"Stewart Robert Hinsley" wrote...
after Wally asked

Can anyone please tell me if this is a flower or weed,
it is growing on the bank at the side of my allotment.

http://wally1002.tripod.com/id/DSCF0735.JPG

Malva, probably Malva sylvestris (common mallow).

It is both a cultivated flower and a wild-flower.

If it's a weed I want to get rid before it takes over.

Mallows tend to be short-lived, when not annual or biennial. Whether it
will take over may depend on where you are - they don't seed around much
with me. It doesn't spread vegetatively.

Stewart, we had a similar plant on our plot, digging it all out seems to
have cured the problem as any seedlings can be hoed off like all the other
weeds.

--
Regards
Bob Hobden
just W. of London