It should be noted that there are fragrant varieties of geranium and pelargonium. The difference for the buyer in the first place is that geraniums are mainly garden plants of open ground, and in room conditions pelargoniums are almost always grown. The rest are plants belonging to the same Geranium family, and the townsfolk often confuse them with each other, calling pelargonium geraniums, and vice versa. As part of this material, all varieties of indoor flowers that are conditionally included in the fragrant geranium group will be considered.
Fragrant geranium - what is it
According to the botanical classification, geranium (lat. Geranium) is a herbaceous perennial plant, preferring dry soils, sometimes winter-hardy. Leaves are palmate or palmate, on long petioles, always with pubescence.
Scented geranium
The color of flowers, consisting of five rounded at the ends of the petals, is white, pink, purple, blue. Branches are branched with upward or creeping shoots.
Geranium leaf
Fragrant pelargonium (lat. Pelargonium odorata) is an independent representative of the Geranium family with a different chromosomal set, unlike the classical geranium. These plants form bushes from erect shoots or drooping (ampelous). Leaves are pubescent (zonal varieties), as well as smooth fleshy and shiny (ivy varieties).
Flowers are all kinds of - five-petalled, semi-double, double, resembling roses (rosebund). The color of the petals is almost any, monophonic, two-color, multi-color, but never blue or purple.
Leaves of ivy variegated pelargonium (variety Edinburgh)
Description and characteristics of appearance
Odorous geranium - trade name. On the price tags you can see the words: colon, perfume, fragrant. Plants of this group may actually belong to pelargoniums or geraniums, but they are always distinguished by inexpressive flowering and a bright, memorable aroma that leaves leaves, just touch it.
Fragrant geraniums look different. Their foliage can be monophonic - light or dark green, with a characteristic spot in the middle of a rounded leaf plate (zonal pelargonium), but the most spectacular varieties with openwork cirrus foliage and variegated, combining several shades at once (yellow, green, pink, purple, etc.). d.).
Fragrant pelargonium grade Lady Plymouth
History of origin or selection
There are a great variety of geraniums (over 400 species). They are found in nature almost throughout the globe.
For example, in Greece, the species Pelargonium graveolens (geranium graveolens) is growing, which served as the ancestor for the varieties:
- Gray Lady Plymouth,
- Cinnamon rose,
- Graveolens and others.
The twisted leaf variety is known as Pelargonium graveolens cv "Bontrosai" (Bontrosai).
All this serves as an extensive genetic material for breeders who regularly present the latest developments.
For reference! Modern fragrant varieties are characterized by unpretentiousness, compactness of the crown, pleasant aromas and useful ability to heal the air in the house, scare away flies and mosquitoes.
A casual culture is suitable for beginner growers, but in addition to benefits, there are contraindications for allergy sufferers.
What is the difference from fragrant pelargonium
Given the enormous variety of varieties and their similarity, a layman can distinguish geranium from pelargonium only by indirect signs, because there are still characteristic differences.
Pelargoniums do not exist with flowers of violet and blue, blue shades. In geraniums, flowers have only 5 petals; in addition, there are varieties without flowers at all (non-blooming).
Geranium does not form an ampel; its shoots always tend to stretch upward. Pelargonium is softy without fringing on the leaves, with double flowers and branching long shoots hanging down.
Attention! It is impossible to cross pelargonium and geranium at home.
Fragrant geranium and pelargonium: varieties and varieties
In free sale in specialized nurseries and in amateur collections, you can find several hundred varieties of fragrant geraniums. The following varieties are distinguished by the direction of aromas.
Pelargonium lemon
This name was given to a variety of fragrant pelargonium represented by various varieties, for example, Pelargonium x species Grandeur Odorata Perfum, Mabel Gray.
It is typical of a tall (35-70 cm) crown with large heart-shaped, strongly dissected, slightly fleecy bright green, swollen lemon leaves with pointed tips. So it smells like lemongrass or lemon balm.
Geranium with the smell of lemon blossoms reluctantly racemose inflorescences, consisting of 3-15 buds, blooming in the form of 5-petalled corollas of a light pink hue with purple spots on two petals and the same shade with a large pestle.
For reference! It lends itself perfectly to shaping by pruning; overall, caring for lemon geraniums is very simple.
Lemon geranium
Pelargonium Candy Dancer
Fragrant pelargonium with a light sweetish pleasant aroma reminiscent of a mixture of lemon and rose. The variety was bred in 2002.
Very openwork light green foliage somewhat resembles a leaf of a hogweed. The leaves are covered with harsh whitish bristles, emitting a strong smell when touched. This geranium with carved leaves has 5-petal flowers, light pink or lilac.
Fragrant Pelargonium Candy Dancer
Pelargonium "Chocolate"
So far, breeders have not been able to obtain pelargonium with the exact aroma of chocolate, but work is ongoing in this direction.
In a first approximation, chocolate notes in combination with mint have leaves of the Chocolate Peppermint variety. The foliage of this pelargonium is somewhat reminiscent of maple in shape and has a large brown-burgundy spot in the center.
Pelargonium chocolate peppermint
Pelargonium Ardwick Cinnamon
The species hybrid obtained from Pelargonium fragrans has a pleasant aroma of wormwood with notes of cinnamon.
The leaves are typical for the royal pelargonium, harsh, light green, corrugated along the edges, with a velvety pile, giving the crown a bluish coating.
Variety Ardwick Cinnamon
Pelargonium Charity
The leaves of this pelargonium have a lemon-resinous aroma. Their color is variegated - it combines light and dark green sectors.
