1258 



PELABGONIU3I 



them in his pictures, but the larger part of their evolu- 

 tion is subsequent to his history. Various small works 

 on Pelarffoiiiuin have appeared. De Jonghe's "Trait6 

 M^tlio,li,|nr ,],. ]:i Culture ilu Pelargonium," Brussels, 

 1844, < tan.. -.,,,,1 l.ililiographical and cultural data. 



Most "I till- luliivatcd forms of Pel- 

 argouiiuu lau Ijc grouped into four 

 general horticultural classes: 



I. The zonal, horse-.shoe, fish, or bed- 

 ding types, known to gardeners as 

 Geraniums. They comprise a mongrel 

 class, lately designated (Bailey, "Bot- 

 any," p. 314) as Pelargonium horto- 

 rum. This race seems to be derived 

 from P. zonule and P. inquinans. 

 These species were made by Linnseus 

 in 1753, but he founded them on de- 

 scriptions in earlier works rather than 

 directly on the plants. In America, 

 the zonal Geraniums are very popu- 

 lar, for they develop their colors well 

 in the bright climate. They are jSopu- 

 lar in all countries, however. They 

 probably stand closer to the lives of 

 a great number of people than any 

 other ornamental plant. It a window 

 or a garden can have but one plant, 

 that plant is likely to be a Geranium. 

 The old race of largo - Howered and 

 large-clustered Geraniums was known 

 as Nosegay Geraniums, because they 

 were bouquet-like, but this terra is not 

 known in America. Another race has 

 been developed for its zone-marked 

 leaves. There is also a race of double- 

 flowered zonals, which have appeare<i 

 chiefly since 1860. The very full dou 

 ble and close-clustered forms lose 

 much of the grace and charm of tlic 

 single types. Some of them are litth' 

 better, to a sensitive eye, than balls of 

 colored tow or wadding. In the devel- 

 opment of the individual flower of the 

 Geranium, there have been two ideals 

 —the English ideal for a circular flower 

 with the petals broadened and over- 

 lapping, and the continental ideal with 

 a somewhat 2-lipped flower and the 

 petals well separated. In the Gar- 

 deners' Chronicle in 1841, p. 644, the 

 proper fniin is set f,,i-Hi in an illustra- 

 tion. :iu:l ilii- is .•(iiiirasted with the 

 "original l<Mrn;' \if picture is repro- 



PELARGONIUM 



diam.: lis. very large; petals roundish, or sometimes 

 triangular, the limb always very large and giving the 

 corolla a remarkably round contour: Ivs. very large, 

 aceous, plane or incurved, more or less 

 gly nerved, their diam. averaging about 

 a in.: pedicels large and short: pe- 

 dnn.-lc- Imi-l-i-, vi^-id,and pro.iecting be- 

 ■.■••:■} i!i. i.l'.L'c: wood soft, fleshy, 

 t 'I - 'II. n lyi in. around. To 

 li'i- I I" I' liiiiay refers the Bruant 



A special handbook is devoted to 

 these plants: Dauthenav, "Les Gera- 

 ums," Paris, 1897. 



the 



», IH-Mul 



11; I i I . , hanging l)askets, and 

 "ii ' ■ I I I III wliich au overhanging 



-I , I i. The foliage is thick 



aa.; !,;;,,, : , _ 1 1 1 ly peltate and pronii- 

 iiLnil;. aii^lr Idjed, and the pink or 

 reddish 2-Upped flowers are always 

 admired. Much-improved and double 

 forms are now in commerce, and the 

 plant is probably more popular than at 

 any time in its history. 



III. The show or fancy type is 

 known to gardeners as Pelargonium, 

 and in this country also as Lady Wash- 

 ington Geraniums. Fig. 1705. These 

 plants are very popular in Europe, 

 being grown in numerous varieties. 

 They are prominent at the exhibitions. 

 Because of the hot, trying summer 

 climate, these plants are of very sec- 

 ondary importance in America, al- 

 though there are many gardeners who 

 succeed well with them. This race 

 of Pelargoniums seems to have de- 

 scended chiefly from P. cuciillatiim, 

 although P. angulosum may be nearly 

 equally concerned in it. P. grtindi 

 florum is also thought to have been a 

 formative parent. It is probable that 

 two or three other species are con- 

 cerned in the evolution. In fact, the 

 late Shirley Hibbard once wrote (G.C., 

 ■Tuly 3. 1880) that "it must be evident 

 to every cultivator of these flowers 

 that the blood of a .score or so of spe- 

 ri,.^ is niinirlc.l in them." This marked 

 ^ir.jiri laia , wiii.'b represents no sin- 

 jli Willi -I'll I' -. is designated below 



niuiii.. kii- II Ml. -I li as Kose Gera- 

 willilh.ii i| .1 , II. I iiva'lives. The 



■ depicted in 1841. 



vailed in the The upper two show the 21ippe,l 

 larger of the old ideal. Uppermost is Mrs. E. U. Hill : 

 sorts is replaced middleone.Maculatum; lowest, Wistre. 

 by a firmer sub- 

 stance, and a far more delicate text- thev arc of intc 

 ure." Fig. 1700 shows contrasting ..il.'i -|., .lal n, 

 ideals, although the picture does a; i i 



not represent the extremes. i ■ i i i n. . i i . 



In recent years a French type has a ^|ii . i. . a 



appeared under the name of "gros 

 bois," or "large-wood" race. It is 

 ; characterized as follows by Dauthe- 

 nay: umbels ordinarily 4-.") in. in 



the foil. 





tioned above) are not known by the 

 writer to be in the American trade, but 



thev arc of interest as p.-ircnls of garden forms or for 

 ..III. r -|., . aal n .^i.,i-. ^Fan, , . f 1 lie true species of Pel- 



.1' .11 I I ,i:: I larits, and they deserve 



1. I'l I'll. I I I. ..a I., I. ii ....ilections of Pelargo- 



a -|..'. I.-- an. I \aiaih -, lia\a. been made in this 



cuuriirj. riie i.-ite .loliii .Saul, Washington, once had a 

 very large collection. Robert Sandiford, Mansfield, 

 Ohio, is a prominent grower of the zonal and ivy- 

 leaved class; also the Cottage Gardens, Queens, N. V., 



