Zonal geranium ‘Picotee Pink’
When the Geranium of the Year 2018 jury saw the Picotee Pink variety, the choice was unanimous: YES! A hydrangea geranium! There is no such thing as a hydrangea and the correct name is zonal geranium, Pelargonium x hortorum ‘Picotee Pink’, but the epithet hydrangea is telling. The inflorescences of the variety have a unique appearance for the geranium genus and they resemble the globe-shaped inflorescences of the hydrangea.
In addition to the unique shape of the inflorescences, the coloring is very special. The petals have a delicate cerise-pink edge that slowly flows into the white part of the petal. The name Picotee is familiar to knowledgeable flower lovers and there are several other plants that also have Picotee in their variety name, such as varieties of amaryllis, carnations and rhododendrons. What they all have in common is that the edges of the flower petals differ in color. The word originally comes from the French picoté meaning marked with dots.
The buds of ‘Picotee Pink’ are pearly white and teardrop-shaped. When they open, they reveal their half-filled interior. There, thin, burgundy brushstrokes and the dark pollen of the anthers create further life and harmony. After flowering, decorative, large beak-shaped seed pods develop.
The jury for Geranium of the Year 2018 was made up of Lotta Ahlvar, trend expert and project manager for Formex, Patrik Vilsmyr from Mäster Grön representing 35 Swedish gardeners in collaboration, Per Larsson from Hörnhems, representing the breeding industry and Jonas Samuelsson, Rönne Trädgård representing the Swedish growers’ union LRF Trädgård.
Care
To do this:
When you get your geraniums home, they may need to be replanted. Look at the roots and see how they look. Choose a pot/box/pot with a good volume and a good quality soil. It is important to add nutrients to the soil, as geraniums develop best when they are well nourished. The easiest way to do this is to water with a weak nutrient solution at each watering.
– Water regularly, but always allow the soil to dry out slightly between waterings. It’s best to water geraniums in the morning so that they have time to dry out during the day. If this is not possible, watering them in the evening works well. Watering in the middle of the day is less suitable as much of the water evaporates immediately. Geraniums cope very well with drought, but they do not develop as well as when watered regularly.
– Geraniums love light and want to be in a bright and airy place. If you are planting several geraniums together, or planting geraniums together with other plants, be careful not to plant the plants too close together. They will grow together over time and will benefit from a little airiness at first. Always place geraniums in a bright position!
– Be diligent about pinching off wilted flowers, preferably before they set seed, although the seed pod itself is a beautiful and amusing decoration – it looks like a grosbeak. Geranium means big beak.
