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Geranium macrorrhizum

 
Geranium macrorrhizum
bigroot cranesbill
Geranium macrorrhizum

Common name bigroot cranesbill
Family geraniaceae
Life cycle perennial (Z4)
Flowers cream/rose (late spring)
Size 16"
Light sun-light shade
Cultural notes ordinary garden soil
Seed ripenslate June

Robust but low-growing cranesbill. The scalloped leaves are supposedly fragrant, but I've never noticed. This species in particular is reported to have bright red autumn foliage, but in our garden, several other geraniums outperform in the brilliant-leaf department - perhaps because macrorrhizum stays green so late in the season that, by the time it does turn, I have stopped paying attention (or it's covered in snow).
The first plant we had was grown from seed labeled 'Ingwersen's Variety' - it's the pale pink flower featured in a few photos on this page. Since then, we purchased another plant labeled with this name, whose flowers are a slightly darker shade of pink. From what I can tell, the paler pink is closer to the expected shade for 'Ingwersen's Variety', but I like them both.
A second cultivar we grow, 'Variegatum', has irregularly white-splashed leaves.

bigroot cranesbill
'Variegatum' leaves
Geranium macrorrhizum
Fall color on the straight species
bigroot cranesbill
'Variegatum' in bloom
Geranium macrorrhizum

We left this plant behind in our Pennsylvania garden (and wish it well); we don't grow it in Houston.

Read about all the cranesbills in our garden on my geraniums page

One or more images of this plant are included in my stock photo catalog

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PlantLinks to other web pages about Geranium macrorrhizum


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