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{{Taxobox
+
__NOTOC__{{Plantbox
| name = Geraniums
+
| name = ''Pelargonium''
 +
| common_names = Geraniums
 +
| growth_habit = herbaceous
 +
| high = ?  <!--- 1m (3 ft) -->
 +
| wide =    <!--- 65cm (25 inches) -->
 +
| origin = ?  <!--- Mexico, S America, S Europe, garden, etc -->
 +
| poisonous =    <!--- indicate parts of plants which are known/thought to be poisonous -->
 +
| lifespan = perennial
 +
| exposure = ?  <!--- full sun, part-sun, semi-shade, shade, indoors, bright filtered (you may list more than 1) -->
 +
| water = ?  <!--- frequent, regular, moderate, drought tolerant, let dry then soak -->
 +
| features = flowers, fragrance, foliage
 +
| hardiness =    <!--- frost sensitive, hardy, 5°C (40°F), etc -->
 +
| bloom =    <!--- seasons which the plant blooms, if it is grown for its flowers -->
 +
| usda_zones = ?  <!--- eg. 8-11 -->
 +
| sunset_zones =    <!--- eg. 8, 9, 12-24, not available -->
 +
| color = IndianRed
 
| image = Pelargonium flower.JPG
 
| image = Pelargonium flower.JPG
| image_width = frameless
+
| image_width = 240px    <!--- leave as 240px if horizontal orientation photo, or change to 180px if vertical -->
| image_caption = ''P. graveolens''
+
| image_caption = P. graveolens
| regnum = [[Plant]]ae
+
| regnum = Plantae
| divisio = [[Magnoliophyta]]
+
| divisio = Magnoliophyta
| classis = [[Magnoliopsida]]
+
| classis = Magnoliopsida
| ordo = [[Geraniales]]
+
| ordo = Geraniales
| familia = [[Geraniaceae]]
+
| familia = Geraniaceae
| genus = '''''Pelargonium'''''
+
| genus = Pelargonium
| genus_authority = [[Charles Louis L'Héritier de Brutelle|L'Hér.]]
  −
| subdivision_ranks = [[Species]]
  −
| subdivision =
  −
About 200:<br>
  −
''[[Pelargonium graveolens]]''<br>
  −
''[[Pelargonium radens]]''<br>
  −
''[[Pelargonium scabrum]]''<br>
  −
''[[Pelargonium cotyledonis]]''<br>
  −
''[[Pelargonium triste]]''<br>
  −
et al.
   
