Pelargonium is a herbaceous perennial plant of the Geranium family. It has about 350 species. The Balsamic, Acidic, Nasturtian varieties belong to the same family.
The birthplace of pelargonium is the savannah of South Africa, where it is sunny and hot. Scientists later discovered it in India, Madagascar and Australia.
Description of Pelargonium
The stems can be straight, branched, creeping. The leaves are simple, petiolate, dissected, tabular, covered with small villi. Due to the high content of essential substances have a specific pleasant spicy aroma. Their color is dominated by green, there are decorative variegated varieties.
The flowers are small, collected in umbrella inflorescences, located close to each other, most often have 5 petals, varying in size. The colors in modern breeding are different. Traditionally white, pink and red.
On one plant at the same time, you can see unbroken buds, lushly blooming clusters, wilting flowers.
Seeds ripen in the fruit box. When it opens, it becomes like a beak of a stork. This explains the name pelargonium, which in translation means a stork.
In Russia, the glory of the petty bourgeois flower was entrenched in her, and in Europe, on the contrary, she is considered the flower of aristocrats. A very popular plant in the USA.
Often used in garden design, in landscaping urban areas, as it is unpretentious and inexpensive to breed. And the variety of types and colors allows you to implement any design projects.
Differences between pelargonium and geranium
The plant is better known as geranium. But this is not so. The birthplace of pelargonium is the southern hemisphere of the planet; geranium was born in the northern. Hence the difference in their cold resistance. Usually pelargonium is an indoor plant, geranium is a garden plant. Crossing geraniums and pelargonium, it is impossible to obtain seeds.
Despite the fact that these are different species of the same family, they have much in common:
- unpretentious
- grow quickly - up to 30 cm per year;
- easy to breed;
- Indoor bloom year-round.
Specialists can distinguish one species from another, and ordinary flower growers do not attach much importance to their classification.
Types and varieties of pelargonium
In special publications, pelargonium is well studied, hundreds of different species and varieties with photos and names are presented. Most Popular:
| View | Description |
| Zonal | The most common. It has more than 75,000 varieties. The first to grow in indoor floriculture. The name is given by the light zone at the base of the sheet. Blooms profusely, throws up to 10 peduncles at the same time. It has a characteristic geranium smell. |
| Rosebud | Flowers are like rosebuds. The color of all shades of red, pink. Some varieties are painted in coral, salmon, peach, orange. |
| Tulip-shaped | Half-open buds look like tulips |
| Terry | Each flower has more than 9 petals. |
| Non-double | Flowers consist of 5 identical petals, solid. The leaves are variegated. |
| Fragrant | Leaves are strongly dissected, rounded up to 5 cm in diameter. It is widely used in pharmaceuticals, home medicine, perfumery. Heals the air in the room. |
| Epithelial (ampelous) | Leaves are smooth, creeping shoots are long. In general, greenery resembles ivy. Terry flowers, semi-double bicolor (white-purple) with a green core. |
| Royal | The most beautiful view. It requires more care than others. Differs in plentiful and long flowering. The flowers are large, corrugated, up to 7 cm wide. Petals are always two-tone. Purple, pink, scarlet tones prevail. The bushes are powerful, up to 50 cm tall, the foliage is similar to maple leaves. |
| Angel | With small leaves and creeping stems. The flowers are not large, but very beautiful with different-sized petals of white and burgundy color. Flowering is plentiful. Looks good in hanging flower pots. |
Growing pelargonium at home
The plant is unpretentious in care, suitable for beginner gardeners, because it grows fast, blooms beautifully, and propagates easily.
Location / Lighting
Pelargonium loves well-lit places, is not afraid of direct sunlight. Airing will prevent it from overheating, and she is not afraid of drafts either.
The plant is not afraid of a change of place. Indoor geraniums are recommended to periodically unfold in different directions towards the light, so that the crown develops evenly.
Temperature
+ 20 ... +25 ° C - the optimum temperature for the care of pelargonium at home.
In winter, some varieties, but not all, can be placed on a glazed balcony or veranda, where the air is warmed up to + 5 ... +15 ° C. It is important at this time to protect the plant from drafts.
Humidity
Pelargonium prefers dry air to wet air. So the conditions of most standard apartments are well suited for her. Plants that require humidifiers are bad neighbors for her.
Spraying pelargonium is not recommended. Drops of water remain on the villi and can cause decay, and when exposed to sunlight, work as a lens and cause a thermal burn.
Watering
Pelargonium is resistant to drought, watering the flower should be moderate and only after the soil surface has dried.
