Pelargonium 'Cottenham Surprise' (A) | geranium 'Cottenham Surprise'

RHS

Bedding Conservatory Greenhouse

Bears a profusion of pansy-shaped flowers throught the growing season. Lower petals are white at the centre, spreading outwards to pale pink. Upper petals are cerise, edged with pink

Position

Full sun

Soil Types

Loam

Max Height

0.1-0.5 metres

Max Spread

0.1-0.5 metres

Size

Time to Maturity: 1–2 years
Max Spread: 0.1-0.5 metres
Max Height: 0.1-0.5 metres

Growing Conditions

Loam

Moisture: Well–drained
pH: Alkaline or Neutral

Position

Full sun

Aspect: East–facing or South–facing or West–facing
Exposure: Sheltered
Hardiness

Hardiness Ratings

All ratings refer to the UK growing conditions unless otherwise stated. Minimum temperature ranges (in degrees C) are shown in brackets

H1A: under glass all year (>15C)
H1B: can be grown outside in the summer (10 - 15)
H1C: can be grown outside in the summer (5 - 10)
H2: tolerant of low temperatures, but not surviving being frozen (1 to 5)
H3: hardy in coastal and relatively mild parts of the UK (-5 to 1)
H4: hardy through most of the UK (-10 to -5)
H5: hardy in most places throughout the UK even in severe winters (-15 to -10)
H6: hardy in all of UK and northern Europe (-20 to -15)
H7: hardy in the severest European continental climates (< -20): H1C

Colour & Scent

Season	Stem	Flower	Foliage	Fruit
Spring
Summer
Autumn
Winter

Botanical Details

Family: Geraniaceae
Native to GB/Ireland: No
Foliage: Evergreen
Habit: Bushy
Genus: Pelargonium can be perennials, sub-shrubs or shrubs, sometimes succulent and mostly evergreen, with palmately lobed or pinnately divided leaves and clusters of slightly irregular, 5-petalled flowers
Name Status: Accepted
Horticultural Group

Horticultural Classification Codes

Horticultural Classification Codes are often given to genera which have a large number of species or cultivars. They are used to categorise cultivated plants based on specific, shared characteristics such as shape, colour, size or flowering time, and can be displayed as letters or numbers

For example:
Dahlia ‘Sunset Kate (Sin) = Single flower
Rosa ‘Marigold’ (HT) = Hybrid Tea: Angel pelargoniums are compact, bushy perennials with small, rounded leaves, sometimes scented, and clusters of small single flowers in shades of pink, red purple or white

How to Grow

Cultivation

Requires frost-free conditions. Feed regularly through the growing season with a high potash fertiliser to encourage flowering. See pelargonium cultivation

Propagation

Propagate from softwood cuttings of non-flowering shoots in spring and summer

Suggested planting locations and garden types

City and courtyard gardens
Mediterranean climate plants
Cottage and informal garden
Patio and container plants

Pruning

Deadhead regularly

Pests

Generally pest-free, but may be susceptible to aphids

Diseases

Generally disease-free, but may be susceptible to pelargonium rust and a virus