Herb. No. 244 · Geraniaceae
South African pelargonium; a greenhouse and windowsill plant in cold winters.
Native · Africa
Native Also grown
LegalGentleplant
Rose geranium
Pelargonium graveolens
Garden flowersKitchenFlowersHarvest
A rose-scented leaf for sugar, cake, and a finger bowl — the windowsill pelargonium, not the hardy cranesbill.
Rose geranium is a South African Pelargonium grown for the leaf, not the small pink flower. Crush a leaf: rose, a little citrus, a little mint, depending on the clone. The kitchen use is to scent sugar, line a cake tin, or steep a leaf in syrup. It is not hardy in zone 6b; it overwinters on a bright windowsill like jasmine. Hardy Geranium species are a different genus and a different plate.
Flavor
Rose-candy leaf. The flower is pretty and lesser.
Parts used
Leaf · Flower
Helpful
- A leaf you can cook with all winter
- Many named scents (rose, lemon, mint)
- Easy from cuttings
Cautions
- Dies at the first hard frost outdoors
- Essential oil is not a DIY project on this plate
- Whitefly in a stale window