Pelargonium hortorum seed
LATIN NAME: Pelargonium hortorum
COMMON NAME: Zonal Geranium
The zonal geranium is the dependable bright one of the window box, flowering in the reds, the pinks and the salmon tones for months on end. The bushy, upright, perennial plant carries the rounded, scalloped, dark-green leaves with the darker horseshoe zone and the big, rounded heads of the bright flowers through the long warm season, one of the fine, steady sights of the balcony and the border. The plant is a generous, easy presence of the pot, the window box and the warm border. It is a plant of the open, sunny, well-drained ground.
Scientific Research & Plant Biotechnology
The zonal geranium is a garden classic of the plant science, and the bright flowers have kept the breeders busy for generations. The breeding of the zonals for the colour, the size and the long flowering has been examined closely, and it keeps showing up in the work on the bedding plants, the pot plants and the members of the stork’s-bill family. The rounded, scalloped leaves with the horseshoe zone and the bushy, upright habit have also made it a fine garden plant, and the zonal geranium is a regular subject of the studies of the long-flowering pot plants of the warm world.
Ecological & Economic Value & Wide Applications
The zonal geranium is one of the great, dependable flowers of the window box. The big, rounded heads of the bright flowers open through the long warm season, holding their colour in the sun and the heat, and the plant is one of the fine choices for the balcony, the window box, the pot and the warm border. The rounded, dark-green leaves with the horseshoe zone keep the plant neat through the season, and the geraniums are among the easiest of the bright flowers to keep. It has been written up in the horticultural papers for the bright heads and the long, easy ways, and it is a fine, generous plant of the open, sunny, well-drained garden.
The zonal geranium is one of the great, dependable flowers of the window box, and the rounded heads of the bright flowers hold their colour in the sun and the heat. The horseshoe zone of the leaves keeps the plant neat through the season.
To grow the zonal geranium from seed, sow the small, pointed seeds a little below the surface of a pot of loose, free-draining soil, keep the pot in a warm, bright spot and water gently. The seedlings show themselves within a couple of weeks and grow on fast. With the sun, the warmth and the well-drained ground, the bright heads will open through the long warm season.
Geraniums have a vigorous, upright habit so branches don’t interlock on the bench and plants can be tightly spaced for simpler production. These geranium plants exhibit better natural basal-branching and less disease problems compared to cuttings, resulting in lower production and labour costs. Big, informal flower heads and distinctive ivy leaves create a beautiful cascade from baskets, tubs and window boxes, and make an excellent component in mixed containers. Well-matched across the series both on the bench and in the garden, with great outdoor performance and holding power in hot, humid climates. Flowers quickly from seed, making a beautiful 3 to 4 inch flowers.