I'm also interested in this. I've looked and looked for perennial geraniums in upstate SC but have had no luck yet. I've grown it (in a different state) in hot, humid and very dry soil and it did just fine, but it usually got a break at various times of day from the sun. Geraniums are quite tolerant of partial shade so why not grow them in shady areas here?

Exactly my thoughts. But the grower I asked at the recent plant show at the Farmer's Market gave it a resounding "no way." ... Of course, I don't want to plant something that gobbles up water and disappears anyway. That's been my experience with a ligularia last year, coral bells, ladies mantle, etc.

Many perennial geraniums grow very well in the piedmont of NC, so you should be able to grow them as well. I grow a lot of the native Geranium maculatum. It's beautiful and very easy. It has tubers so once established it just goes underground in a bad drought and comes back the next year.

Geranium sanguineum does well here, and i've heard tuberosum does well, too, though i haven't grown it myself. They all seem to prefer part shade- i bet they'd melt in full sun. You're the same zone as us, so it should work.

Ladies mantle i've killed more times than i like to contemplate. Some of the common spurges/euphorbias are a reasonable & easy to grow substitute for the green yellow flowers in spring (robb's especially). Coral bells do well in part shade for me. Spotted ligularia likes the spot i found with about 3 hours sun. They all like reasonably moist soil- i doubt they'd be happy on dry sand for long. I garden mostly in clay that's been amended. Good luck!

I have some Johnson's Blue that are huge and thriving.

Carla

Thank you all for your input! I guess there's no way to know except to try. ... Not gonna happen unless I order them online, though, because I've sure never seen anything locally.

Thanks again.

This has been a huge year for the species type here. I ashamedly admit that the ones doing the best in form and bloom (some are just monstrous) are plants still in their pots set where I had intended to plant them.

They planted themselves and suffered nothing for having their original potted roots above ground.

I have awfully good luck being a lazy gardener! LOL