Pelargonium 'Purple Heart' (Dw/St/C)

RHS Plant Profile
geranium 'Purple Heart'
geranium 'Purple Heart' RHS
Bedding Conservatory Greenhouse

'Purple Heart' is a dwarf stellar cultivar with single orange flowers. The flowers are set against a foil of green, palmate leaves with dark purple centres; hence the cultivar name

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
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
Dwarf pelargoniums are compact Zonal types, a little larger than Miniatures, and growing to 20cm, with single or more typically double flowers; well suited to containers

How to Grow

Cultivation

Requires frost-free conditions and good light. Feed plants with a high potash fertiliser during the growing season to promote flowering. See pelargonium cultivation

Propagation

Propagate by softwood cuttings of non-flowering shoots in spring or summer

Suggested planting locations and garden types

  • City and courtyard gardens
  • Patio and container plants
  • Mediterranean climate plants
  • Flower borders and beds

Pruning

Deadhead regularly. Cut back hard if overwintering old plants indoors

Pests

Generally trouble-free, but may be susceptible to glasshouse pests such as aphids and glasshouse whitefly in spring

Diseases

Generally disease-free, but may be susceptible to grey moulds, pelargonium rusts and pelargonium viruses