Flat-petaled geranium

Family Geraniaceae. In the wild it is often found on the subalpine meadows of the Caucasus, and has been in cultivation since the early 19th century, when Russian botanists began to study the flora of the Caucasus.

A perennial with a thick short rhizome forming a tall, 60–70 cm, dense, attractively shaped clump. Occasionally the diameter of such a clump reaches 100 cm. Reliable in cultivation. A clump can persist up to 15 years without division or transplanting. The whole plant is aromatic and densely covered with hairs. Leaves are glaucous green, rounded, up to 12 cm wide, on long petioles, cut two-thirds of the way into broad ovate lobes. The leaf blade is thin and soft because of its hairiness. Leaves appear in late April and die back with the onset of frost. Stems are erect, bearing blue-violet flowers up to 4–5 cm in diameter, with broad, wedge-shaped at the base, hairy petals that are notched at the edges. Flowering begins in June and continues for about two months; seeds ripen in August.

Propagated by dividing the clump in spring or late summer, or by seed. When sown in autumn, seedlings appear in spring and bloom in their second year. The species is widely used in flower beds and is offered by firms in the USA, England, and Germany. Flat-petaled geranium prefers sunny locations, fertile soils, and moderate moisture. It is often used in mixed borders in combination with oxeye daisy, hybrid daylilies, whorled coreopsis, Heuchera, Potentilla, and others. It blooms magnificently in July–August.