"Edible, fragrant, very useful, showy, flowering, drought resistant, little care and very forgiving ..." plants, scented Pelargoniums, known as scented Geraniums are botanically, a genera of Geraniaceae Family, with the name derived from the Greek word "pelargos". The Geraniaceae Family has five genera: Geranium (cranesbill), Pelargonium(storksbill), Erodium (heron's bill), Sarcocaulon (succulents) and Monsonia. The most commons, Geranium and Pelargonium, differ by the number of fertile stamens(pelargonium has 7 stamens and geranium has ten stamens) and the type of flowers: pelargonium has five petals with different shape and size and sepals symmetrically arranged in one plane ( zygomorphic) and geranium has the flowers radially symmetrical (actinomorphic) with petals and sepals with similar size and shape.
Pelargoniums are perennials, succulents and sub-shrubs, which grow and bloom for many years if are well-cared and protected by winter frost. There are more than 200 true species, cultivars and hybrids and once will start to explore their classification, anyone will be amazed by how many varieties are available on the market. The major groups of pelargonium genera are: Zonals (P. Hortorum), Regals (P. Domesticum), Ivy-leaved (P. Peltatum), Uniques, Angels, Frutetorum hybrids and, of course, the Scented-Leaved, which fell out of our favour since always. We are focused on the scented-leaf pelargoniums, which are originally from Southern Africa, but are well-known all over the world. On top of their ornamental usage in flower gardens and conservatory, they are grown for their fragrant foliage which is used culinary to flavor and decorate food, in making potpourri, essential oil, aroma therapy and medicine. All pelargoniums has some scents on their leaves, but some of them have in their leaves essential oils constituents like geraniol, linalol and citronellol which are also present in Rose oil. The most known is the Rose-scented Geranium's Oil which really resembles that of rose oil with a musty, minty-green undertone and is very popular in perfumes and cosmetic industries. The fragrances of a scented pelargoniums are released readily when their leaves are rubbed or bruised and may remind you of rose or lemon, may have an odor of pine, mint, peppermint, coconut, rose/musk, floral notes, a scent of cloves or nutmeg, or perhaps smells like as apple or apricot, pineapple or chocolate. P. Abrotanifolium, P. Tomentosum, P. Citrosum, P. Crispum, P. Citronellum, P. Graveolens, P. Capitatum, P. xFragrans, P. Grossularioides and P. Odoratissimum are just few earliest known varieties which were multiplied in hundreds of new varieties over the years. Some of the Scented-Leaved Pelargoniums are prolific bloomers over the years, but their blooms with white /pink /purple florets are not fragrant and tend to be small rather than showy. The best way to appreciate the characteristics of scented-leaved pelargoniums is, of, course, to see, touch and smell them by yourself, although some of the articles from our blog.scentedleaf.com should give you some ideas about the fragrance, shape, size and texture of the leaves of some varieties. Their fragrances are perceived different by people and the intensity of under-tones scents is depending by the sun exposure and atmospheric environments.
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