Lakeshore Garden Centres Plant Finder

Other Names:  syn. Pelargonium cordifolium

Description:

This shrubby variety is a spreading, branched selection with dull green heart shaped foliage; stunning, lavender-pink orchid-like flowers emerge in late winter and continue throughout the summer season; excellent for containers

Ornamental Features

Heartleaf Geranium features delicate clusters of lavender orchid-like flowers with pink overtones and deep purple veins at the ends of the branches from late winter to late summer. Its serrated heart-shaped leaves remain grayish green in colour with curious silver undersides throughout the year.

Landscape Attributes

Heartleaf Geranium is a multi-stemmed annual with an upright spreading habit of growth. Its medium texture blends into the garden, but can always be balanced by a couple of finer or coarser plants for an effective composition.

This is a relatively low maintenance plant. Trim off the flower heads after they fade and die to encourage more blooms late into the season. It has no significant negative characteristics.

Heartleaf Geranium is recommended for the following landscape applications;

• Accent
• Mass Planting
• General Garden Use
• Container Planting

Planting & Growing

Heartleaf Geranium will grow to be about 4 feet tall at maturity, with a spread of 4 feet. Although it's not a true annual, this fast-growing plant can be expected to behave as an annual in our climate if left outdoors over the winter, usually needing replacement the following year. As such, gardeners should take into consideration that it will perform differently than it would in its native habitat.

This plant does best in full sun to partial shade. It does best in average to evenly moist conditions, but will not tolerate standing water. It is not particular as to soil type or pH. It is somewhat tolerant of urban pollution. This species is not originally from North America.

Heartleaf Geranium is a fine choice for the garden, but it is also a good selection for planting in outdoor pots and containers. With its upright habit of growth, it is best suited for use as a 'thriller' in the 'spiller-thriller-filler' container combination; plant it near the center of the pot, surrounded by smaller plants and those that spill over the edges. It is even sizeable enough that it can be grown alone in a suitable container. Note that when growing plants in outdoor containers and baskets, they may require more frequent waterings than they would in the yard or garden.