Blooms in small racemose inflorescences from pink 5-petal flowers. The crown is stretched up. Maintains compactness with regular pruning.
Varietal Pelargonium Charity
Pelargonium Gemstone
The bush with straight upright shoots up to 60 cm high. The lobed rough leaves give off a delicate lemon aroma.
Flowering, in contrast to other fragrant varieties, is long, the flowers are larger than usual and painted in a bright pink-red tint.
Geranium Gourmet "Gourmet"
Gourmet variety is a fragrant geranium with a variety of odors: lemon, cinnamon, apple, Coca-Cola, orange (orange), needles, roses.
Tall plants up to 60 cm tall have large, strongly dissected, green foliage of a single color or variegate color, and a variety of shades of flowers - a mix from pale pink to deep burgundy.
Home care for fragrant geraniums
According to the owners of fragrant geraniums, they are less capricious in care than pelargoniums, considered one of the most unpretentious indoor flowers. It is enough to pay attention to the bush once a week to inhale its pleasant aroma for many years.
Illumination and temperature
Like all representatives of the Geranium family, fragrant pelargoniums are very fond of sunlight. On the southern windows, their crown will be thicker and brighter, and in the shade it will darken and stretch.
Attention! If there is too little sun, flowers will not appear even in summer.
The optimum temperature in the summer is +18 ... +24 ° С. In winter, you can lower the air temperature to +15 ° C, this is especially good when there is a lack of light.
Watering rules and humidity
Watering is necessary only when the soil in the pot dries 3-4 cm deep. Watering regimen is selected depending on the time of year.
- In the summer in the heat, when geranium grows actively, blooms, it happens, it is also required daily watering.
- In winter, when the plant is almost asleep, the roots absorb moisture slowly, it is worth watering a couple of times a month.
Permissible air humidity is in the range of 40-80%, spraying foliage even in the heat is not required.
Top dressing and soil quality
Unsuitable for geranium soil: heavy loam, chernozem supersaturated with humus or humus. Their root system needs air intake, so the soil structure must be loose, breathable, not retaining moisture for too long.
The optimal acid-base reaction is pH = 5.5-6.0. It is with these indicators that fragrant geraniums and pelargoniums grow best.
Top dressing is performed from April to October with an interval of 2 weeks. Use only specialized complex mineral fertilizers, for example, "Agricola for flowering".
Flower Tank Size
The geranium root system is much smaller than the ground part. The maximum depth is 25 cm. The pot is selected for the seedling no more than 9 cm in diameter, gradually increasing the size by 1-1.5 cm every six months for the first 2 years. In the 3rd year you can do without transplantation, and from 4 years old the bush needs rejuvenation.
The size of the crown is several times larger than the volume of the pot
Pruning and transplanting
Pruning of bushes is carried out in the spring, in the first half of March, when daylight increases. Remove all elongated and deforming crown shoots. It is enough to leave only 15 cm from the crown from the soil level, so that the plant rapidly starts to grow.
A transplant is performed to update salted soil by irrigation and increase the volume of the pot. Slowly growing dwarf varieties are transplanted only 1 time per year - in March.
Features of flowering plants
It takes a lot of sunlight to form geranium inflorescences. If the pot stands on the north window in mid-latitudes, then flowering may not occur at all. The optimal duration of daylight hours is 14 hours.
- Period of activity and rest
Geranium is capable of blooming year-round in the presence of 14 hours of daylight. In the absence of illumination, the first flowers bloom in April, and the last in October.
- Types and shape of flowers
The traditional shape of the whisk for fragrant geraniums is a 5-petal. Some varieties of pelargonium bloom double and semi-double flowers. Umbrella inflorescence in different varieties consists of 3-25 buds.
Fragrant geranium flowers - not the main thing
Ways to propagate a flower when it's best done
All varieties of fragrant geraniums are very easy to propagate, so with serious problems with the bush it is always easier to take the cuttings and root.
- Propagation by cuttings
Cuttings can be taken at any time from April to October. Often cuttings are performed in March at the same time as pruning. A cutaway shoot with several leaves must be kept in the air for 4 hours to dry the cut. Then it is immediately planted in a pot or put in a glass with water.
Note! Rooting in soil and water occurs with approximately equal success and speed, but not all varieties are able to root in water.
Watering until the roots appear on the handle, is done only after the soil has completely dried, otherwise the risk of decay is great. For control it is worth using a transparent container.
- Seed propagation
Geraniums can reproduce by seed, which opens up opportunities for crossbreeding. Sowing is carried out in March-April. The germination period is up to 2 weeks.
Seedlings dive in stage 3-4 of these leaves. Then they should be looked after as adults. It is important not to overdo it with watering, since all seedlings are sensitive to it.
- Dividing the bush
Old bushes can be divided into parts, separating each with a bunch of roots. Before planting, leave to dry for several hours, sprinkling slices with crushed coal.
The method is good for tall and fast growing varieties.
Growing problems, diseases and pests
Geranium can be affected by common indoor pests: thrips, aphids, spider mites, scale insects. They can cause great harm to flowers. If signs are detected, the plant should be treated with Fitoverm or Aktara.
Diseases rarely infect geraniums with proper agricultural practices. Rot indicates a violation of the irrigation regime. Yellowness of the leaves may indicate a burn of the roots with fertilizers, hypothermia and overdry. When the air temperature drops to +10 ° C, many varieties stop growing and can die.
It’s not at all difficult to grow fragrant geranium on your windowsill. You can buy cuttings in specialized stores, from collectors and even on the Internet. Unpretentious fragrant plant will be a decoration of any home.
