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Gardening 101: Geranium - Gardenista
Geranium, Cranesbill: “Border Flower”
If you have never planted a hardy geranium in your garden, then you and your garden are missing out. Around the world these perennials thrive as wildflowers so there’s a good chance that one will be happy in your garden.
Confusingly, however, the word geranium is also the common name for Pelargonium, a group of tender bedding plants that in US climates are better suited for containers whereas true geraniums make outstanding edging and filler plants.
Photograph by Marie Viljoen.
Geranium ‘Lilac Ice’ Cranesbill is £8.99 per plant from Crocus.
Photograph by Amanda Slater via Flickr.
• Geranium is an understated charmer to enhance woodland or cottage gardens, as a colorful mounding ground cover to link shrubs together, or tucked into containers where it can spill out.
Cheat Sheet
• Most geraniums bloom from spring thru summer, and attract pollinators.
• Looks perfect with more upright companions such as coneflower, Shasta daisy, and tall ornamental grasses where geraniums provide contrast and won’t overshadow their neighbors.
• Prefers a bit of shade and well-draining, compost-rich moist soil.
Keep It Alive
• Most geraniums are easy to start from seed, but if that is not your style then I recommend buying geraniums in four-inch pots because they grow quickly.
• Winter care includes removing spent flower stalks and foliage, and trimming geraniums back to the crown to encourage new tidy growth. When new foliage appears in spring, give geraniums a slow-release fertilizer.
Geranium ‘Biokovo’ by Karen Hine via Flickr.
A favorite of mine is Geranium ‘Biokovo’ for its vigor, ability to thrive in sun or bright shade, fuss-free nature, and pale pink flowers that begin in late spring and continue until summer’s end.