Potted pelargonium sprouting new leaves and buds in December?

19 years ago

I salvages this small plant in August from the trash. I never saw it bloom, I have no idea what kind it is, and it was half dead. I repotted it, stuck it outside in a place where it only got some sun for the next few months, and it started to look healthy.

Once the mornings started to dip towards freezing, I brought it onto the open porch, where it sat in full shade, in mostly cool to chilly weather for the next few months. When freezing morning temps were warned a few weeks ago, I threw a sheet on it and forgot all about it.

I just removed the sheet to finally bring the plant inside, and there are lots of new leaves and three clusters of buds. Now I think this is weird. Does it think it's a Christmas cactus? LOL!

I can understand a plant putting out buds trying to propogate under severe circumstances, but this one also has healthy new leaves. It's not leggy at all (yet).

First question: Naturally, I'm not complaining. I'm just curious. Is this normal behavior? It was deprived of light and water for weeks and the result is new, healthy growth.

It's pretty warm and dry in my apartment, and not too much light. I'm not sure how well it will do in here, and I don't have the basement/garage, etc. that I've read about here for over-wintering plants, so I have to try to keep it as a houseplant.

Second question: Would I be doing my plant a favor by just cutting off these buds now that it's environment has radically changed? Or should I just let it go and see what happens?

Thanks a lot.

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Comments (5)

DianeKaryl
19 years ago
I'd say the plant benefited from being given a rest. All plants, I opine, can benefit from being allowed to stop developing new leaves and especially new bloom.

Your ? geranium evidently has gained health from being allowed to rest.
Now is the time to bring it out to develop new leaves. Pinch back any bloom it might start to develop...it shoudn't be pushed to produce something that it cant possibly feed.

If the plant is of size, I suggest you cut it back by 1/3 to 1/2, give it some new fresh potting soil...look to its drainage by putting some shards or other medium under the soil, into a pot of size....6"....8"....10"...then into the brightest window you can find. West or south is ideal...but east will do in a pinch.

Water it well...til drainage is seen in the saucer below....allow full drainage, then dump the excess.

Don't begin fertilizing until you have serious new growth of leaves...then do so...20/20/20 at half rate every 4th or 5th watering.
Always allow the surface to dry to the touch before watering and water always to the point that drainage is seen. Then dump the excess.

It shouldn't take more than a few weeks before new growth is seen...up the fertilizer as growth proceeds.

You are in zone 7 D.C.....your spring arrives a bit sooner than mine in zone 5 Ontario. Normally this is done by me in mid February, when full growth is allowed to resume.
Your plant, if allowed to grow full out at this time, might be too soon for your putting the plant outside so you'd be required to hold off putting it outside and treat it more like a houseplant.

If you think you might hold off doing the cutting back until about mid to late January, the plant could be cut back at that time, then allow it to grow full out.

Normally, in more southerly zones, you are advised to cut the plant back at the time they are brought in..before they are touched by frost....then again, cutting it back in January when they are allowed to grow their fullest.

Its up to you, whether you wish to have the plant grow up too fast.

Geraniums will indeed come back as good as ever....better in fact.
barb_bronze
Original Author
19 years ago
Thank you very much for your response. I have read many of your posts and truly appreciate your advice. I suspected someone might recommend that I cut off those buds. It makes sense, but you know that part of me wanted to see the blossoms for the first time :-)

It was originally in a 4" pot and I think itÂs just fine for now. IÂll wait and see how it does inside and maybe cut it back in February when I suspect it will be getting leggy. I finally took a picture, for what itÂs worth.

It is a bit weird to be here in zone 7, because we're smack in the middle of several diverse weather patterns. Here we are influenced by the mountains and the ocean, and we also get your Canuckie winds :-) February is usually our nastiest month, but sometimes it can be balmy. Sometimes itÂs our last month of snow, and sometimes we get a storm as late as April. Every year is different so IÂll just see how it goes next year.

Thanks again.
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socal23
19 years ago
Pelargoniums are incredibly tough plants; I saw one left in a pot in the hot sun over the summer put on new growth with the first rainfall (we get absolutely no rain from early to mid april until October or November most years).

Ryan
DianeKaryl
19 years ago
Barb, the 4" pot may not do the plant justice...geraniums have a tendency to grow.....and grow well...so I think you can toss out the old adage about only going up one size...that's for houseplants..not something that is going to go pretty soon out in the garden....or into an oversized container. I think you can safely put the plant into a 6" or 8" pot......heck, even a 10". Just water according to its size and always to the point of seeing the drainage, then dump the excess.

Talking about weather, and we're not the only one but here in southern Ontario we are in the grip of old man winter...this morning it was 20 below zero..fahrenheit....
minus 29 celsius...that freezes the b's off a monkey.
The lake we're on...started freezing over in earnest a few days ago....well now, from shore to horizon is nothing but white. It wont take long for some idiot in a snowmobile to venture out to try his machine for the season's first use.
There is every year, needless deaths because these guys think their machine can run on one inch of ice....then forget the lake freezes in areas of its own choosing.

Tomorrow, they are promising above freezing temperatures.
Let's hope so.

Watched the game yesterday from Green Bay...tough guys on the Jacksonville team were bare-armed....suppose they were trying to outdo the Packers. It was cold.....it was real cold.
There's no joy in Mudville, the Packers lost.
barb_bronze
Original Author
19 years ago
Brrrr. Yesterday was the coldest December day that DC has had since 1986, and today we're having the same "warm front" and going up 20 degrees. Ha!

Perhaps I wasn't clear about the fact that I did repot the plant. It WAS in a 4" pot, and now it's in a 5"x8" pot with good drainage. I'm now going to mostly ignore it, because it will probably benefit from me not fussing over it. LOL!

I know all about those snowmobile nuts. They're only slightly crazier than the ice fishermen, and some of my friends are one or both. I hear a lot of horror stories.

Well, stay warm, and I hope you have a happy holiday season.

Potted pelargonium sprouting new leaves and buds in December?

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Potted pelargonium sprouting new leaves and buds in December?

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