Appearance

Appearance

Rounded leaves often have a dark band, though some varieties lack it. Small red, pink, salmon, or white flowers gather in upright clusters.

Growth form

Plants usually form rounded mounds about 1–3 ft (0.3–0.9 m) tall.

Flowering time

In much of the United States, it flowers through the warm months until frost.

Look-alikes

Scarlet geraniumPelargonium inquinans

Its rounded leaves generally lack the dark band often seen on zonal geraniums. Because some garden cultivars also lack a band, an unlabeled photo may not settle the question.

Horseshoe geraniumPelargonium zonale

Both can show a dark leaf band. Double flowers or unusual cultivated colors favor the garden hybrid, but ordinary single flowers can be hard to separate in photos.

Where it lives

Typical habitats

• Garden beds
• Porch pots
• Sunny windows

Range

It is grown across the United States in gardens, window boxes, and other containers, often as an annual where winters freeze.

Growing it

Care

Give it full sun and well-drained soil. Bring container plants indoors before frost if you want to keep them through winter.

Propagation

Some single-flowered varieties grow from seed; many double-flowered varieties are kept by stem cuttings.

Name and classification

About the name

Garden centers often call this plant a geranium, although its genus is Pelargonium. It is also called Pelargonium × hybridum; the larger-flowered regal geranium (Pelargonium × domesticum) is a separate hybrid.

Varieties and forms

Cultivars include single and double flowers, miniature plants, and leaves with or without a dark band.

Conservation

IUCN Red List

NENot Evaluated·Not yet assessed