SMOTHERED WITH BLOOMS, sometimes for months on end, hardy geraniums delight gardeners as well as butterflies, bees and other pollinators.
Also known as cranesbill, the plants have deeply lobed, sometimes lacy foliage ranging from green to grey-green or bright gold, with varying textures, including matte, glossy, pebbled and coated with silvery hairs. Geraniums vary in habit as much as they do in appearance, from a flashy showboat varieties to sturdy deciduous perennials and carpeting evergreen ground covers.
But wait, there’s more! Geraniums are also pest proof and deer and rabbit resistant. Best of all, all geraniums are hardy, easy to grow and low maintenance.
If all this sounds too good to be true, read on to explore the best garden-worthy geraniums for Pacific Northwest gardens; many appear on Great Plant Pick lists.
Showy varieties
Geranium ‘Ann Folkard’ Chartreuse foliage rambles about the border clambering through small shrubs and sturdy perennials. Its luminous leaves and vivid dark-eyed magenta blooms in summer would be especially showy knit with one of the purple snakeroots (Actaea simplex). Rich well-drained soil and regular water in full sun promote vigorous growth; cut back to control size or to avoid smothering delicate plants. Grows 2 feet high and 3 feet wide. The cultivar ‘Anne Thompson’ has equally radiant foliage and showy blooms on smaller plants that grow 1 foot by 3 feet. Deciduous.
G. ‘Patricia’ Punch up garden compositions with these tidy mounds of foliage, which are smothered with blossoms (magenta with black centers) and dramatic veining. Flowering begins in May when spring bulbs are peaking and continues all summer into fall when the deeply cut leaves turn red. Provide well-drained soil in sun to light shade. Grows 1½ feet high by 1½ feet wide. Deciduous.
G. ‘Gerwat’ Rozanne Multiple waves of blue flowers with white centers held above speckled green foliage appear in late spring and don’t stop until frost cuts them down in fall. Provide well-drained soil in sun to light shade and water during extended dry spells. Grows 2 feet by 3 feet. Place a peony hoop or other small frame over the plants to support upright growth, creating a striking feature in deep borders. Deciduous.
Good garden companions and fillers
G. cinereum ‘Laurence Flatman’ This compact species is good in the rock garden, along the edge of borders and in a container. Upward facing pale pink flowers heavily veined with dark purple appear from May through September atop mounding grey green leaves. Provide well drained soil in full sun to light shade and water during extended dry spells. Grows 6 inches high by 1 foot wide. Evergreen.
G. renardii Striking clumps of pebbled gray green leaves support delicate white flowers with dramatic purple veining. Blooms appear in late spring through early summer, but the handsome foliage remains attractive throughout summer then turns gold in fall. Good at the front of a border and in a container. Provide well drained soil in full sun and water during extended dry spells. The cultivar ‘Tcschelda’ has pale lavender blooms. Grows 1 foot by 1 foot. Deciduous.
G. x riversleaianum ‘Mavis Simpson’ Soft pink blooms with rounded petals hover above trailing clumps of downy silver green leaves that spill along edges and fill in among other plants. Provide well drained, fertile soil in full sun to light shade. Grows 2 feet by 4 feet. Flowers on the cultivar ‘Russell Prichard’ are magenta on smaller plants. Grows 1½ feet by 3 feet. Deciduous.
G. wlassovianum Small purple flowers with contrasting veins appear in summer above clumps of attractive trailing foliage — another good candidate for filling gaps in beds and borders. Leaves emerge fuzzy in spring, turn dark green in summer then take on yellow, red and purple hues in fall. Provide well-drained soil in full sun to light shade and water during extended dry spells. Grows 2 feet by 2 feet. Deciduous.
Groundcovers
G. x cantabrigiense An excellent ground cover with dense weed-suppressing growth, this geranium is good in front of upright perennials and among shrubs. Tidy the plant by lightly shearing the foliage in spring. Popular cultivars include ‘Biokovo’ with pale pink to white blooms, ‘Cambridge’ with lavender blooms and ‘Karmina’ with violet-red blooms. Provide well-drained, fertile soil in full sun to light shade and water during extended dry spells. Grows just under 1 foot high by 5 feet wide. Evergreen.
G. macrorrhizum Fragrant mats of weed-suppressing foliage and flowers in late spring through early summer make an attractive and effective groundcover. Popular cultivars include ‘Album’ with lightly blushed white blooms, ‘Bevan’s Variety’ with magenta blooms and ‘Ingwersen’s Variety’ with soft pink flowers. The plant appreciates well-drained fertile soil in sun to light shade but will tolerate dry conditions, like those at the base of a tree, when established. Grows just shy of 1 foot by 5 feet. Evergreen.
Lorene Edwards Forkner: is the author of the newly published “Grow Great Vegetables in Washington.” Find her at ahandmadegarden.com and at Cultivating Color on Substack.
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