Image of Small-flowered Cranesbill

Description:

Slo.: pritlina krvomonica - Habitat: grassland near a cottage, semiruderal place, locally flat terrain, shallow, colluial, calcareous ground, sunny place, elevation 600 m (1.970 feet); average precipitations ~ 3.000 mm/year, average temperature 7-9 deg C, alpine phytogeographical region. Substratum: relatively nutrients rich soil. Comment: Geranium pusillum is another small flowered, inconspicuous representative of otherwise in horticulture highly esteemed genus of Crane's-bills (Geranium). It is a common plant preferring base and nutrients rich ground. It is widely distributed in Europe and southwest Asia from lowland to high montane elevations. Geranium pusillum has rather pale colored flowers. They are the smallest, in our flora (counting 20 different species and subspecies growing wild), which have 5-8 mm in diameter only. No wonder, compared to for example to Bloody Crane's-bill (Geranium sanguineum) with its intensive blood-red over 4 cm large flowers, it is considered as 'weed' too. Ref.: (1) D. Aeschimann, K. Lauber, D.M. Moser, J.P. Theurillat, Flora Alpina, Vol. 1., Haupt (2004), p 1060. (2) A. Martini et all., Mala Flora Slovenije (Flora of Slovenia - Key) (in Slovenian), Tehnina Zaloba Slovenije (2007), p 351. (3) K. Lauber and G. Wagner, Flora Helvetica, 5. Auflage, Haupt (2012), p 578. (4) M.A. Fischer, W. Adler, K. Oswald, Exkursionsflora fr sterreich, Liechtenstein und Sdtirol, LO Landesmuseen, Linz, Austria (2005), p 412.