Dividing perennial geranium

13 years ago

I have a couple of New Hampshire Red perennial geraniums that while onle a couple of years old have swollen to nearly 6 feet in diameter. While I do love them, they are crowding out things around them. I would like to divide them and put them in some other places and even offer some to my neighbors. I am pretty sure I know the answer to this, but can I do this now? If not, is it better to do it in the fall or spring?

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keski

13 years ago

If you reach around the roots, you can usually break off some pieces that you can reset or give away without digging up the whole plant. I love my NH purple, but it does grow quite well. I also get some seedlings around the yard.
Keski

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laceyvail 6A, WV
13 years ago
Fall or spring, but definately not now.
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Another way you can use for zonal pelargoniums is to snap off a branch about three inches down from the tip. Use new wood. Take off the bottom leaves, if any - and leave the 'cutting' on a bench to dry/callus over on the broken end. This takes one or two days. Don't worry if the leaves wilt a little. Take a three inch diameter plastic pot that's a little deeper than your cutting and fill to nearly the top with sharp grit no bigger than an eighth across. Ordinary builder's sand is useless because it holds too much water. Push in your cutting with the callused end so the gravel lightly scores the stem. Dip the pot in water and then let it drain before you put the pot and cutting into a cool place with bright but indirect light. If the cutting is getting reliable rain don't bother watering unless the weather is hot and dry. Otherwise keep it lightly damp but not wet. Most cuttings taken this way will root and grow on. Duds are easy to spot because the stem blackens. Remove them promptly if you have done a number of cuttings and they are in a pot together. You can also do this in the early fall and then over-winter your new plants. These plants can tolerate some frost. If it is five degrees of frost or less the stems blacken and go to mush in the usual way - but you can get regeneration from the base. The plant is not as vigorous, however, but you may be able to save a favourite colour. Another way to keep your stock of plants up is to plant out the seeds which is always an adventure. If you are carrying your plants over from year to year they can get to be both leggy and woody - and taking stem cuttings is a good way to 'keep' the plant - without the aged appearance.
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mxk3 z5b_MI
13 years ago
Why not now? Isn't N.H. Red a cultivar of G. sanguineum? If so, go ahead and do what you want with it, these are tough plants. If it hasn't bloomed quite yet you may want to wait so as to not sacrifice the blooms, but otherwise have at it. Also agree that you may be able to just slice off some pieces from the perimeter as opposed to digging the whole thing up, that may be faster/easier.
ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
13 years ago
you do not take a 6 foot wide plant .. in full leaf .. in full bloom .. and rip it apart in the hot summer season ..

unless you dont care what you end up with ... sometimes things start bugging me so much.. it just has to be done.. but at that point.. if it doesnt bloom again until sept... i really dont care ...

it will probably survive .. but it might be ugly for the rest of the year ...

the alternative.. is to simply cut it back to two feet ... and let it do its thing.. without root damage ... and then.. in fall or spring.. divide it up for more plants ...

ken
mxk3 z5b_MI
13 years ago
Disagree - mainly because it's a geranium. Heck, I've ripped up stands of the stuff that have been at least that wide in diameter, thrown them in a huge pile before deciding what to do with them, decided to toss them, changed my mind and retrieved out of the garbage bags and re-planted elsewhere - and they never missed a beat save some wilting for a week or two. During high summer. Because when it has to get done, it has to get done.

So I still say go ahead and have it. :O)

(I re-read the OP and did not read anything about the plant being in full bloom)
winemaker
Original Author
13 years ago
****FOLLOW-UP****

Both of these are in full bloom. In an effort to save some of the surrounding plants, I have taken the suggestion of digging up small clumps of the plant around the edges. I potted them and am goning to see what happens. If they survive, great, if not, I still have ENORMOUS quantities to work with later on.
Marie Tulin
13 years ago
Let me tell you about how tough some geraniums are. I ripped up dozens and dozens of clumps of geranium mac. spessart and the common magenta groundcover one. The first batch I carefully planted, watered, mulched. They were fine.
The second batch I placed at good intervals on the ground and then threw compost on the roots. (I did not plant them) They're great.
The third batch I was so sick of I threw on the ground and left there. Three weeks later at half had rooted.

BUT: these are the survivor geraniums; it was spring, we were having rain; they were on years of leaf litter not bare ground,

But i'd be bucks I could do the same and if they stayed at all moist they'd be reproducing in no time.

This doesn't change any of the cautions offered, but I've been wanting an excuse to write about my tough geranium experiment. I really think I was inspired by Ken's old posts about throwing the hostas on asphalt to improve their growth.
ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
13 years ago
i ... we.. never know who the poster is ...

some of you would commit suicide if you lost a single plant.. those we tell to wait .... do it at the 'right' time

others.. like me.. like to experiment ... and learn ... and frankly.. dont care if we lose a given plant ... it doesnt deserve our attention.. if it cant take our abuse ...

in all honesty ... if i had a multitude of a problem plant ... i would move a couple .... in the dead heat of summer.. pruning them way back ...

i would try potting one or two for TLC ... in case the others die ...

and i would just dig and throw out a couple.. and leave a few in reserve .... while i try to figure out another way to torture them .. lol ...

and then.. in sept.. contemplate which system worked best.. and then try to remember that .. next time this invasive weed threatens to take over a given space ... and i do not mean that in the technical sense.. just in that it is REALLY thriving in this location ...

and i am just answering on common sense.. ida apparently knows about this specific plant .. and ===>>> what she said ...

ken
Marie Tulin
13 years ago
I didn't remember what kind of G she had. But it is geranium sanguinium I've been abusing. Agree about the experimentation. I have enough of this groundcover to carpet Versailles and no matter if I lost 20 or 50 divisions
a2zmom_Z6_NJ
13 years ago
Ken, I just want to say your posts always make me smile, so thank you!
arbo_retum
13 years ago
it's so funny, the experience of reading these threads. i'm reading along on this one and I find ken's post which begins "you do not take...". I'm going "YEEESS, Ken!!!", quickly followed by "wow, mxk, no kidding??!! good for you!!". and then ida's tough as nails lesson. So great to learn from all of you.
best,
mindy
www.cottonarboretum.com/
kimcoco
13 years ago
Ditto to A2ZMom. I was going to say the same thing (in fact, I think I have before). Ken's posts always make me laugh...even if they're not supposed to. Ken...I'm laughing WITH you. :)
ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
13 years ago
hey

i was at moms and hers looked just like you describe... i was tempted to just cut it to 3 inches all around ..

it is amazing how 'seeing' the issue can make all the difference in the world..

but i still wouldnt dig it up in mid june.. unless i just didnt care how it looked for the rest of summer

ken

Dividing perennial geranium

keski

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laceyvail 6A, WV

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Dividing perennial geranium

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