Calliope L `Soft Coral`
This year’s geranium is no shy violet.
Quite the contrary.
This year’s honorary mention goes to a geranium that, with its size, explosiveness and design language, is undeniably a standout.
With beautiful coral-colored flowers that are 50% larger than a normal zonal geranium and with its large, round and bushy growth habit, Calliope L `Soft Coral` won the hearts of the jury.
The 2022 jury will include Patrik Vilsmyr from Mäster Grön, representing 30 gardeners in 35 gardens, Jesper Frandsen from Syngenta, representing the breeding industry, Jonas Samuelsson, Rönne Trädgård, representing the Swedish growers’ union LRF Trädgård, and Lotta Ahlvar, a trend connoisseur with long experience from the fashion and interior design industry.
Geranium of the year over the years
To highlight the diversity of the geranium genus, a geranium or a group of geranium varieties is awarded the honorary title of Geranium of the Year every year.
To receive the award, it must be a healthy and vigorous geranium with a high beauty value.
In addition, the variety should show a different expression than what we usually see in geraniums.
Last year we were treated to the voluminous Calliope L ‘Soft Coral’ and the year before that we were enchanted by ‘Astrid’.
Read more about Geranium of the Year at www.aretspelargon.se.
History of the geranium
The geranium, Pelargonium x hortorum, originates from the southern African plains where it grows in shrub-like forms with thick, water-filled stems, which act as reservoirs during droughts.
Strong sunlight, heat and dry air contribute to the fact that it thrives there.
It belongs to the fist plants.
Pelargos comes from Greek and the word means “stork”, which refers to the geranium’s seed pod.
The seed pod is long and pointed and resembles the stork’s beak.
The geranium arrived in Sweden in the 1800s and quickly became a beloved flower in homes.
It is often associated with interiors from the same era, both in huts and castles.
Today, there are thousands of geranium hybrids on the market and you can pick and choose.
THE JURY’S MOTIVATION:
The surface area of our hardened outdoor environments is increasing.
Large seating areas for socializing, pool areas for relaxing, and vast outdoor kitchens for socializing attract many.
The pots, where the plants are to flaunt and stand, will be comparatively larger and therefore require a plant material, which with colorful flowers and lush greenery creates a wonderful experience.
This year’s honor goes to a Geranium, which with its size, explosiveness and design language is undeniably striking. It also goes hand in hand with
outdoor trend, positioning itself as a vibrant outdoor interior design feature.
In the sphere of the pure Nordic style or the traditional Red Lodge
– Wherever you highlight the Geranium of the Year, it fits in and attracts attention.
With its particularly large, bushy, shapely and globular growth habit, the
Calliope L ‘Soft Coral’ charmingly large shrubs.
Where everything gets bigger, Calliope L ‘Soft Coral’ becomes the crowning glory.
Arvidssons in Fjärås is a Swedish grower who has been running `Soft Coral` for a few years and who believes that this year’s geranium has a great opportunity to become a new classic.
– `Soft Coral` is like a modern Mårbacka! The flowers are fantastically beautiful in both tone and shape and the plant is very nice where the cross with, among other things, a hanging geranium is revealed in a nice way through the full growth that takes place in the pot, says Maria Lundgren.
‘Soft Coral’ is suitable for the patio as well as the kitchen window and will interact nicely with its light coral color that is trending in the garden together with apricot and coral dahlias, snapdragons, phlox and giant terns.
Care
‘Soft Coral’ thrives both inside on the windowsill and outdoors, for example in the entrance pot, balcony box or planted in the border. Until the weather is mild and the nights are frost-free, the variety should be kept inside on the windowsill, in the conservatory or in another frost-free and bright place.
To succeed, do this:
– When you get home with your geraniums, they may need replanting. 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 appropriate because 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.