}}
 
}}
 +
{{Inc|
 +
Pelargonium (stork, because the fruit is long and slender like a
 +
stork's bill). Geraniaceae. Geranium of gardens. Pelargonium. Stork's
 +
Bill. Many kinds of pot-plants, popular for indoors and for bedding;
 +
and some of them much planted permanently out-of-doors in California
 +
and elsewhere; flowers showy.
 +
 +
Plants of various habit: some are fleshy and tuberous and are treated
 +
as succulents, but those commonly grown are erect or trailing leafy
 +
herbs or woody below (sometimes shrubby) with sts. somewhat soft and
 +
succulent or small and firm: lvs. mostly opposite, entire to
 +
decompound, stipulate, the foliage often strong- scented: infl.
 +
mostly umbel-like, on axillary peduncles; fls. irregular, the petals
 +
5 (rarely fewer by abortion), the 2 upper usually larger and more
 +
prominently colored, the lower mostly narrow and rarely very small,
 +
the colors pink, red, purple, white, sometimes yellow, often
 +
attractively blotched or veined; calyx 5-parted (or the sepals said
 +
to be connate at base), the uppermost segm. produced at base into a
 +
slender nectar-bearing tube or spur adnate to the pedicel; stamens
 +
10, of which 7 or less are anther-bearing and fertile: fr. of 5
 +
valves, each 1-seeded and separating from the beaklike apex mostly by
 +
coiling and more or less hygro metrically.—Nearly all the
 +
pelargoniums are from S. Afr. All the species mentioned in this
 +
article are from that region, unless otherwise stated. Harvey, in
 +
Vol. I of Harvey & Sender's Flora Capensis (1859-60), admits
 +
163 species; and his descriptions are followed closely in the
 +
characterizations of species given below. Knuth, the most recent
 +
monographer (in Engler's Pflanzen- reich, IV. 129, 1912), admits 232
 +
species and very many well-marked hybrids. Pelargonium is
 +
distinguished from the genus Geranium by technical characters. In
 +
most cases, the fls. of Geranium are regular, but those of
 +
Pelargonium are irregular, the 2 upper petals differing from the
 +
others in size and shape and often in coloring. The most constant
 +
difference between the two genera is the presence in Pelargonium of a
 +
nectar-tube, extending from the base of one of the sepals and
 +
adherent to the side of the calyx-tube or pedicel. This tube is not
 +
seen by the casual observer, but it may be discovered by making a
 +
longitudinal section of the fl. and pedicel.
 +
 +
The person who wishes to study the contemporaneous evolution of
 +
plants may find his heart's desire in Pelargonium. With great numbers
 +
of species and many of them variable and confusing in a wild state,
 +
with plant breeding in many places and continued through two
 +
centuries, and with a large special literature, the genus offers
 +
exceptional advantages and perplexities to the student. Most of the
 +
species early came into cultivation by the English and Dutch, the
 +
South African plants forming at one time almost a separate department
 +
of horticultural knowledge. P. cucullatum, the dominant parent in the
 +
florist's pelargoniums, was known in England as early as 1690. The
 +
two originals of the race of zonal or bedding geraniums were
 +
introduced into England in 1710 and 1714. Early in that century, a
 +
half-dozen species were grown at Eltham, in the famous garden of
 +
James Sherard, and these were pictured in 1732 in Dillenius account
 +
of that garden, "Hortus Elthamensis," a sumptuously illustrated work
 +
in quarto. Even at that time, P. inquinans had varied  markedly (see
 +
Fig. 2836).in his "Species Plantarum," 1753, Linnaeus . described the
 +
few species which he knew (about twenty-five) under the genus
 +
Geranium. In 1787, L'Heritier founded the genus Pelargonium, and
 +
transferred many of the Linnaean species. L'Heritier's work
 +
 +
"Geraniplogia," a quarto, appeared in Paris in 1787 to 1788, with
 +
forty-four full- page plates. Recently Kuntze has revived the pre-
 +
Linnaean name Geraniospermum (1736) for this genus, but it is not
 +
likely to find acceptance.
 +
 +
Early in the nineteenth century, many species were in cultivation in
 +
Europe, and experiments in hybridizing and breeding became common.
 +
There appears to have been something like a geranium craze. The
 +
experiments seem to have been confined largely to the development of
 +
the show or fancy pelargoniums, as greenhouse subjects, for bedding
 +
plants had not reached their present popularity. The geranium
 +
interest seems to have culminated in Robert Sweet's noble work on
 +
 +
"Geraniaceae," published in five volumes in London, 1820 to 1830,
 +
containing 500 well-executed colored plates of geraniaceous plants.
 +
At that time many distinct garden hybrids were in cultivation, and to
 +
these Sweet gave Latin botanical names. His fifth volume is devoted
 +
chiefly to garden forms of the show pelargonium type, to which the
 +
general class name Domes- ticum is given in the following sketch. The
 +
development of the zonal or bedding geraniums had begun in Sweet's
 +
time, and he includes them in his pictures, but the larger part of
 +
their evolution is subsequent to his history. Various small works on
 +
pelargonium have appeared. De Jonghe's "Traite Me'thodique de la
 +
 +
Culture du Pelargonium," Brussels, 1844, contains good
 +
bibliographical and cultural data.
 +
 +
Few classes of plants should have more interest to the amateur and
 +
fancier because the species are numerous and varied, the colors
 +
mostly very attractive, the habit of the plant interesting, and the
 +
foliage often with pleasing fragrance; yet, excluding the common
 +
window and bedding geraniums of the P. zonale and P. inquinans type
 +
and the Lady Washington or Show types, they are very little known to
 +
gardeners. A cool greenhouse could be made to yield very interesting
 +
subjects in the species here described and others that may be secured
 +
from collectors in the regions where they grow.
 +
 +
Most of the cultivated forms of pelargonium may be grouped into four
 +
general horticultural classes:
 +
 +
