There aren't many things in gardening that are sure things. You cannot assure a harvest from your vegetable garden or the number of blooms that the peony plant will produce each spring. One thing that is a guarantee, though, is a high number of garden insects after a milder-than-normal winter.
When my wife and I were working in the yard recently, she asked what all of the pencil-lead-size bugs were that were massed on the rim of a flowerpot. I recognized the oversized back legs that propel the grasshopper throughout the garden.
It's too early for those critters, I thought. ... Guarantee fulfilled.
That same flowerpot that was the temporary home to my nemesis also reminded me of a plant that is as close to a sure thing for annual color as you can get--the annual geranium.
The common, or zonal, geranium will provide great color in the garden from spring until frost. Even during the hottest days of summer, this plant will keep the colorful blooms coming, as long as you do your part and keep the plant watered.
There are several types of annual geraniums that can cause confusion to the gardener, regarding which type to buy for their particular need. They are: zonal geraniums, ivy-leaf geraniums, scented geraniums, and Martha Washington geraniums.
A zonal, or common, geranium is the plant to pick for the most bangs for the buck. These geraniums are grown from seed or by cuttings. They are the least expensive to purchase from a garden store, and they provide season-long bloom. This group of geraniums usually has foliage that is attractive as well, marked with areas of red or white. Given at least four to six hours of sun a day, proper watering, fertilizer and an occasional pinching will give you wonderful color all season.
Ivy-leafed geraniums also are a welcome addition to a garden. Many gardeners will use this geranium in hanging baskets. The ivylike foliage will drape over the edge of the basket for a nice effect. This geranium also presents geranium blooms, but in lesser numbers than the zonal types. Ivy geraniums will appreciate afternoon shade in climates that get hot, such as mine.
Scented geraniums, of course, are grown for their aroma. Included in these types of geranium are those with the scents of nutmeg, peppermint, lemon, apple and citronella. These geraniums are not grown for the blossoms, which are small and few. Scented geraniums should be planted in a location where you are likely to brush by the foliage that will release the perfume held by the oils in the foliage. Selections of this type of geranium will fit. well in an herb garden.
* Martha Washington geraniums
These geraniums, also called fancy or hothouse geraniums, are normally sold as flowering wintertime plants. They are not heat-tolerant; they will not set flower buds when nighttime temperatures. begin to exceed the 60s. This would leave me with an annual plant that would bloom only for a couple of weeks in the spring and fall. This is the geranium to select for indoor color; both the flowers and foliage will brighten a room.
There are other things that will be a sure thing, such as hot, dry days in August. But I would rather think of all those geraniums lending cool colors in containers on my deck during that time.