Geraniums are a genus of flowering plants, the Geranium, that are wildly popular for their showy, colorful flowers. Although the entire genus is considered geraniums, gardening the genus Pelargonium is commonly referred to when we refer to these plants.
When summer arrives, it is common to see geraniums everywhere, both gardens and balconies and windows, embellishing the landscape with their tones and perfume. If you want to do your bit to make summer more beautiful on your terrace or balcony with geranium flowers and, therefore, you want to learn how to plant geraniums step by step, join us in this article where you will see a guide on geraniums care.
How to do geraniums care
These are the most important geranium care :
- Light: a lot, direct incidence.
- Temperature: warm, around 20ºC.
- Substrate: slightly acidic and rich in organic matter. Good drainage.
- Irrigation: frequent, always without flooding. Every 48 hours approximately.
- Fertilizer: necessary during the flowering season.
When to plant geraniums?
Since geraniums have such a large variety among their different types, it is important to know which Geranium we are planting to know when it is more appropriate. These plants bloom from spring to autumn, depending on the species and variety. If you are not very clear, the best thing you can do is plant your Geranium in mid-spring, when the frosts have already passed and they will not damage your plant.
How to plant geraniums for seeds
When we sow geraniums, the ideal thing is to plant the seeds first in a small seedbed or pot to ensure that the germination process occurs in optimal conditions and we do not expose the roots to frost. To plant geraniums, follow these steps:
Prepare your seedbed with a substrate for geraniums and sow the seeds. The substrate should be made of worm humus, peat and coconut fiber, as well as a little vermiculite and perlite. This mixture results in a very light, nutritious soil with excellent drainage, which will avoid moisture accumulations as long as the container has drainage holes.
Water the seeds abundantly, keep them in an area protected from the cold and give them a bright location.
When the seedlings are already around 10 cm tall, it will be time to transplant them to their final location, whether outdoors or in a larger pot.
In the case of the exterior, it is necessary to consider the soil that a geranium needs. Hence, it is best to dig a hole and prepare an area with the prepared substrate or add worm humus to the earth if it is not clayey and is light enough and loose. The Geranium holes do not need to be very large, but you must find a location for them as bright as possible, preferably in full sun.
In a pot, the pot’s size for geraniums depends largely on the variety of species to be planted since their sizes are very different. If you don’t know what species you have, choose a medium-size pot and, if it grows a lot, transplant it when the time comes.
Water after planting abundantly, mulch the soil if you plant outdoors and, when the plant grows, it may need tutors or guides to support it.
How to plant a geranium cutting?
Another very common way of reproducing geraniums is, without a doubt, making a geranium cutting. It is more common than sowing them since they are very resistant and take root very easily.
Prepare a small pot with a substrate like the one we have used in the nursery, with equal parts of coconut fiber, peat, and worm castings, to which you can add some perlite and vermiculite.
Cut a healthy branch from an adult or young Geranium with at least two knots, preferably three, always disinfecting the pruning shears before and after cutting. When planting geraniums by cuttings, it is very important to choose a cut from a healthy branch without flowers.
You can use homemade rooting agents to facilitate the plant process, although, with geraniums, it is not necessary since they tend to root very easily.
Water abundantly and put the pot in the shade for about 20 days, after which we can put our Geranium in the sun.
When and how to transplant a geranium?
Geraniums, especially those in pots, may need an occasional transplant when they have grown too large for their current space. However, they are not plants that need an annual transplant, so to know when our Geranium needs a larger container, we must see if its roots escape through the pot’s drainage holes or if its growth has slowed down a lot. and we haven’t transplanted it for more than two or three years.
It is best to always do it at the beginning or end of winter since the plant will be in vegetative rest and suffer less from the possible small injuries on branches or roots that can always occur during transplantation. It is always important to choose a new pot with drainage holes and use suitable new substrate, as well as watering after transplanting.