I. The zonal, horseshoe, fish, or bedding types, known to gardeners
 +
as "geraniums." They comprise a mongrel class, designated as the
 +
Hortorum class This race seems to be derived from P. zonale and P.
 +
inquinans. These two species were made by Linnaeus in 1753, but he
 +
founded them on descriptions in earlier works rather than directly on
 +
the plants. In America, the zonal geraniums are very popular, for
 +
they develop their colors well in the bright climate. They are
 +
popular in all countries, however. They probably stand closer to the
 +
lives of a great number of persons than any other ornamental plant.
 +
If a window or a garden can have but one plant, that plant is likely
 +
to be a geranium. The old race of large-flowered and large-clustered
 +
geraniums was known as "nosegay geraniums," because they were
 +
bouquet-like, but this term is not known in America. Another race has
 +
been developed for its zone marked leaves. There is also a race of
 +
double-flowered zonals, which have appeared chiefly since 1860. The
 +
very full double and close-clustered forms lose much of the grace and
 +
charm of the single types. Some of them are little better, to a
 +
sensitive eye, than balls of colored paper. In the development of the
 +
individual flower of the geranium, there have been two ideals—the
 +
English ideal for a circular flower with the petals broadened and
 +
overlapping, and the continental ideal with a somewhat two-lipped
 +
flower and the petals well separated. In the "Gardeners' Chronicle"
 +
in 1841, p. 644, the proper form is set forth in an illustration, and
 +
this is contrasted with the "original form;" the picture is
 +
reproduced, somewhat smaller, in Fig. 2837. "The long, narrow, flimsy
 +
petals of the old varieties," the writing says, "moved by every
 +
breath of wind, and separated to their very base by broad open
 +
spaces, have been succeeded by the beautiful compact flowers of the
 +
present day, with broad stout petals so entirely overlaying each
 +
other as to leave scarcely an indentation in the outline of the
 +
flower; while the coarseness which prevailed in the larger of the old
 +
sorts is replaced by a firmer substance, and a far more delicate
 +
texture." Fig. 2838 shows contrasting ideals, although the picture
 +
does not represent the extremes.
 +
 +
In more recent years  a French type has appeared under the name of
 +
"gros bois," or "large-wood" race. It is characterized as follows by
 +
Dauthenay: umbels ordinarily 4 to 5 inches in diameter: flowers very
 +
large; petals roundish, or sometimes triangular, the limb always very
 +
large and giving the corolla a remarkably round contour: leaves very
 +
large, thick and coriaceous, plane or incurved, more or less
 +
indented, strongly nerved, their diameter averaging about 5 inches,
 +
pedicels large and short: peduncles large, rigid, and projecting
 +
beyond the foliage: wood soft, fleshy, very large, often 1 1/2 inches
 +
around. To this type Dauthenay refers the Bruant geraniums, dating
 +
from 1882. A special handbook is devoted to these plants: Dauthenay,
 +
 +
"Les Geraniums," Paris, 1897.
 +
 +
II. The ivy-leaved geraniums, products largely of Pelargonium
 +
peltatum (Fig. 2839). The species is said to have been introduced
 +
into England in 1701. It is a weak and straggling plant, used mostly
 +
in vases, hanging-baskets, and other places in which an overhanging
 +
subject is desired. The foliage is thick and shiny, slightly peltate
 +
and prominently angle-lobed, and the pink or reddish two-lipped
 +
flowers are always admired. Much-improved and double forms are now in
 +
commerce.
   −
'''''Pelargonium''''' is a [[genus]] of [[flowering plant]]s which includes about 200  [[species]] of [[perennial plant|perennial]], [[succulent plant|succulent]], and [[shrub]] [[plant]]s, commonly known as '''geraniums'''. Confusingly, ''Geranium'' is the correct botanical name of the separate genus which contains the related [[Cranesbill]]s. Both genera are in the Family [[Geraniaceae]]. [[Carolus Linnaeus|Linnaeus]] originally included all the species in one genus, ''Geranium'', but they were later separated into two genera by [[Charles Louis L'Héritier de Brutelle|Charles L’Héritier]] in [[1789]]. Gardeners sometimes refer to the members of Genus ''Pelargonium'' as "pelargoniums" in order to avoid the confusion, but the older common name "geranium" is still in regular use.
+
III. The "show" or fancy type is known to gardeners as "pelargonium,"
 +
and in this country also as Lady Washington geraniums (Fig. 2845).
 +
These plants are very popular in Europe, being grown in numerous
 +
varieties. They are prominent at the exhibitions. Because of the hot
 +
trying summer climate, these plants are of very secondary importance
 +
in America, although there are many gardeners who succeed well with
 +
them. This race of pelargoniums seems to have descended chiefly from
 +
P. cucullatum, although P. angulosum may be nearly equally concerned
 +
in it. P. grandiflorum is also thought to have been a formative
 +
parent. It is probable that two or three other species are concerned
 +
in the evolution. In fact, the late Shirley Hibbard once wrote (G.C.,
 +
July 3, 1880) that "it must be evident to every cultivator of these
 +
flowers that the blood of a score or so of species is mingled in
 +
them." This marked garden race, which represents no single wild
 +
species, is designated as the Domesticum group.
   −
==History and use==
+
IV. Various scented-leaved geraniums, known mostly as "rose
The first species of ''Pelargonium'' known to be cultivated was ''Pelargonium triste'', a native of [[South Africa]]. It was probably brought to the [[botanical garden]] in [[Leiden]] before [[1600]] on ships which stopped at the [[Cape of Good Hope]]. In [[1631]], the English gardener, [[John Tradescant the elder]], bought seeds from [[Rene Morin]] in [[Paris]] and introduced the plant to [[England]]. The name ''Pelargonium'' was introduced by [[Johannes Burman]] in [[1738]], from Greek πελαργός pelargos  = "[[stork]]", because part of the flower looked like a stork's beak.