Checking if it is time to water is very simple. You need to touch the surface of the soil in a pot with your fingers. If the earth does not stick to the fingers, but crumbles, the plant can be watered.
Top dressing
The plant needs fertile, light, drained soil.
Abundant and prolonged flowering will provide regular feeding - 1 time per week. You can add fertilizer in a minimum concentration (approximately 1:10 of the normal norm) with each watering.
Any liquid concentrates for flowering indoor plants are suitable. A passive method is also used - crystalline fertilizers, which in dry form are poured over the ground. Dissolving gradually during watering, they penetrate the soil.
In the winter dormancy, top dressing is stopped. In spring, fertilizers are used to build green mass with a high content of potassium and nitrogen.
Transfer
Apply a ready-made soil mixture, which is sold in flower shops, or is prepared independently. To do this, take 2 parts of garden land, peat, river sand, 1 part humus.
For aeration of the soil, a drainage layer is laid at the bottom of the tank.
After transplanting, the plant is not fed for a month, giving time for adaptation. The new soil contains enough nutrients for development.
Bush formation
Home geranium loves space. She does not like the close proximity to other plants, and she herself requires periodic thinning, pinching and crown formation.
As a result, lateral shoots are formed, flowering will be more abundant, and excellent planting material will be obtained from the trimmed branches.
Pruning is shaping and seasonal.
The formation of the crown in upright and ampelous varieties is different, each time you need to find an individual approach.
The main do in the fall after flowering. To do this, remove dried leaves, shorten elongated, weakened and bare stems. This measure helps pelargonium to better endure the rest period and fully relax.
You can approach the procedure dramatically and simply cut off all the stems at the level of 5-6 cm from the soil surface, leaving only a few healthy buds. By spring, the trunks are covered with young shoots. The so-called rejuvenation of the plant will occur.
Seasonal spend in the spring, if the crown begins to develop unevenly.
You can not use ordinary scissors that split the stems, their healing will take longer and harder. Cut branches and leaves with a sharp garden knife or scalpel along an oblique over a leaf bud facing the bush.
At the end of the procedure, the sections are sprinkled with crushed coal for disinfection.
Breeding
Pelargonium of the house is propagated by cuttings and seeds.
For rooting, take cuttings 6-8 cm long, leave several upper healthy leaves. In order for plants to grow faster, they are dipped in a growth stimulator (Kornevin) and planted in pots for seedlings.
Since pelargonium does not like a humid environment, plantings do not cover and do not spray. Only moderate watering is needed. After 2 weeks, a maximum of a month later, a complete root system is formed and it will be possible to transplant into permanent pots into the ground for pelargonium.
When transplanting the tops of plants you need to pinch, then the active growth of the crown will begin. The first flowering occurs after three, less often - five months.
Pelargonium seeds are sown in 1-2 pieces in small glasses with soil or peat tablets. With this method of growing, you will not need a dive, seedlings will take root more quickly.
A container with crops is placed in a warm, bright place, regularly moistened from a spray bottle so that a crust of earth does not form, making germination difficult. Seeds will sprout on the 5th day.
After the first seedlings appear, irrigation is replaced by irrigation. Be sure to turn on the backlight to avoid stretching the sprouts. When the seedlings grow and get stronger, pinch the tops over the fifth leaf.
The first flowering will come in six months.
Pelargonium growing problems, diseases, pests
| Leaf manifestation | Cause | Remedial measures |
| The lower ones turn yellow and fall, the stem is exposed. | Insufficient lighting | Change the location to a brighter one. |
| Brown, ashen coating. | Overflow that led to a fungal disease, such as rust or gray rot. | In case of partial damage, remove damaged stems, transplant. With a strong plant, it is not possible to save the whole, you can maintain the appearance by using healthy cuttings for rooting. |
| Insects on leaves and soil, traces of their vital activity, spider web on trunks. | Thrips, whitefly, spider mite, etc. | Remove severely damaged parts, rinse with soap and water, conduct insecticidal treatment with Actellic type aerosol preparations. |
Useful properties of pelargonium, contraindications
The green parts of the plant are rich in essential oils. Medical are all parts of pelargonium: flowers, leaves, roots. They contain vitamins, minerals, volatile, tannins, sucrose, pectin, flavonoids, etc.
It has antiseptic, anti-inflammatory, hemostatic, wound healing, diuretic, antiviral and even anti-cancer effects.
Broth and tea is useful to drink for the comprehensive strengthening of the body. Essential oil has incorporated all the healing qualities of the plant. Oil is used internally, applied externally, baths and inhalations are made. The most common pelargonium bush on the windowsill is able to improve the indoor microclimate. It is believed that it helps maintain harmony in family relationships.
