We now have fresh seeds of scented leaf and species pelargoniums which include P. capitatum, P. odoratissmum, P. denticulatum, P. mollicomum, P. grossularioides, P. longicaule, P. vitifolium, P. ranunculopyllum and betulinum. View our online store
There is also new wildflower seeds on the ‘other plant varieties’ page (online store), the latest seeds are Trifolium stellatum-star clover with spherical white flower heads, pink or yellow toned with red sepals and vicia villosa with purple butterfly-like nodding flowers. view other plant varieties
The attar of roses leaf scent of Pelargonium capitatum has a lovely soft & delicate romantic feminine aroma which is released when bruised and can be added to fragrant bouquets, food and beverages, essential oil, fragrant pillows and potpourri. it is a lovely species with soft delicate ovate crinkled leaves on long trailing branches and beautiful purple pink flowers arranged in an inflorescence of 10-20 blooms making it an attractive plant for pot & containers or the scented garden.
Pelargonium cordifolium means ‘heart’ referring to its heart-shaped leaves which are dark grey green and finely to coarsely toothed with a light apple scent. The attractive flowers are pink to purple with large ovate upper petals with purple veins and three narrow lower petals. It is an upright hairy spreading shrub which grows to a height of 150 cm, woody at the base with soft green branches. The flowers and foliage are used in flower bouquets and potpourri.
New seedlings of P. hispidum, P. rober’s lemon rose and P.capitatum ‘attar of roses’ have now germinated.
Pelargonium capitatum ‘attar of roses’ is similar to that of the species P. capitatum but has a stronger scent and brighter flowers. it is a trailing plant which is more upright than P. capitatum.
Rober’s lemon rose (pictured above) is a charming pelargonium with rose lemon-scented velvety leaves and resembles that of a goose foot or tomato leaf. The flowers are purplish pink with deep purple veins and are believed to be a cultivar of graveolens. This plant grows well in a pot near the house so you can inhale its lovely scent as you brush past or as a garden plant to admire its delicate pastel pink blooms throughout the year. It shows some similarities to its parent plant P. graveolens, also known as the sweet scented geranium which has rose minty scent and triangular deeply incised leaves, soft to the touch with a velvety texture. known in Europe as early as the 17th century when its leaves were used to make perfume and potpourri as well as added to food and beverages.
Pelargonium ionidiflorum is now in flower, a lovely woody low growing shrub with bright violet flowers which is ideal as a garden plant combine with other shrubs or in a pot to display with its long dainty flower stems and striking blooms. The stems are greyish brown rough and woody with small celery scented deeply lobed leaves. Its name means violet colour flowers from the Greek ‘ion’ meaning violet in colour and from the Latin ‘florum’ meaning flower, it is native to small areas of the Eastern Cape of South Africa in rocky ground and in parts of the Karoo.
Like that of the pelargoniums many succulents also grow in similar areas of South Africa, The Huernia Pillansii is now in flower,which are star-shaped cream in colour with reddish blotches and soft thick stems with bristles. It is native to the Eastern and Western Cape on stony ground.
We now have new seeds available at our store, pelargonium peltatum-pale pink, white & purple pink mix.
A beautiful trailing pelargonium with attractive leaves and flowers. The leaves are slightly fragrant, rounded, fleshy with a slightly succulent appearance and a dark circular zone in the centre.
The flowers can vary in colour from pastel shades of white, pink or pale purple & each flowering stalk has about 2-9 flowers.
P. peltatum is a trailing slightly succulent plant that likes to trail through other shrubs or trees and is ideal for hanging baskets, window boxes, medium sized pots or planted next to trees or trellis.
unfortunately we only have a limited availability of seeds this year, but will try hard to have more available in summer 2023. view on our website
We also have new seeds of Pelargonium multibracteatum-
A charming pelargonium with branching stems and lightly scented soft green rounded lobed leaves with a darker zone in the centre, the flowers are white with a slight pink tinge at the base & each flowering stalk has about 5-16 flowers.
P. Multibracteatum is a spreading shrub which reaches to about 50 cm/20 inches in height.
The name “multibracteatum” refers to the many bracts of this plant and is native to East Africa, Somalia, Ethiopia, Sudan & Arabia. It is ideal for pots or planted in the garden.
P. capitatum is a beautiful elegant pelargonium with delicate trailing stems which can look stunning in large pots. The attractive leaves are soft ovate & crinkled with a rose scent and bears lovely 10-12 mauve-pink flowers. The highly scented perfume of rose released from its soft ovate leaves is simply beautiful when added to potpourri, fragrant pillows, or to add flavour to food & beverages such as cakes, desserts, pastry, sugar, bread, chocolates, jelly, jam, ice cream, ice cubes, rice pudding, syrup, salads tea, cocktails, lemonade, fruit drinks and much more. Finger bowls with scented leaves were placed on the table during meals by the Victorians to keep their hand clean during each course. The Victorian sponge cake was also very popular during the 1800’s when scented leaves were added to the base of a tin with the mix added on top before baking, then removed when cool. Rose or graveolens leaves were added to a regular sponge mix and P. tomentosum- peppermint-scented leaves to the chocolate flavoured sponge. The flowers can be candied and used to decorate cakes, they are edible and can look very attractive.