+
geraniums." These are of several species, with then hybrids and
 +
derivatives. The common rose geraniums are nearest P. graveolens and  
 +
P. Radula. The nutmeg geranium is P. odoratissimum or P. fragrans.
 +
Aside from the above groups there are several species which appear
 +
sporadically in -the trade, as P. tomen- tosum, P. echinatum, P.  
 +
triste, P. quinquevulnerum, P. fulgidum, and P. quercifolium or the  
 +
derivatives of them. Few great collections of pelargonium species and
 +
varieties have been made in this country, and this is much to be
 +
regretted.
   −
Other than grown for their beauty, species of Pelargonium such as ''[[Pelargonium graveolens|P. graveolens]]'' are important in the [[perfume]] industry and are cultivated and [[distillation|distilled]] for its scent. Although scented Pelargonium exist which have smells of [[citrus]], [[Mentha|mint]], or various [[fruits]], the varieties with [[rose]] scents are most commercially important. Pelargonium distillates and [[Absolute (substance)|absolutes]], commonly known as "scented geranium oil" are sometimes used to supplement or adulterate expensive [[rose oil]]s.
+
Culture of zonal geraniums. (C. W. Ward.)
   −
''Pelargonium'' species are used as food plants by the [[larva]]e of some [[Lepidoptera]] species including [[Angle Shades]].
+
While the general florist may consider geranium- culture the easiest
 +
of all gardening, the fact remains that it is as necessary to observe
 +
the requirements of the geranium as it is to observe the requirements
 +
of any other plant; in order to succeed and produce the best effects
 +
attainable. While it is true that the geranium will grow and make a
 +
good showing with comparatively little care, there is as much
 +
difference between a skilfully grown geranium plant and one
 +
carelessly grown as there is between a fancy and a common rose or
 +
carnation.
   −
''Pelargoniums '' are believed to deter mosquitoes.
+
To secure the best results it is necessary to propagate from
 +
perfectly healthy stock. The dangers of over- propagation are as
 +
great with the geranium as with most other plants. To keep most
 +
varieties in good health it is necessary to plant the stock intended
 +
for propagation in the field and to propagate either from the
 +
field-grown wood in August or early September, or to lift the plants
 +
in the month of September and plant them on benches in the
 +
greenhouse, where they will become established and will maintain a
 +
vigorous constitution throughout the winter season. The propagation
 +
from field-grown wood is far less successful than from wood grown
 +
inside, and when the field-grown cuttings are placed in sand, a large
 +
percentage of them is likely to damp-off, especially if there has
 +
been a comparatively abundant rainfall in the month of July. The best
 +
method that the writer has found for striking the field- grown
 +
cuttings is to put them in 2-inch pots, using a light sandy soil free
 +
from all manure and chemicals, and to place the pots in the full
 +
sunlight either in a coolhouse or a frame. These cuttings must be
 +
kept on the dry side until the calluses have been well formed,
 +
although they should not be allowed to shrivel at any time. If the
 +
cuttings show signs of shriveling, a light syringing is preferable to
 +
a heavy watering. After the roots have started, the treatment of the
 +
plants is the same as if the cuttings had been rooted in the sand and
 +
repotted. The writer contiders wood grown inside superior to
 +
field-grown wood, as the cuttings are much shorter-jointed; most of
 +
them can be taken from the plant with a heel and 95 to 100 per cent
 +
of them will root in sand in the ordinary cutting-bench.
    +
A good temperature for the geranium propagating- house is 56° to 60°,
 +
with a bottom heat of 65° to 60*. While the cuttings are in the sand
 +
and before they are rooted, care must be taken about keeping them top
 +
moist for fear of "damping-off," or what geranium- growers know as
 +
"black-rot." As soon as the cutting is thoroughly callused and begins
 +
to emit roots, it should be potted up at once. The best soil for
 +
geraniums, according to the writer's experience, is a firm pliable
 +
clay loam; this is best if used absolutely without any manure,
 +
especially fresh manure. After potting the cuttings they should be
 +
lightly watered and shaded for a day or so if the sun is extremely
 +
hot, until the roots take hold and the foliage fills up and the stems
 +
begin to look plump. The geranium should not be grown at any time in
 +
its young state in a soil that is too rich, and care must also be
 +
taken that the plants are not kept too wet.
   −
Garden geranium (''Pelargonium x hortorum''; [[syn.]] ''Pelargonium zonale'') is one of the most common ornamental potted-plants, with over 200 varieties.
+
The geranium is subject to few diseases, and so far as the writer
 +
has been able to observe these diseases are brought on by improper
 +
treatment, such as having too much fresh rank manure in the soil or
 +
keeping the plants too wet. Too much strong plant-food in the earth
 +
combined with too much moisture induces a condition of the leaves
 +
ordinarily called "spot." It usually appears in the hottest weather
 +
or immediately after extreme heat accompanied by copious showers or
 +
rains.
   −
In 1988 the flower was described and illustrated in a comprehensive 3-volume work ''Pelargoniums of Southern Africa'' by [[Ellaphie Ward-Hilhorst]] with van der Walt and Vorster.
+
Excellent specimen geranium plants may be grown in pots, especially
 +
of some of the newer French and English round-flowered varieties. In  
 +
order to produce the best results, choose young vigorous plants that
 +
have been propagated either in the latter part of August or the
 +
forepart of September, and that have shown a disposition to take hold
 +
immediately, both in rooting and in starting to grow after being
 +
potted. The soil should not be too rich, and it is best to start with
 +
