Introducing...
Geranium
Common name: cranesbill
Geraniums are generally long-lived, easy-to-grow plants and most are perfect in borders for the classic cottage garden look. Coming from a wide range of wild habitats originally, there’s one for virtually every situation including rose borders, woodland beds, rock gardens and the greenhouse. Geraniums share a common name with pelargoniums – tender plants usually seen in bedding displays and containers for summer
Looks
- Most geraniums bear saucer-shaped flowers in shades of pink, magenta, white, violet and blue on wiry stems, in summer
- Foliage light green, bright green or silvery and is frequently dissected or patterned, providing an attractive textured backdrop beneath the flowers
- They can be short and prostrate like G. 'Mavis Simpson', medium-sized and clump-forming like G. phaeum cultivars or G. psilostemon, carpeting like G. macrorrhizum or G. procurrens, mat-forming like G. himalayense and trailing like G. riversleaianum 'Russell Prichard'
- A few species are summer dormant. These flower in spring then die back, reappearing in autumn or spring. G. malviflorum is an example of this type
- For a plant that flowers almost non-stop from spring until autumn try G. Rozanne ('Gerwat')
Likes
- Hardy garden geraniums like, G. 'Orion' or G. clarkei 'Kashmir White' thrive on most soils, including heavy clay
- Some species do well in dry, shaded spots like G. macrorrhizum, G. nodosum and G. phaeum
- Small rock garden types like G. dalmaticum and G. cinereum 'Ballerina' want free-draining sites
- Two species, natives of the Canary Islands, G. maderense and G. palmatum need to spend winter somewhere frost-free, but these are in the minority
Dislikes
- Rock garden types like G. cinereum cultivars need sharp drainage and won’t thrive in heavy soils
- Even the happy-go-lucky hardy garden geraniums don’t like to be waterlogged in winter
- G. palmatum and G. maderense want frost-free conditions
Did you know?
- Britain has three native geraniums: G. pratense (meadow cranesbill), G. sylvaticum (wood cranesbill) and G. sanguineum (bloody cranesbill)
- The common name cranesbill comes from the long, pointed seed capsule that resembles a crane’s bill
Growing guide
How to grow geraniums
All the information you need to grow and care for geraniums in your garden
Geraniums we recommend
Geranium pratense 'Plenum Violaceum' (d)
meadow cranesbill 'Plenum Violaceum'
- 0.1–0.5 metres
- 0.1–0.5 metres
Geranium clarkei 'Kashmir White'
cranesbill 'Kashmir White'
- 0.1–0.5 metres
- 1–1.5 metres
Geranium dalmaticum
Dalmatian cranesbill
- Up to 10cm
- 0.1–0.5 metres
Geranium pratense 'Plenum Violaceum' (d)
meadow cranesbill 'Plenum Violaceum'
- 0.1–0.5 metres
- 0.1–0.5 metres
Geranium clarkei 'Kashmir White'
cranesbill 'Kashmir White'
- 0.1–0.5 metres
- 1–1.5 metres
Geranium dalmaticum
Dalmatian cranesbill
- Up to 10cm
- 0.1–0.5 metres
Useful advice
Hampton Hack
Perennials: staking
Clay soils: plants for
Ground cover plants
Perennial borders: choosing plants
Indoor plants: sap feeders
Dividing perennials
Get involved
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