The long trailing stems of P. capitatum growing in a pot
Other scented leaf pelargoniums such as P. crispum, P. quercifolium, P. graveolens, P. tomentosum & P. citronellum which all have their own unique scented leaf fragrance can also be added to food & drinks as well as a several hybrids that are related to these species. They can also be added to towels to keep its freshness and help to deter moths. Essential oil is extracted from its leaves and is often used in aromatherapy, candles, soap, perfume and skincare products. The soft leaves can also be applied to the hands to soften hard skin and scratches.
Attar of roses is a popular cultivar of P. capitatum, the pinnately lobed leaves have a stronger rose scent and are rougher in texture with fine hairs, the flowers are also smaller & pinker in colour. Attar means highly perfumed in Persian and refers to its strong rose-like scent on the leaves, essential oil is extracted from its leaves and are used as a substitute for rose essential because it is less expressive to produce.
Rober’s lemon rose has large lemony rose-scented triangular irregular three-lobed leaves which are grey-green and soft to the touch, the origins of this hybrid are unclear, possibly a cultivar of P. graveolens or a hybrid of P. capitatum x P. x limoneum, The flowers are purple-pink with darker markings and is also known as the tomato geranium because its leaves resemble that of a tomato plant.
P. ‘pink capitatum’ is a variety of P. Capitatum but with larger striking flowers of pale pink with shades of darker pink around the edges of the petals. The leaves look similar to that of P. capitatum which are lobed but the scent differs and has a sweet rose lemon elder flower fragrance. This plant is also said to bloom for many months of the year.
P. ‘round leaf rose’ is another capitatum variety, a sprawling plant with pink reddish flowers and darker red veins, the leaves are rounded, ruffled and slightly toothed with lemon rose scent.
P. x asperum is a hybrid between P. capitatum and P. radens, it is used commercially for its essential oil which is obtained from its leaves. It has white to pale pink flowers with darker markings and has deeply divided leaves with soft hairs with a mint rose scent.
P. ‘Atomic snowflake’ has pungent scented leaves which are three-lobed and edged with white, the flowers bear striking mauve colour flowers with darker markings and is great as a container plant or for a flower border.
At the beginning of February, we had a few days of heavy snow that caused some damage to trees and shrubs in the garden. The large acacia tree, native to Australia in the centre of the garden has delicate branches which were unfortunately damaged during this bad weather and parts of the tree have been removed, but is coming up to flower in Spring. This tree is particularly popular with the greenfinch, a tame bird that often takes pollen or seeds from its branches and at times sings in the tree its delightful long twittering notes & trills.
The snow also covered most of Greece, Turkey and some of the Aegean islands, while in Athens the thickness of the snow reached about 80-85 cm and residents were advised to stay at home. An extreme snowstorm caused road disruption in the Capital leaving people to abandon their cars and walk home or take public transport.
tree in centre crushed by snow
village with heavy snow
A few pelargoniums have also been weakened a little in the harsh weather, Pelargonium vitifolium which is quite a tough plant has drooping leaves, I have given it a good dose of compost and also recycled organic matter (leaves, food scraps etc) to enrich the soil. Pelargonium quercifolium was protected by the large rosemary bushes in the garden which covers most of this plant, apart from a few long branches so it wasn’t affected that much, also two of the pelargoniums after the snow may have died but it is too early to say for sure, they may hopefully start to produce new leaves again in spring. Pelargonium hispidum & P . radens were sheltered by a wall & other plants, and so should began to recover in Spring. The only plant that is in bloom at the moment is the rose, a delicate pink shade that hasn’t stopped most of the year, a stem has been made into an arch over the steps to the garden. It is now slowly getting warmer with longer days so this should give more light to the plants which they lack during the winter months
The graceful long-stemmed species pelargoniums can look just as stunning as any hybrid or cultivar with their long elegant flowers stalks which holds the beautiful delicate flowers and the dainty long leaf stalks that display their aromatic or decorative leaves.
P. capillare is a lovely pelargonium species with very thin petioles which are about 2-6 cm in length. The name Capillare means like thread, most likely because of its very thin leaf stems. The flowers are reddish-pink with raised patches of dark red on the upper petals also with markings of red on both the lower & upper petals, the underside is also darker in colour. This plant shows some similarities to P. tricolor but its leaves are more deeply divided and the flowers differ slightly. It is native to the South Western Cape of South Africa where it grows on mountainsides.
Pelargonium tenuicaule
Pelargonium tenuicaule has long spreading rambling stems with five shallow toothed circular leaves. The flowers are cream when they first open but change to white with a dark purple smudge on every petal, The two upper petals are rounded and cupped. This plant can over time look rather bedraggled in appearance, it is native to Namibia and Namaqualand where it grows in rocky places.
Pelargonium spinosum has an unusual spine like petioles, believed to be hard debris from the continuous petioles which give it the appearance of thorns. The leaves are heart-shaped with coarse teeth and are somewhat pungent scented, they also vary in size depending on where they grow on the plant. The smaller leaves are visible on the shorter stems, while the larger are visible on the continuous petioles. The flowers are long ovate large light pink to white in colour with purple veins. It is native to the North-Western Cape and Namibia.