the plant in a rather small pot, say 2 1/2 inches, and proceed onward
 +
with light shifts,—that is, shifting the plant from a 2 1/2-inch to a
 +
3 1/2-inch pot, and so on, letting the sizes increase an inch at each
 +
shift until a 7-, 8-, or 9-inch pot is reached, which will usually be
 +
large enough to flower the finest specimens. Whenever shifting the
 +
geranium, be sure to pot firmly, as a firm soil produces a
 +
short-jointed stocky growth, and far more bloom than a loose or
 +
over-rich soil. When the plants reach a 5- or 6-inch pot they may be
 +
regularly fed with manure- water. The most critical time for these
 +
specimen geraniums will be in the months of July, August, and
 +
September; in these periods exposure to intense sunshine should be
 +
avoided. Too much water and a close temperature are always
 +
detrimental to the geranium. Syringing the foliage frequently to keep
 +
down the temperature is also injurious. If these plants are kept
 +
under glass, a light shading or stripping upon the glass is
 +
beneficial. Probably the best position for such plants in these three
 +
extreme months is on the north side of a row of trees, some distance
 +
away from the trees, where the plants will have the benefit of the
 +
subdued shading of the foliage. If kept under glass and
 +
shaded,abundant ventilation should always be provided. As the winter
 +
approaches, a night temperature of 60° and day temperature of 70° to
 +
75°; with plenty of ventilation in the daytime, especially in bright
 +
weather, seem best to suit the plants. Syringing ruins the flowers,
 +
and too much moisture either in the pot or upon the foliage causes
 +
the spotting of the leaves known as "dropsy." In planting the
 +
geranium in the field or in beds, always avoid an over-rich soil. The
 +
earth should be in good condition and fertile, but must not be loaded
 +
with either chemical or animal fertilizer. Too much water at any
 +
period during the hot weather produces a rank growth, reduces the
 +
quantity of bloom and in most instances induces the spotted foliage
 +
to appear.
   −
==Cultivars==
+
Another disease, which is sometimes serious, especially in extremely
Species of ''Pelargonium'' are indigenous to Southern Africa and are drought and heat tolerant, and can tolerate only minor frosts. Pelargoniums are extremely popular [[garden]] plants, grown as annuals in temperate climates, and thousands of ornamental [[cultivar]]s have been developed from about 20 of the species.
+
hot seasons accompanied with a superabundance of moisture, is
*'''Zonal''' varieties, also known as ''P.'' ×''hortorum'', are mainly derived from ''P. zonale'' and ''P. inquinans''.
+
"stem-rot." This frequently attacks imported stock. It is most
*'''Ivy-leaved''' varieties are mainly derived from ''P. peltatum''.
+
serious in intensely hot seasons; the entire plant turns black and
*'''Regal''' varieties, also known as French geraniums or ''P.'' × ''domesticum'' are mainly derived from ''P. cucullatum'' and ''P. grandiflorum''.
+
fades and withers away. The stem-rot occurs in varieties that have
*'''Scented-leaf''' varieties are derived from a great number of species, amongst others ''P. graveolens''.
+
been very heavily propagated.
   −
==Structural variations==
+
The insects that affect the geranium are also comparatively few. The
 +
red-spider is sometimes a serious pest in summer and is difficult to
 +
get rid of when it is once well established. The only method is to
 +
syringe the plants with an extremely fine spray, and also to pick off
 +
the leaves that are seriously affected and burn them. The green-fly
 +
is also troublesome at times, but is easily managed with the ordinary
 +
fumigation of tobacco. There is a small caterpillar that eats the
 +
foliage and sometimes proves a serious pest. If one can induce a few
 +
ground sparrows or any of the warblers, or even English sparrows, to
 +
make their home about the greenhouse, they will put a speedy end to
 +
these caterpillars. Another remedy is to go over the plants carefully
 +
and to pick the caterpillars off and destroy them. This is tedious,
 +
as it must be done frequently.
   −
Pelargonium [[Leaf|leaves]] are usually alternate, and [[leaf shape|palmately]] lobed or [[pinnate]], often on long stalks, and sometimes with light or dark patterns.
+
In the way of bedding geraniums, as a rule the Bruant section
The erect stems bear five-petaled [[flower]]s in [[umbel]]-like clusters called [[pseudoumbel]]s. The shapes of the flowers have been bred to a variety ranging star-shaped to funnel-shaped, and colors include white, pink, red, orange-red, fuchsia to deep purple.
+
produces the best results, but there are a number of English and  
 +
French varieties that do especially well in our hot climate. The
 +
greatest difficulty in successful geranium-culture in America is the
 +
intense heat of the summer months, chiefly July and August. Some
 +
varieties withstand the heat better than others.
   −
In early 2006 a long-awaited yellow-flowered variety was launched. Called the Guernsey Flair, it was supplied exclusively to the television shopping channel QVC in the UK, and all available plants were sold within a few minutes. [http://www.begs.org.uk/guernsey.html See photo of yellow geranium.] The flower has a much yellower hue than the cream-colored varieties which some developers had called yellow previously.
+
Show pelargoniums. (T. D. Hatfield.)
   −
Horticultural pelargoniums (as opposed to botanical, the wild 'species') fall into six major groups, with zonals subdivided further:
+
What are known as show pelargoniums have enjoyed a long popularity.
 +
By the general public, and by old people especially, they are known
 +
as Lady Washington geraniums. They are not so commonly grown as the
 +
so-called geraniums, chiefly on account of their limited season of
 +
bloom and the fact that they cannot endure our hot midsummer suns.
 +
Through the greater part of the summer they are liable to be
 +
neglected. They also require different treatment from geraniums, and
 +
— if skill there be — more skill in cultivation.
 +
 
