The Hardy Heroes

Follow Adrienne Wild’s guide to some of the best varieties of geranium to grow.

Drought-tolerant hardy geraniums or cranes bills – not to be confused with frost-tender pelargoniums that are also commonly called geraniums – are so determined, that many will cover ground quickly and stop other plants and weeds from growing. Geranium macrorrhizum is super-strong being able to form a semi-evergreen mat of aromatic leaves up to 50cm tall and 60sq cm wide in less than two years.

The performance of ‘Bevan’s Variety’ is impressive as it produces masses of deep purplish-pink flowers in late spring and summer. And, if you shear back the leaves in August, but leave the crown intact, it’ll also give a repeat performance in just weeks.

Other resilient varieties good for groundcover include the native Geranium sanguineum, also known as ‘Bloody Cranesbill’ because its well-formed leaves turn blood red in autumn, and the glossy-leaved evergreen, Geranium cantabrigiense ‘Biokovo’ for its display of good autumn colour. Popular with bees and other beneficial insects, they will each flower to no more than 30cm high, earning their place in a small garden or even in a tub.