PELARGONIUM 



PELARGONIUM 



1259 



ami E. G. Hill & Co., Richmond, Ind. Jolm H. Sie- 

 vers, San Francisco, has a large collection of the 

 Lady Washington class. The Horticultural Department 

 of Cornell University has 

 had about 1,000 varieties 

 and species, representing 

 all groups. 



Bentham and Hooker 

 estimate that the genus 

 Pelargonium contains 

 about 170 species. Nearly 

 all of them are from South 

 Africa. All the species 

 mentioned in this article 

 are from that region. 

 Harvey, in Vol. I of Har- 

 vey & Sonder's Flora 

 Capensis (1859-60), ad- 

 mits 163 species; and his 

 descriptions are followed 

 closely in the characterizations of 

 species given below. Pelargo- 

 nium is distinguished from the 

 genus Geranium by technical char- 

 acters. In most cases, the flow- 

 ers of Geranium are regular, but 

 those of Pelargonium are irregular, the 

 two upper petals differing from the 

 others in size and shape and often in 

 coloring. The most constant differ- 

 ence between the two genera is the 

 presence in Pelargonium of a nectar- 

 tube, extending from the base of one 

 of the sepals and adherent to the side 

 of the calyx-tube or pedicel. This tube 

 is not seen by the casual observer, 

 but it can be discovered by making a 

 longitudinal section of the flower and 

 pedicel. In Pelargonium the calyx is 

 5-parted ; petals 5, mostly obovate or 

 spatulate, in 2 sets or series comprising 2 

 upper and 3 lower ; stamens really 10, but 

 3 or more of them merely sterile filaments. 



L. H. B. 



CULTURE OP ZONAL GERANIUMS. While 

 the general florist may consider Geranium 

 culture the easiest of all gardening, the 

 fact remains that it is as necessary to ob- 

 serve the requirements of the Geranium 

 as it is to observe the requirements of any 

 other plant, in order to succeed and pro- 

 duce the best effects attainable. While 

 it is true that the Geranium will grow and 

 make a good showing with comparatively 

 little care, there is as much difference between 

 a skilfully grown Geranium plant and one care- 

 lessly grown as there is between a fancy and 

 a common rose or carnation. 



In order to secure the best results it is nec- 

 essary to propagate from perfectly healthy 

 stock. The dangers of over-propagation are as 

 great with the Geranium as with most other 

 plants. In order to keep the majority of the 

 varieties in good health it is necessary to plant 

 the stock intended for propagation in the field 

 and to propagate either from the field-grown 

 wood in August or early September, or to lift 

 the plants in the month of September and plant 

 them on benches in the greenhouse, where 

 they will become established and will main- 

 tain a vigorous constitution throughout the 

 winter season. The propagation from field- 

 grown wood is far less successful than from 

 wood grown inside, and when the field-grown 

 cuttings are placed in sand, a large percentage 

 of them is likely to damp off, especially if 

 there has been a comparatively abundant rain- 

 fall during the month of July. The best method 

 that the writer has found for striking the field- 

 grown cuttings is to put them in 2-inch pots, 

 using a light, sandy soil free from all manure and chem- 

 icals, and to place the pots in the full sunlight either in 

 a coolhouse or a frame. These cuttings must be kept on 



the dry side until the calluses have been well formed, 

 although they should not be allowed to shrivel at any 

 time. If the cuttings show signs of shriveling, a light 

 syringing is preferable to a heavy watering. After the 

 roots have started to grow, the treatment of the plants 

 is the same as if the cuttings had been rooted in the 

 sand and repotted. The writer considers wood grown 

 inside superior to field-grown wood, as the cuttings are 

 much shorter- jointed ; most of them can be taken 

 from the plant with a heel and 95-100 per cent of them 

 will root in sand in the ordinary cutting-bench. 



A good temperature for the Geranium propagating 

 house is 56-60, with a bottom heat of 65-68. While 

 the cuttings are in the sand and before they are rooted, 

 care must be taken about keeping them too moist 

 for fear of "damping off," or what Geranium 

 growers know as "black rot." As soon as the 

 Geranium cutting is thoroughly callused and be- 

 gins to emit roots it should be potted up at once. 

 The best soil for Geraniums, according to the 

 writer's experience, is a firm, pliable clay loam; 

 this is best if used absolutely without any ma- 

 nure, especially fresh manure. After potting the 

 cuttings they should be lightly watered and 

 shaded for a day or so if the sun is extremely 

 hot, until the roots take hold and the foliage fills 

 up and the stems begin to look plump. 

 The Geranium should not be grown at 

 any time in its young state in a soil 

 that is too rich, and care must also be 

 taken that the plants are not kept too 

 wet. 



The Geranium is subject to few dis- 

 eases, and so far as the writer has 

 been able to observe these diseases are 

 brought on by improper treatment, such 

 as having too much fresh rank manure 

 in the soil or keeping the plants too 

 wet. Too much strong plant-food in the 

 soil combined with too much 

 moisture produces a spotted con* 

 dition of the leaves ordinarily 

 called "spot." It usually appears 

 in the hottest weather or imme- 

 diately after extreme heat accom- 

 panied by copious showers or 

 rains. 



Excellent specimen Geranium 

 plants may be grown in pots, 

 especially of some of the newer 

 French and English round-flow- 

 ered varieties. In order to pro- 

 duce the best results, select 

 young, vigorous plants that have 

 been propagated either in the 

 latter part of August or 

 the fore part of Septem- 

 ber, and that have shown 

 a disposition to take hold 

 immediately, both in root- 

 ing and in starting to 

 grow after being potted. 

 The soil should not be too 

 rich, and it is best to start 

 with the plant in a rather 

 small pot, say 2% in., and 

 proceed onward with light 

 shifts, that is, shifting 

 the plant from a 2% -in. 

 to a 3% -in. pot, and so on, 

 letting the sizes increase 

 an inch at each shift un- 

 til a 7-, 8- or 9-in. pot is 

 reached, which will usu- 

 ally be large enough to 

 flower the finest speci- 

 mens. Whenever potting 

 the Geranium, be sure to 

 pot firmly, as a firm soil 

 produces a short-jointed, 

 stocky growth, and far more bloom than a loose or over- 

 rich soil. When the plants reach a 5- or 6-in. pot they 

 may be regularly fed with manure water. The mos't 



1701. Leaves of various fancy-leaved Gera- 

 niums' P. hortorum 