 +
At the end of the blooming season, they require rest, — a season of
 +
ripening the growth already made. At this time very little water will
 +
be needed, and they may be stood out in the full sun. Only the old
 +
flower-stems may be removed. In no sense should they be cut back at
 +
this time, neither should water enough be given to encourage new
 +
growth. All the leaves should stay on until they naturally turn
 +
yellow with age, thus securing a thoroughly ripened growth. In
 +
September, one may prune them into shape, sometimes rather severely,
 +
but in any case cut out all weak and soft shoots. They should then be
 +
shaken out and repotted in a light compost, not rich, into the
 +
smallest-sized pots that will hold them, for the process of growing
 +
them on has to be gone over every season. After potting, a good
 +
soaking will be necessary, and they may be placed in a well-lighted
 +
coldframe. There is no need to keep them close; the stimulation of
 +
water, and the slight protection of a frame are usually enough to
 +
start them into new growth. No forcing will ever be needed at any
 +
season, and if the grower wished, he might keep them in a cold- frame
 +
until very late in the season, so long as adequate protection against
 +
frost is afforded. They are at their best in May, and to have them in
 +
good condition, one may grow them slowly in a house averaging about
 +
50° night temperature (slightly less in midwinter), from October
 +
onward.
 +
 
 +
After the turn of the days—in January—repot them, using now a richer
 +
compost. Give a fairly good shift, depending in part on the size of
 +
plants desired, the vigor they show, and the difference in varieties.
 +
If wanted to bloom in April or, as some florists might, at Easter,
 +
they should have been potted at once—in late August or September—into
 +
the size they should bloom in,—a medium size, probably the same as
 +
they had lately occupied, and have been taken indoors to grow on
 +
continuously. But for display in May and June, they are potted again
 +
in January, and some plants may be given another shift when extra
 +
vigor or the possible need of a few extra-large specimens demand it.
 +
They will need careful stopping. Some rubbing out of weak shoots,
 +
when they break abundantly, will help those that remain, and one may
 +
even have to do a little pruning. Stopping, however, must be
 +
discontinued as soon as the flowering stems begin to show, which is
 +
about the end of February in the writer's practice. These stems can
 +
be distinguished easily by a slightly different manner of growth. Up
 +
to this time the plants may be allowed to grow naturally; but if the
 +
gardener wants trained specimens he must begin to bend them as he
 +
wishes them to grow, as their growth speedily hardens and the plant
 +
will readily take and keep the form to which it is shaped.
 +
 
