Pelargonium tomentosum

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Pelargonium tomentosum
Pelargonium tomentosum 05.jpg
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Geraniales
Family: Geraniaceae
Genus: Pelargonium
Species:
P. tomentosum
Binomial name
Pelargonium tomentosum
Jacq.

Pelargonium tomentosum, the peppermint-scented geranium, [1] is a pelargonium species native to South Africa. It is in the subgenus Pelargonium along with Pelargonium graveolens , Pelargonium crispum and Pelargonium capitatum .

Contents

Etymology

Pelargonium comes from the Greek; Pelargos which means stork. Another name for pelargoniums is storksbills due to the shape of their fruit. Tomentosum refers to the soft, furry, tomentose leaves.

Description

Pelargonium tomentosum is a tall, spreading species which grows up to a metre wide and a metre high. It is a very soft, hairy plant with a strong mint scent (due to the menthone in the leaves) and small white flowers. The leaves are green-grey in colour with a wide, three-lobed shape.

Cultivars and hybrids

There are an only a few cultivars and hybrids of Pelargonium tomentosum. These cultivars and hybrids include:

Uses

As well as being a houseplant or outdoor perennial depending on climate, Pelargonium tomentosum has a few other uses. Firstly, the leaves are edible and are great as a flavouring for cakes or tea. The leaves are not usually eaten due to the hairiness of the leaves being somewhat repulsive. Secondly, due to the astringent characteristics of the oils in its leaves, a poultice can be made to treat sprains or bruises. It is also works like mint for treating sore throats if the menthol is obtained correctly. Thirdly the leaves are very aromatic and can be used in potpourri.

Related Research Articles

<i>Mentha</i> Genus of flowering plants in the family Lamiaceae

Mentha is a genus of plants in the family Lamiaceae. The exact distinction between species is unclear; it is estimated that 13 to 24 species exist. Hybridization occurs naturally where some species range overlap. Many hybrids and cultivars are known.

Peppermint Hybrid flowering plant in the family Lamiaceae

Peppermint is a hybrid mint, a cross between watermint and spearmint. Indigenous to Europe and the Middle East, the plant is now widely spread and cultivated in many regions of the world. It is occasionally found in the wild with its parent species.

<i>Pelargonium</i> Genus of plants

Pelargonium is a genus of flowering plants which includes about 280 species of perennials, succulents, and shrubs, commonly known as geraniums, pelargoniums, or storksbills. Geranium is also the botanical name and common name of a separate genus of related plants, also known as cranesbills. Both genera belong to the family Geraniaceae. Carl Linnaeus originally included all the species in one genus, Geranium, and they were later separated into two genera by Charles Louis L'Héritier de Brutelle in 1789.

<i>Mentha aquatica</i> Species of flowering plant

Mentha aquatica is a perennial flowering plant in the mint family Lamiaceae. It grows in moist places and is native to much of Europe, northwest Africa and southwest Asia.

<i>Mentha suaveolens</i> Species of flowering plant

Mentha suaveolens, the apple mint, pineapple mint, woolly mint or round-leafed mint, is a member of the mint family Lamiaceae. It is native to southern and western Europe including the Mediterranean region. It is a herbaceous, upright perennial plant that is most commonly grown as a culinary herb or for ground cover.

<i>Pelargonium radens</i> Species of flowering plant

Pelargonium radens, the rasp-leaf pelargonium is a species of Pelargonium. It is in the subgenus Pelargonium along with Pelargonium crispum and Pelargonium tomentosum.

<i>Cosmos atrosanguineus</i> Species of flowering plant

Cosmos atrosanguineus, the chocolate cosmos, is a species of Cosmos, native to Mexico. It has often been claimed that it is extinct in the wild; however it is "quite abundant" in Mexico. The species was introduced into cultivation in 1885, when the British seed company Thompson & Morgan first listed it in their seed catalogue. Its dark red to brownish red flowers have a scent resembling chocolate, which is one reason for its popularity as a cultivated plant.

<i>Pelargonium graveolens</i> Species of plant

Pelargonium graveolens is a Pelargonium species native to the Cape Provinces and the Northern Provinces of South Africa, Zimbabwe and Mozambique. It is in the subgenus Pelargonium along with Pelargonium capitatum,Pelargonium crispum, Pelargonium tomentosum and Pelargonium quercifolium.

