What Is The Favourite Flower Of A Frog? …A Croak – Us!
The Geranium that we all grow and love is actually not a true Geranium but is truly called a Pelargonium or referred to as a Zonal Geranium. It is considered a tender perennial that originated in South Africa and was taken to Europe in the 17th century and then on to North America. The flower stands for Happiness, Friendship and Good Health and is often given as a house warming gift. The Geranium is a natural pest repellent that works for mosquitoes and wasps especially the lemon scented varieties. It is also unpopular with slugs and snails. It is Zonal Geranium is non toxic to humans and pets and unfortunately it is not the most welcoming to bees as they do not like the smell of the Geranium. It unfortunately is subject to White Fly, Mites and Aphids especially indoors. It is the National Flower of both Switzerland and Hungary and is extremely popular all over the world as it is very easy to grow and with it’s wide variety of colours makes a incredible display in the yard and garden in borders, hanging baskets or pots. It is often grown as a companion plant among Roses and Grape Vines and is stunning grown with Lobelia and Alyssum.
You can also grow Geranium indoors and this can be one of the ways to over winter the plant. The Geranium likes lots of light a minimum of 6 to 8 hours with a temperature of around 70 in the day and 55 at night, it should be grown in well drained soil that has had some perlite, peat moss and some organic matter mixed in. If it becomes extremely hot mulch should be used to keep moisture in the soil. If it does not bloom it usually is because of too little light or too much fertilizer which should only be given to the plant every 6 weeks and that can be in the form of adding more organic material to the soil or a water soluble fertilizer 5-10-5. Geraniums should be watered at the roots as opposed to overhead watering to prevent fungal issues however if you do overhead water be sure to do it during the morning hours to help prevent fungal disease. The only other care the plant will need is deadheading of the spent flowers as this will encourage continuous blooms and is easily done by gently snapping or cutting the flower head away from the stem. Geraniums can be grown from seed, cuttings or you can over winter the plants either in pots or by gently lifting them and shaking off the dirt and storing them in a cool dark place over the winter months. Be sure to remove the flowers from these plant and then remember to mist them every once in a while with plain water. These plants can be hung upside down in small bundles if you like or as I do it by placing them root down very closely in a box. I am quite successful with this method and each year you keep them the larger they become, I have 4 and 5 year olds that each plant will fill a deep 2 foot wide pot! If keeping them in pots for the winter is more your style be sure to prune the plant back about one third then keep in a cool well lit area.
Florescent light can be used but be sure to keep it quite close to the plant to keep it from stretching. Geraniums are also grown as a crop in some places as it does contain oils that are used in cosmetics, perfumes, and medications. The oil from the plant is obtained by steam distillation of the leaves and is mixed with sesame or other oils and is considered to have anti-bacterial, anti -oxidant and anti-bacterial properties and is used to treat ailments such as anxiety, depression, infections pain and inflammation. It can reduce hyperglycaemia in people as it reduces glucose levels and used to treat side effects of some cancer patients. This of course with direct supervision by a professional as many trials are still being done on the benefits of Geranium.
Happy Gardening
Samantha Nason
BS Ranch & Greenhouses
250 547 6567 • samanthanason@hotmail.com