Pelargonium spinosum
Pelargonium echinatum is another exquisite species, with woody spiny stems and long petioles. The leaves are grey-green ovate with 3-5 shallow lobes. The flowers are usually white but in their native habitat, pink and purple types also exist, followed by a deep red smudge on the upper petals. It is native to Northern Western areas of the Cape in dry conditions and sheltered by rocks or other shrubs, there are a few hybrid forms of this plant such as P. ‘miss Stapleton’.
Pelargonium plurisectum is a low growing shrub with thin branching stems which create a zigzag effect. The leaves are rounded and are divided into five toothed leaflets. The flowers are large orangy red or scarlet in colour with darker markings, to which the lower petals are slightly smaller than the upper petals. It has been discovered growing in Ethiopia and remains dormant for many months, it can also withstand cold conditions more than any other pelargonium.
Others include P. longicaule-has long elegant flower stems with pale pink flowers and dark green deeply divided leaves known as the butterfly bush. P. australe- long branching stems with ovate leaves and up to 12 white flowers native to Australia P. grossulariodes- long reddish stems with fruit scented kidney shaped leaves and small reddish purple flowers. P. Capitatum- long spreading branches with rose scented leaves.
P. betulinum is an attractive sprawling plant with woody branches that can spread over quite a large area. The leaves are small ovate & camphor scented and resemble that of a birch leaf which is why it also goes by the name ‘Birch leaved pelargonium’. The large flowers are strikingly appealing, pink or purple colour with darker markings on the upper petals, which flowers in Spring and Summer. This plant is native to the Western coast of South Africa in sandy areas from Yzerfontein to Knysna.
P. glutinosum is an upright branching pelargonium with greenish soft stems which becomes more woodier as it matures, the stems then turn more brownish in colour. The triangular sticky leaves have a balm/balsam scent, mid-green to dark green colour and are palmately lobed. The beautiful flowers are of a delicate shade of pastel pink with darker markings on the upper petals. This plant is native to the Western Cape in various habitats, where three different forms exist. Usually growing near moving water with moist conditions and on mountainsides.
pelargonium vitifolium
Pelargonium vitifolium is another pelargonium that becomes woodier as it matures, when young it has soft green stems covered in hairs that turns brown over time. It is an upright branching shrub with heart-shaped coarsely toothed leaves that resembles a vine leaf in shape and has a lemony pungent scent. The flowers are a delicate shade of pink with darker markings on the upper petals, which can also vary in colour from white to pale purple. It is native to South Africa in the Western Cape, in areas of the South & South West where it grows in valleys close to streams.
pelargonium greytonense
Pelargonium greytonense also has woody stems when mature, it also has very tiny greenish hairs as well as some occurring longer hairs which later turn brown. The aromatic sweet-scented 3 lobed shallow leaves are palm-like in shape, the flowers can vary from light pink to white with darker markings on the upper petals. This plant is native to a small area of the Western Cape, mainly in the South West where it grows on mountain slopes and in narrow gorges. It was first discovered in the small town of Greyton in the Western Cape.
P. graveolens is a charming pelargonium with strong rosy-mint scented triangular deeply incised leaves which have a soft velvety texture. This plant is an upright branching shrub with soft green stems which become woody as it matures. The flowers range from delicate shades of pale pink to pale purple and with darker markings on the upper petals. This Pelargonium has been well known since the 17th century when its leaves were used in food & beverages, tea, potpourri and perfume. It is native to South Africa in areas of the Limpopo Province and also in parts of the Western Cape to the South East where it grows on mountainsides.
pelargonium inquinans
P. inquinans can vary in flower colour from very bright red scarlet, salmon, light pink or white flowers, to which the upper petals are a little smaller in size to the lower three. It is a woody shrub to which the branches become harder & woody as it matures. The leaves are circular or rounded with scalloped edges and have a velvety texture with red glandular hairs. It is native to areas of the Eastern Cape and grows at the edge of succulent scrub land in shale soil.
pelargonium longicaule
P. Longicaule is a low growing slightly woody shrub-let with long stems and dark green deeply divided leaves with a reddish tint, which grows woodier as it matures. It has beautiful white to pale pink flowers on long peduncles that resemble a butterfly in shape and is also known as the butterfly bush. It is native to South Africa in the South West Cape where it grows in sand dunes, sandstone and coastal areas.
Other woody species include Woody at base P. Incarnatum P. ovale P. tricolor P. grandiflorum P. laevigatum P. patulium- trailing P. divisifolium P. trifidum P. patulum
Woody branches P. magenteum P. xerophyon P. hirtum P. plurisectum- twiggy like with thin woody stems. P. multicaule P. suburbanum
Woody with age P. dichondrifolium P. abrotanifolium P. karrooicum Woody, Peeling bark and scales P. crithifolium P. laxum P. schizopetalum P. stipulaceum- thickened root stock P. cotyledonis Other -P. ionidiflorum- small woody shrub
Pelargonium Species world 