<i>Lamium maculatum</i> Species of plant

Lamium maculatum is a species of flowering plant in the family Lamiaceae, native throughout Europe and temperate Asia.

<i>Hedeoma drummondii</i> Species of plant

Hedeoma drummondii is a species of flowering plant in the mint family known by the common name Drummond's false pennyroyal. It is native to western North America, where it is distributed mainly in the United States west of the Mississippi River and adjacent Mexico. This is a hairy perennial herb with an erect mintlike form up to 45 centimeters tall. The oppositely arranged paired leaves are linear to narrowly oval in shape, pointed, and up to about a centimeter long. The leaves have a strong sweet mint scent when crushed. The herb tastes like peppermint and is used as a minty flavoring in parts of Mexico. The inflorescence arises from the axils of these leaf pairs, bearing three to seven flowers each between one and two centimeters in length on short pedicels. The flowers are generally light to deep lavender with some white markings. The fruit is a waxy, mucilaginous nutlet.

<i>Pelargonium peltatum</i> The ivy-leaved pelargonium is a scrambling perennial plant in the family Geraniaceae from southern and eastern South Africa

Pelargonium peltatum is a scrambling perennial plant with shallow or deeply five lobed, circular to heart-shaped, somewhat fleshy leaves, sometimes with a differently coloured semicircular band, that has been assigned to the cranesbill family. It carries umbel-like inflorescences with 2–10, white to mauve, bilateral symmetrical flowers, each with a "spur" that is merged with the flower stalk. It is known by several common names including ivy-leaved pelargonium and cascading geranium. It is native to southern and eastern South Africa. In its home range, it flowers year round but most vigoriously from August to October.

<i>Pelargonium quercifolium</i> Species of flowering plant

Pelargonium quercifolium is a species of geranium known by the common name oakleaf geranium or oak-geranium. It is native to South Africa, and it is a commonly grown ornamental plant. It is in the subgenus pelargonium along with Pelargonium crispum and Pelargonium tomentosum.

<i>Pelargonium capitatum</i> Species of plant

Pelargonium capitatum is one of several species known as rose geranium or rose-scented pelargonium in English. The popular names refer to the scent of the essential oils extracted from glandular tissue, not the flowers, which have hardly any scent to speak of. Some of the species are known as kusmalva in Afrikaans.

<i>Pelargonium crispum</i> Species of flowering plant

Pelargonium crispum is a Pelargonium species native to the Western Cape Province, South Africa. It is in the subgenus Pelargonium along with Pelargonium graveolens and Pelargonium capitatum and Pelargonium tomentosum.

<i>Pelargonium odoratissimum</i> Species of flowering plant

Pelargonium odoratissimum is a pelargonium species native to South Africa. It is also known as the apple geranium or apple pelargonium due to the distinct apple scent. It is in the subgenus Reniforme along with Pelargonium sidoides and Pelargonium exstipulatum.

<i>Pelargonium × fragrans</i> Species of flowering plant

Pelargonium × fragrans is a pelargonium hybrid between Pelargonium odoratissimum and Pelargonium exstipulatum. It is in the subgenus Reniforme along with Pelargonium sidoides and Pelargonium abrotanifolium.

<i>Pelargonium exstipulatum</i> Species of flowering plant

Pelargonium exstipulatum is a pelargonium species native to South Africa. It is in the subgenus Reniforme along with Pelargonium odoratissimum and Pelargonium sidoides.

<i>Pelargonium cordifolium</i> Species of flowering plant

Pelargonium cordifolium Curtis is a plant endemic to the fynbos region of the Southern Cape of South Africa.

<i>Pelargonium inquinans</i> Species of flowering plant

Pelargonium inquinans, the scarlet geranium, is a species of plant in the genus Pelargonium, that is indigenous to the south-western Cape of South Africa. It is one of the ancestors of the hybrid line of horticultural pelargoniums, referred to as the zonal group. They can easily be propagated by seeds and cuttings.

<i>Pelargonium album</i> Species of flowering plant

Pelargonium album is a species of flowering plant of the genus Pelargonium. This species is native to South Africa. It is an apple/mint scented pelargonium which is very closely related to Pelargonium odoratissimum. It is in the subgenus reniforme along with Pelargonium sidoides and P. exstipulatum.

References

  1. BSBI List 2007 (xls). Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland. Archived from the original (xls) on 2015-06-26. Retrieved 2014-10-17.