Geranium pyrenaicum 'Summer Snow'

Geranium pyrenaicum is a European species and well known for being one of the most floriferous of Geraniums. 'Summer Snow' is an easy to grow, yet hard to find white flowered cultivar which produces profuse quantities of white flowers each with deeply notched petals.
Blooming from April to August, this charming variety forms an attractive evergreen clump that looks good all year round. It leaves that are lobed and more rounded than most Geranium species.

Reliably perennial and evergreen and growing to 30 to 45cm (24 to 18in) high, 'Summer Snow' is an easy to grow, yet hard to find white flowered cultivar. Ideal for a hot spot in the garden, this tough but dainty plant is an excellent ground cover for difficult conditions, it won’t fade away if you forget to water and when happy will self-sow to fill in bare spots.

Sowing: Sow in late winter/late spring or in late summer/autumn.
Fill pots, cells of trays with a good seed starting compost. (John Innes or similar). Sit the containers in water to moisten thoroughly. Sow the seeds 2.5cm (1in) apart, on the surface of the compost and cover seed with vermiculite, sand or sieved compost after sowing. Keep soil slightly moist but not wet. Perennial geraniums often germinate over several months, usually between 30 to 90 days at temperatures around 5 to 10°C (41 to 50°F). Seed trays should not be discarded prematurely. Constant moisture must be maintained. Do not leave in direct sunlight.
Transplant the seedlings into 7.5cm (3in) pots to grow on. Avoid large pots, because the compost will be wet permanently and wetness can a cause growth inhibition and a poor root development.
Overwinter autumn sown seedlings indoors frost free at 3 to 5 °C (37 to 41°F). If outdoors use an outdoor fleece cover to protect the plants.
Plant outdoors in spring after the last expected frosts. Gradually acclimatise to outdoor conditions for 10 to 15 days before planting out into their permanent positions. Space 30 to 40cm (12 to 15in) apart.

Cultivation:
In mid summer after flowering rejuvenate plants that are beginning to look jaded by shearing it back, this will promote dense growth and encourage better reblooming. Lift and divide large colonies in spring, March to May
Low-moderate fertilisation levels are required use a complete balanced fertiliser. Avoid high ammonium and high nitrogen levels. Very high nitrogen levels will cause shoot stretching and then the shoots fall apart. Don't fertilise after mid September.
The roots are sensitive to wet substrates which can cause rotting of roots and poor plant quality. Allow for the plants to dry thoroughly between irrigations.

Plant Uses:
Cottage/Informal Garden, Flowers Borders and Beds, Wildlife / Butterfly Garden. Beekeeping.
Full sun to partial shady locations. Rock gardens, stone walls, perennial borders, ground cover, large containers.

Origin:
Geranium is a genus of 422 species of flowering annual, biennial, and perennial plants, found throughout the temperate regions of the world and the mountains of the tropics, but mostly in the eastern part of the Mediterranean region.
Geranium pyrenaicum is a frost hardy perennial geranium native to areas of France and Spain to the Caucasus

Nomenclature:
The name Geranium comes from the Greek 'geranion', which is a diminutive of 'geranos' meaning crane.
The species name ‘pyrenaicum’ refers to the place of its origin and the mountain range of the Pyrenees, between France and Spain.
It gets its common name 'crane’s bill' from the 'beak' over the seed pod and is also called storksbill in some areas.
The name “crowfoot” is often used for geraniums, because the leaves resemble buttercups, which historically were called crowfoots