. It is not an indicator of longer-term hydrological conditions or of any official drought declarations.
Climate information for Ballarat
Read more about Ballarat's unique climate, and discover what grows well in our beautiful city.
We're a gardening family with local roots
It all began with a fruit and vegetable plot at Scotsburn near Ballarat in the 1850’s. Five generations of local gardeners and farmers later, and we’re still here serving you in Victoria’s Garden City!
Plants, seeds, and garden tools are available at our local Saturday markets (see below for the next market dates). Open from 9.00 a.m. to 1.00 p.m, the Hollyhock Hill stand showcases a range of heirloom and open-pollinated flower, vegetable, and herb seeds, as well as potted perennials and top-quality gardening tools. In winter we stock tulips and daffodil bulbs, and in spring a wide range of tomato varieties and other vegetable plants are potted and ready for you to put in the ground.
The Ballarat Farmers’ Market is in Zoo Drive, off Wendouree Parade, at the North Gardens Reserve. They have hot coffee, food vans, local fruit and vegetables, baked goods, sweets, desserts, jam, beverages, vinegar, olive oil, meat, cheese, spices, grain, eggs, honey, and loads of specialty stalls selling homewares, country crafts, jewellery, local art, clothing, plants, seeds, bulbs, and lots more!
The Creswick Market is a much-loved monthly event, with the true relaxed feel of a regional community market. Located in the picturesque and historic township of Creswick, just 20 minutes from either Ballarat or Daylesford. With live music and specialist boutique sites offering gourmet take away food, coffee, handmade arts and crafts, jewellery, clothes, home grown fruit, vegetables, plants and other produce.
Next markets:
Creswick Market. Saturday, 17th January 2026, 9.00 a.m. - 1.00 p.m. 21 Victoria St, Creswick.
Ballarat Farmers’ Market. Saturday, 24th January 2026, 9.00 a.m. - 1.00 p.m. Zoo Drive, North Gardens Reserve, Lake Wendouree.
Got any questions? Send us an email at sales@hollyhockhill.com.au
Happy Gardening! Jock and Sasha
Hollyhock Hill
Potted Dahlia 'Pam'
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Hollyhock Hill
Geum 'Princess Juliana'
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Large 200mm pot. 2nd-year plant. ‘Princess Juliana’ is a beautiful, century-old orange variety of Geum, named after the young Dutch princess who later became Queen of Holland in 1948. Native to the island of Chiloe in South America, which was home to a large population of Dutch immigrants and has a very similar climate to Ballarat. A clump-forming, herbaceous perennial with lobed basal leaves and vivid orange, semi-double flowers on tall stems produced in early and midsummer. Full sun or part shade. Likes moist, well-drained soil. Frost-hardy. Doesn't lose all its leaves in winter. Height to 50cm.
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Australian-made Millet Brooms
Manufactured in Tumut, NSW. Free delivery within Ballarat
A frequent visitor to Hollyhock Hill: An Eastern Spinebill in our Japanese flowering quince hedge.