A Gardeners Forum Forums Gardening Reference Gardening in 2004 geraniums

I have geraniums in pots in my backyard. Some are doing GREAt some just keep dying?! Why?, what can I do? - also, I/ve never had gladiolas before-do I leave the 'spent' flowers or cut them off?-will they grow more on the same plant(after)?

hi thumper, don't know about the geraniums, but i cut the spent blooms off the glads (just not the leaves). they haven't ever rebloomed for me, but they look better. the reason for leaving the leaves is because the leaves are what nourishes the plant to make more flowers next year!

Hi Thumper,

Are your geraniums receiving enough sun?

Cricket

Hi Thumper;

Geranium - once established - need nothing but sunlight. They are very drought tolerant, and hardy. Once in a while you should deadhead the dried up flowers, but otherwise, it will flourish with neglect!

The Glads are another story: they need a good supply of moisture, and once the flower stems have died you should cut these back to about 4 inches or so above the ground. The remaining greenery on the plant should be left until it dies of its own accord, at which time you can cut it back a little for aesthetic purposes. Every other year or so, you want to dig out the bulbs and separate them so that you can multiply your collection. I began with literally one wild gladiola that sprouted up about 3 years ago, and I now have over 20!