 +
Water should be given sparingly through the dead of winter. February
 +
and March are the months when the most growth is made, and at this
 +
time one may stimulate them materially by the judicious use of
 +
artificial manures, which may be continued, if necessary, until they
 +
come into bloom. They are much subject to the attacks of green-fly
 +
and red-spider; and as the foliage is fairly tender and liable to
 +
injury from tobacco smoke, reliance must be placed on fluid
 +
insecticides almost wholly. The blooming season is very much
 +
lengthened by giving a slight degree of shade.
 +
 
 +
The best time to take cuttings is soon after the flowering season.
 +
Often toward the last of the season, the plants make a few "growing"
 +
shoots, and these may be taken; but off and on during the summer one
 +
can get cuttings, and any time until August will do. Cuttings taken
 +
in winter-time with a heel make pretty little plants in 4- or 5-inch
 +
pots without stopping. Cuttings taken at the usual time and grown in
 +
6- or 7- inch pots come in handy in grouping for the front lines. It
 +
is necessary to raise a few plants every season to replace older
 +
plants which have grown too large.
 +
 
 +
New varieties are raised from seed, which is freely produced. In
 +
hybridizing it does not appear that handpollination has any effect,
 +
as the seedlings seldom show any particular affinity to either
 +
parent.
 +
 
 +
Index.
 +
anguloeum, 20.           filipendulifolium, 1.     odoratissimum, 15, 16.
 +
artemisaefolium, 5.   fragrans, 16.             odoratum, 31.
 +
artemisioides, 5.   fulgidum, 3.             pastinacaefolium, 1.
 +
betulinum, 17.           glabrum, 7.             peltatum, 7,
 +
capitatum, 23.           grandiflorum, 8.     quercifolium, 25.
 +
clypeatum, 7.           graveolens, 26.     quinquevulnerum, 2.
 +
cordatum, 18.           hederaefolium, 7.     Radula, 28.
 +
crispum, 30.           hispidum, 27.             revolutum, 28.
 +
cucullatum, 19.           hortorum, 13.             scutatum, 7.
 +
daucifolium, 1           inquinana, 12.     Thorncroftii, 10.
 +
denticulatum, 29.        lateripes, 7.  .     tomentosum, 22.
 +
domesticum,21            latifolium,30              transvaelense,10.         
 +
Drummondii, 23.           laxatum, 1.     triste, 1.
 +
echinatum, 14.           Limoneum, 31.              villosum,1
 +
Endlicherianum, 6.   multibracteatum 9.     vitifolium, 24.
 +
erectum, 16.           multifidum, 28.     sonale, 11.
 +
exstipulatum, 4.
 +
 
 +
I. Lvs. on the pinnate order, although sometimes entire, usually
 +
pinnately lobed or compound. (Nos. 1-5).
 +
 
 +
Any number of Latin-formed names of Pelargonium may appear in the
 +
trade, for the hybrids and varieties are numerous and not always
 +
readily referable to the species as forms or varieties.—P.
 +
Blandfordianum, Sweet {P. graveolens x P. echinatum). A good grower,
 +
shrubby, the branches roughish pubescent: lvs. flat, 7- lobed, the
 +
lower lobes deeply lobed again, all bluntly toothed, strong-scented:
 +
fls. white or pale blush, the upper petals with 2 red spots. G.M.
 +
54:626.—P. brevipetalum, N. E. Br. equals Polycephalum-P.Cotyledonis, L'Her. Lvs evergreen at base of plant, cordate, 3in. across, entire or nearly so, whitish beneath wrinkled above: fls on scape-like peduncles above the lvs.2/4 in across, white.
 +
 
