Pelargoniums or scented leaf geraniums are aptly described as living potpourri for the home. They are not grown for their flowers, but for their scent. Most are native to South Africa and became popular with Victorians when the colonists brought them back to Britain with them. Unlike other garden plants that are fragrant only when blooming, scenteds are fragrant all year long. The scent is contained in the small beads of oil produced in the glands at the base of the leaf hairs. Bruising or crushing the leaves breaks the beads and thus the plant releases its scent. All are wonderfully fragrant and have a distinctive smell. Outside during the summer they prefer sun or part-sun. Bring them indoors in the winter, place them in a sunny window and they make an excellent house plant plus they have delicate, fragrant blooms. General: Geranium grown primarily for its attractive, strawberry-scented leaves which are small, crinkly, tri-lobed and green. Yields bi-color pink/lilac flowers when in bloom. Ornamental Uses: Strawberry scented geraniums have rose-pink flowers. It has small crinkled tri-lobed leaves. This plant is attractive to bees, butterflies, and birds. Great both in gardens and in containers indoors or out.
