GERANIACEAE 2007

[mark smyth]

I'll kick off the 2007 Geranium season with something that is about to flower 33 days earlier than last year. It should be monocarpic but it produced three side shoots at the end of last summer.

Geranium maderense

and Geranium tuberosum

[mark smyth]

just starting to flower now is G. tuberosum pink form and the lovely G. libani x G. peloponnesiacum. All these tuberous Geraniums will be dormant by late June.

Also Geranium maderense taken yesterday. Notice how the leaves turn down when flowering to stablise the plant with it's huge flower head

[Maggi Young]

I am tempted by these plants, but I can just hear the BD... " where are you going to put them, they're too big!!"

[Luc Gilgemyn]

I love that G. maderense Mark - I googled it and found it grows as high as 5 feet - your plant looks smaller

[Maggi Young]

Five feet high? Good grief, the BD would kill me!

[mark smyth]

my plant when first flowering last year may have been 4 feet. This year it is

Maggi the tuberous plants are small and well behaved. G. tuberosum can run a wee bit but so far not in my garden

I have seeds of maderense unpolluted by palmatum

[mark smyth]

Geranium maderense today beaten to death by the gales

Summer Geraniums are now starting to flower

[mark smyth]

can you name these 3? Most people cant. All can be found at plants sales, garden events and open days all with the same name

[mark smyth]

There must be others growing hardy Geraniums/Geraniaceae

Here are two new ones bought yesterday
'Dragon's Heart' with G. psilostemon in it's blood and G. pratense 'Ilja'

Also three that can be mistaken. G. palmatum, G. rubescens and G. robertianum

The bubble gum pink G. sanguineum 'Shepherd's Warning'

And one I've shown before G. wallichianum ex Chadwell seeds

[Lesley Cox]

I don't know any of your 3 un-named Mark but they are all very attractive with good, clean colours. I also have the Chadwell collection of G. wallichianum so looking forward to its first flowers, having seen yours. I think it's silly to name G. pratense forms as it varies from seed hugely and I'd be surprised if anyone's propagating it any other way.

[Maggi Young]

Now, 'tis a well-known fact that what I know about geraniums can be written on th sharp end of a pin, but, never one to allow ignorance to get in the way of an opinion, I'll suggest that Mark's three blue gerries can all be obtained as 'Johnston's Blue..... anywhere close?

[mark smyth]

yes all are sold/swapped as 'Johnson's Blue'

[mark smyth]

They are
x magnificum - G. ibericum x G. platypetalum
'Johnson's Blue' - G. pratense x G. himalyense
and himalayense

[mark smyth]

Here's a photo to show the flower size of 'Dragon Heart'

Also
'Jolly Bee' V 'Rozanne' - I cant remember which is which in this photo. can you?
A new pratense double called 'Elsie Lacey'
A pratense seedling in my own garden like 'Splish Splash' but two tone blue
A pratense hybrid 'Summer Skies'
Lastly another possible theft - 'Nora Bremner' and 'Shocking Blue'

[mark smyth]

this morning I went out and photographed all of my Geraniums

Firstly a small collage and then in alphabetical order
cinereum 'Rothbury Gem'
'Dragon's Heart'
'Nora Bremner'
'Orion'
'Patricia'
seedling that looks like 'Patricia'
pratense seedling
'Rozanne'
sanguineum