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Idaho Mountain Wildflowers

The Geranium Family: Geraniaceae

The geranium family consists of five genera and 760 species. The name is derived from the Greek word geranos, meaning “crane,” referring to the long pointed beak formed by the style as the seeds form. Perversely, the popular and attractive garden “geranium” does not belong to the genus Geranium at all, but to Pelargonium, a genus made up of almost 300 tropical plants found mostly in South Africa. The economic importance of the family is due entirely to the popularity of its cultivated ornamental varieties. Those in genus Geranium differ from the pelargoniums by the symmetrical configuration of their flowers, with five sepals, five petals, ten stamens and a five part pistil and their (usually) pink to purple coloration. As many as ten species of Geranium grow in the Northwest, but of all of these, only the two discussed here are native species.  

Sticky geranium, Geranium viscosissimum, Fisch. & C. A. Mey. (left). The sticky geranium flowers from spring through late summer. The flowers are usually pink with deep red to purple veins, although flower color varies from white through pink, to light purple. Deeply cut compound leaves are a distinguishing feature. The plants prefer, but are not restricted to moist and shady areas; growing as high as the subalpine zone. The leaves and stems are sticky, explaining both common and scientific names. The very similar white geranium, Geranium richardsonii Fisch. & Trautv. (not shown), is also a native species that grows in a like environment, further north in Idaho. Crane’s bill, Erodium cicutarium L’Hér. ex Aiton (right). The crane’s bill (also stork’s bill, and filaree) is a small, pink-flowered Eurasian plant that has spread worldwide. In early spring the plants appear, often in great numbers, and are still blooming well into the fall.. Although considered a weed, the erodium is an excellent browse plant. It grows as high as the montane zone, although less common there than at lower elevations. Crane’s bills are creeping plants, usually only an inch or so high. Their long, persistent styles explains the erodium’s scientific and common names (Erodium from the Greek means “crane” or “heron”). The species name, cicutarium implies that its leaves resemble those of the Cicuta, the European water hemlock.

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