Also known as: Geranium maculatum. Geranium (Geraniaceae) Family.

Color Variations: Color ranges from a very light pink (never white) to magenta. There are said to several additional species not listed here, many of which are annuals or biennials. Flowers of different shades often grow close together.G. maculatum is probably the species grown in the studied area; I have planted it and found it a perennial.

Commentary: Wild Geranium is a relatively unattractive flower by itself, but a field of geranium in open woods is a beautiful sight, as shown below:

Wild Geranium perfers drained soil in open woods where partial sun is possible. It also colonizes areas near roads where the soil is clayish and compacted (such as by heavy machinery). It grows in monospecies patches with plants of height of about 12 inches. Each plant produces three to four 5-petaled flowers on a stalk (below).

The plant survives severe disruption and often returns as fast as dandelions to disrupted areas, though it is not so tolerant of being continually chopped down or eradicated as dandelions are. Transplantation has a high rate of success assuming the tall plants are supported artificially in the first year. The pubescent (hairy) leaves and stems are soft and prone to wilting if water is insufficient.

Wild Geranium associates with Mayapple, several Trillium species, Cut-Leaved Toothwort, Adder's Tongue, and Bloodroot.

Precautions and Uses: Not poisionus. Used as a salad green, dysentary and diarrhea treatment, and blood coagulant.

Soil Preferences: pH: 5.0-6.5

References: Wampler & Wampler 16, Klimas & Cunningham 186, Swink & Wilhelm 38, Peattie 245.

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