They complete the creative balcony box or attract everyone's attention with flowing blossoms. The opulent bloom of hanging geraniums is less mysterious than it might appear in view of the overflowing balcony boxes in the Alps. In fact, it depends on a package of harmoniously coordinated criteria for planting and caring for Pelargonium Peltatum. The following answers to frequently asked questions bring light into the darkness.

A hanging sea of flowers for the balcony: the hanging geranium

Plant hanging geraniums correctly

Select balcony boxes (€109.00) that have multiple water drains. The dimensions should not be less than 15 cm deep and 20 cm wide. Place a shard of pottery over each floor opening or cover the floor completely with a thin layer of small pebbles as a water-bearing base. Fill in a first layer of geranium soil. Repot the young hanging geraniums and place them in the loose substrate at a distance of 15-20 cm. Please remove the supporting plastic grid with great care, because at this stage the tendrils are as fragile as porcelain. Please keep the previous planting depth as far as possible and water with room-warm water.

care tips

Hanging geraniums are less maintenance-intensive than it appears. With this care program you set the course for a long and lush flowering period:

  • Water moderately until June and only then increase the amount of water without causing waterlogging
  • Fertilize liquid weekly from May to October/November
  • After 3 weeks in culture, shorten all shoots slightly to just above a vital bud
  • Clean out wilted flowers every 1-2 days

If winter is coming, cut off all tendrils by two-thirds of their length and remove the foliage. Now put the flower boxes (€16.99) in the bright winter quarters with temperatures between 5 and 8 degrees Celsius. Water occasionally without giving fertilizer. In March, cut back the shoots again down to 2 strong buds and pot the overwintered plants in fresh soil.
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Which location is suitable?

The sunny south-facing balcony is the ideal location for hanging geraniums. Place the flower box (€16.99) so that it is protected from strong winds and driving rain. While the long tendrils can easily cope with a mild summer wind, a rain shower causes unmistakable damage to the flowers.

What soil does the plant need?

Use a good quality compost-based potting soil as a substrate. It is preferable to opt for a low-peat product that is less prone to compaction. A few handfuls of perlite breathing flakes or lava granules increase permeability and optimize the oxygen supply to the roots. You get the perfect substrate as a special geranium soil, which is of course reflected in the costs.

When is flowering time?

In a sunny, well-protected location, hanging geraniums give you a long flowering period from May to the first frost. One of the mainstays of this long period is the consistent cleaning of withered flowers before the individual leaves fall off and the foliage sticks together. If that is too time-consuming for you, opt for self-cleaning varieties such as Pelargonium-Peltatum Ville des Paris.

Cut hanging geraniums correctly

After 3 weeks of growth on the balcony, you will of course be happy about every centimetre. Nevertheless, take heart now and cut back the young tendrils very slightly to just above a healthy, strong bud. With this simple trick, you can elicit lush branching and an even richer bloom from your hanging geraniums. In autumn, before putting them away, cut the plants down by two-thirds.

Water hanging geraniums

Adjust the amount of watering proportional to the progress of growth. Until the beginning of the flowering period, only water when the top 2-3 cm of soil has dried. Only from June do you gradually increase the quantity, whereby waterlogging must not occur at any time. Thanks to this care, the roots will grow better and your hanging geraniums will bloom even more luxuriantly.

Fertilize hanging geraniums properly

Hanging geraniums are really not food haters. Therefore, fertilize the heavily consuming summer flowers weekly with a liquid preparation that has plenty of phosphorus in the NPK composition. With a special geranium fertilizer you are on the safe side with regard to the nutrient composition, which is of course reflected in the price.

Diseases

A mealy-white coating on the hanging geraniums, which have so far bloomed magnificently, indicates the most common disease of these summer flowers. The mildew fungal infection requires your immediate intervention to prevent the pelargonium from dying. Reaching for the fungicide is still superfluous, because a proven household remedy outstrips the chemical club. Mix 125 ml fresh milk (no UHT milk) with 1 l lime-free water. Spray this solution on the top and bottom of the leaves every 2-3 days until symptoms disappear.

hibernate

Since all geranium species migrated to us from tropical warm countries, even hanging geraniums do not tolerate frost. So that your balcony flowers repeat the blossom festival next year, admit the plants in good time before the first frost. First cut the tendrils down to 15 cm and remove all foliage. Water from time to time in a bright place at 5-8 degrees Celsius so that the root ball does not dry out. Pelargoniums do not hold fertilizer at this time. In early spring, cut off the shoots again so that at least 2 buds remain on them. Now pot the overwintered Pelargonium Peltatum in fresh substrate and gradually get them used to the sunlight and higher temperatures.
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Multiply hanging geraniums

In August, take non-blooming head cuttings 10-15 cm long from your most beautiful hanging geraniums. These are defoliated in the lower part, placed in lean substrate and kept slightly moist in a semi-shady place. By winter the cuttings have developed their own root system and join the adult geraniums in the bright, cool winter quarters.

Are hanging geraniums poisonous?

Hanging geraniums do not pose a health risk to humans. Small rodents, on the other hand, can suffer serious damage or even death after eating the plant parts. Therefore, never use the flowers and leaves as green fodder for rabbits, hamsters or guinea pigs. Dogs and cats should also not be able to get to the tendrils.

Beautiful varieties

  • Ville de Paris: One of the most popular varieties for lavishly flowering window boxes in red and pink
  • Tyrolean Fire: Magnificent Tyrolean hanging geranium with bright red flowers on tendrils up to 150 cm long
  • Royal Night: Noble Pelargonium Peltatum with dark purple-red flowers from May to October
  • Toscana Nixe: Impresses with two-tone pink flowers with a red edge and lush branching
  • Ville de Dresden: White-flowered hanging geranium, which adorns a pink center with tendrils up to 100 cm long

Category:

Indoor plants