The fashion for geraniums has led to the fact that every year hundreds of new varieties are bred. With small and large flowers, thousands of flowers and shades, plain and multi-toned, smooth and torn edges of the flower, smooth and velvet flowers, with wintering and non-wintering leaves - there are so many varieties of this delightful flower that no catalog can accommodate all varieties. For growing in suburban areas, garden geranium is most often used, which is distinguished by lush and colorful bushes.
The growing conditions of the Queen of the Garden
Most varieties of this family are photophilous. Even if forest geranium was used to breed new varieties, the finest and most luxurious samples will still be on the bright side of the plot (Renard geranium, Himalayan, flat petal, ash, Endras and others). But these flowers grow beautifully, bloom and bear fruit in the darkened parts of the flower garden or alpine hill. Varieties that tolerate almost constant dimming are also bred. These include forest geranium, red-brown and Robert. They love fresh air, dark places and moderate humidity.
Of geraniums, only wetland geranium and its derivatives prefer excess moisture. The remaining representatives are most comfortable with moderate moisture. They can tolerate the overflow for a long time, but at the same time, growth slows down, the plant begins to hurt, rot, and underfill - the edges of the leaves turn yellow and dry, the entire leaf gradually dries, then the whole plant dies. Among drought tolerant varieties, the following varieties are distinguished: Renard geranium, ashen, Endras, Dalmatian, geranium ivy, and large-rhizome.
The soil is preferred light and fertile. Most varieties grow well on slightly alkaline soil, garden geranium prefers soil with a pH of about 8. But the abundance of varieties allows you to choose a variety for any type of soil. So, on acidic, peaty soils, black-eyed geranium feels great. On clay, heavy, but rich soil - geranium meadow and dull.
Garden geranium is normal in lowering temperature. Sometimes the outer part of the plant dies as a result of frost, but new shoots grow in the spring. For wintering geraniums (red-brown and blood-red), you do not need to trim the leaves before wintering. But nevertheless, it will not be amiss to shelter the flowers for the winter and insulate. But the geranium ivy is not afraid of a cold snap, but from frost it will instantly lose its juicy and fleshy leaves.
Care of the many-sided blossoming beauty
Caring for geraniums is easy. With good watering and weeding, the flower grows in large lush bushes, crushing weeds. Therefore, until the plants grow, you need regular weeding and fertilizer. It is good to fertilize this flowering shrub during the period of rapid flowering and fruit formation. Loosening the aisles is mandatory, as dense, clogged soil inhibits growth and flowering. It should be controlled so that one type of fertilizer is not in excess, since, for example, nitrogen fertilizers strongly drive the leaf mass of the flower, but have a bad effect on flowering.
Weaknesses and diseases of geraniums
Most plants suffer from violations of growing conditions: excess or lack of moisture, very high or low air temperatures, insufficient amount of light and nutrients. It is easy to eliminate such deviations, and then the garden geranium will soon be restored.
Propagate the beauty
Representatives of this family breed very easily.
Seeds are formed closer to the end of summer and are scattered on their own, so there will be a bunch of new seedlings by the time the garden gets colder. But it is more efficient to sow seeds closer to cold weather, so that in spring they choose the optimal period for seedlings. Garden geranium blooms from seeds, usually in the second year.
It is very convenient to sow seeds in home-made micro-greenhouses, germinate them before the appearance of real leaves and after a pick, plant them at a distance of at least 40 cm from each other, so that they do not subsequently plant. It is worth sowing seeds in order to plant already grown seedlings in the soil at the first warming, otherwise flowering will begin only by the end of summer.
Plant cuttings that were put into water before the appearance of a full-fledged new root system also perfectly take root. To speed up the process of root sprouting, you can soak the cuttings in a growth stimulator or special solutions.
You can divide the bush into cuttings and root with a kidney division. The kidneys should be juicy and healthy, then in a month you will have a rejuvenated plant.
Plant the first geranium and you cannot stop. You will want to enjoy the new and new varieties of these beautiful flowers!