PEAK SEASON: Main flush late spring into summer; some rebloom into fall. Some have bronze or red fall foliage.
FAVORITE SELECTIONS:
- G. sanguineum (bloody cranesbill) - pink or magenta flowers and a low, mounding habit.
- G. endressii "Wargrave Pink" - stands 1.5 feet tall and has bluish pink flowers. It likes cool weather.
- G. "Johnson's Bule" - 1 foot tall and gets leggy if not adequately watered and pruned.
- G. macrorrhizum (big-root geranium) is invaluable for dry shade. It is a low grower with white ("Album") or pink ("Ingrwersen's Variety") flowers.
- lupines
- catmint
- artemisia
- sedum
- dianthus
- lamb's ears
- creeping thyme
- lady's-mantle
- fountain grass and golden hakone grass
- hosta
- lily-of-the-valley
- epimedium
- lamium
- wild ginger
- formflower
- sweet woodruff
How: Space 1-2 feet apart. Spreading types can grow to 2 feet across.
TLC: Geranium plants tend to open up and become leggy and sparse in the center after flowering. Cut back after blooming to get a fresh mound of leaves and some rebloom. Divide them evry 3 to 5 years, in early spring, by digging them up, gently pulling or cutting apart the root systems, and replanting them; make sure each division has several growth buds and healthy roots.