Thomas Jefferson Encyclopedia

Scarlet Unique Geranium

Pelargonium fulgidum hybrid

A native of southern and western Africa imported to North America.

Growth Type
Perennial
Hardiness
USDA Zones: 10 and above
Conditions
Prefers full sun and rich, somewhat heavy, well-drained soil; easily propagated from cuttings in late winter or early spring of plants carried over indoors
Size
Grows upright into a 2 to 3 foot open and spreading plant

Description: Tender perennial, grown as houseplant; brilliant vermilion-red flowers with a black center; soft green, aromatic foliage

Historical Notes: This species was imported from southern and western Africa into Britain by 1723. Philadelphia nurseryman Bernard McMahon included the species, as "Celandine-leaved Geranium," in the list of greenhouse plants in his 1806 The American Gardener's Calendar.1 The variety — Scarlet Unique or Old Scarlet Unique — is a hybrid of garden origin documented in cultivation by 1812.

- Peggy Cornett, n.d.

Further Sources

Footnotes

  1. Bernard McMahon, The American Gardener's Calendar, 1806 (Charlottesville: Thomas Jefferson Memorial Foundation, 1997), 618. See also pp. 83, 160, 355, 419, and 444.