 +
St. Helena. Requires little heat. G. 35:235.—P. inxquilobum. Mast.
 +
Allied to P. multibracteatum. Pilose: lvs. 3-lobed, the terminal lobe
 +
ovate-lanceolate and again lobed in middle, margins toothed: fls.
 +
greenish yellow with purple in base. Trop. Afr. Perhaps same as P.
 +
Fischeri, Engl.—P. luteolum, N. E. Br. A very recent species from S.
 +
Afr.: herb with bulbous root- stock: lvs. 4 or 5, all radical, twice
 +
ternately divided, 1/2-1 1/4 in. long and broad, the ultimate segms.
 +
linear: petals nearly 1/2in. long, pale yellow with 2 red lines at
 +
base.—P. polycephalum, E. Mey. (P. brevipetalum, N. E. Br.), St.
 +
thick and fleshy, ovoid, rising very little above the ground,
 +
short-branched at top: lvs. in a rosette, bipinnately divided,
 +
ovate-oblong in outline, thick and fleshy; pinnae 5 or 6 pairs,
 +
pinnatisect: fls. pale yellow, the petals shorter than sepals. Cape
 +
Colony.—P. roseum, Hort., is a name of no botanical standing, applied
 +
to some of the common forms of rose geranium of the P. Radula group.{{SCH}}
 +
}}
 +
 
 +
==Cultivation==
 +
{{edit-cult}}<!--- Type cultivation info below this line, then delete this entire line -->
 +
 
 +
===Propagation===
 +
{{edit-prop}}<!--- Type propagation info below this line, then delete this entire line -->
 +
 
 +
===Pests and diseases===
 +
{{edit-pests}}<!--- Type pest/disease info below this line, then delete this entire line -->
 +
 
 +
==Varieties==
 +
About 200{{wp}}:<br>
 +
''[[Pelargonium cotyledonis]]''<br>
 +
''[[Pelargonium drummondii]]''<br>
 +
''[[Pelargonium graveolens]]''<br>
 +
''[[Pelargonium insularis]]''<br>
 +
''[[Pelargonium littorale]]''<br>
 +
''[[Pelargonium radens]]''<br>
 +
''[[Pelargonium scabrum]]''<br>
 +
''[[Pelargonium sidoides]]''<br>
 +
''[[Pelargonium triste]]''
 +
 
 +
Horticultural pelargoniums (as opposed to botanical, the wild 'species') fall into six major groups, with zonals subdivided further{{wp}}:
 
* Angel
 
* Angel
 
* Ivy-leaved = hanging  
 
* Ivy-leaved = hanging  
Line 74: Line 512:  
*** Parfum-leaved
 
*** Parfum-leaved
   −
==Image gallery==
+
==Gallery==
 +
{{photo-sources}}<!-- remove this line if there are already 3 or more photos in the gallery  -->
 +
 
 
<gallery>
 
<gallery>
 
Image:Pelargonium graveolens 2.jpg| ''P. graveolum''
 
Image:Pelargonium graveolens 2.jpg| ''P. graveolum''
Line 85: Line 525:  
</gallery>
 
</gallery>
   −
== References and external links ==
+
==References==
* [[Maria Lis-Balchin]], ed., ''Geranium and Pelargonium: History of Nomenclature, Usage and Cultivation''. ([[Taylor and Francis]], 2002) ISBN 0-415-28487-2
+
*[[Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture]], by L. H. Bailey, MacMillan Co., 1963
* [http://www.fuchsia.be] - explanations in the on-line catalog of a Belgian breeder with over 1000 varieties of Pelargonium, most also illustrated, dozens added each year.
+
<!--- xxxxx  *Flora: The Gardener's Bible, by Sean Hogan. Global Book Publishing, 2003. ISBN 0881925381  -->
* [http://razor.arnes.si/~mstrli/pp.html] - ''The Pelargonium Page'': descriptions of botanical species with plant and habitat photos
+
<!--- xxxxx  *American Horticultural Society: A-Z Encyclopedia of Garden Plants, by Christopher Brickell, Judith D. Zuk. 1996. ISBN 0789419432  -->
 +
<!--- xxxxx  *Sunset National Garden Book. Sunset Books, Inc., 1997. ISBN 0376038608  -->
 +
 
 +
==External links==
 +
*{{wplink}}
 +
 
 +
{{stub}}
 +
[[Category:Categorize]]
 +
 
 +
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