Geranium maculatum- Wild Geranium- Cranesbill

Author: Heather Catlett

 

Geranium maculatum, commonly known as the Wild Geranium or the Cranesbill, is a perrenial that commonly grows from Minnesota to southern Maine, southern Okalahoma east to Georgia and the Carolinas. It is usually branchless,growing from a thick rhizome, with several erect stems. The Cranesbill reaches 1 to 2 ft tall and has "deep 5 or 7 parted leaves that are 3 to 6 in across." (Everett, 1981). The leaves are glossy, coarsely-sharp-toothed lobes paired in 2s or 3s that come from the leaf axils. The flowers bloom from April to June, are 1 to 1.5 in width, and are magenta-pink to rose-purple in color. The Cranesbill is not a garden variety Geranium and is normally found in meadows and rich woods.

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