[Lulu]

 2 of my plants seem to be going rusty - Holyhock and shamrock (maybe its the 'rock' in the plant).  Does anyone know what this is and what can I do to get rid of it??  Quite like the plants so don't really want to get rid of them/

Cheers 

[Yorkie]

Rust is a fungal disease, probably triggered by moist damp conditions.

Hollyhocks are notoriously prone, I don't know about shamrocks.

Others will advise, hopefully, whether treatment is in fact necessary (i.e. whether it's just disfiguring rather than dangerous to the plant).

I'd guess a fungicide of some sort would be the appropriate chemical response - just check the labels to see whether the spray is suitable for the particular plants.

[Paul Plots]

I'm not sure if there is more than one strain of "rust" but I'd advise not to plant leeks near by as it can destroy the crop. 

[Lulu]

The leeks of the world are safe - yuck  don't grow them. 

The hollyhock may have to go if it doesn't shape up but will look into the fungicide

Thanks for the advice. 

[TheSpartacat]

Lulu, I had this problem with my Hollyhocks for the past couple years. Read somewhere that it can be harboured on the soil too, as its spores stay in plant debris... and can reinfect the following year.
I went to town removing all trace of hollyhock from my beds last year, sowed more this year, and yup its back.
Some of my lawn had rust patches last year too- not sure if its related/ same rust, but at least the lawn bounced back.
I hate spraying (I grow tomatoes in the same border alongside my flowers) so I'm replacing with sweet peas!! Have a plan B, as rusty hollyhocks can be really depressing to look at i found!

[Trillium]

At my last house all my hollyhocks had terrible rust problems. In the end I had to ripe them all out, remove a few inches of soil all around, and not grow them again. Nothing seemed to cure the rust.