Geranium Max Fry with blood-red petals: photos with descriptions, planting and care tips, as well as the most common diseases and pest control

Blooming geraniums - a bewitching sight, which is worth some effort. Sometimes it is a shame that this time lasts only a few weeks.

Therefore, experienced gardeners know that among the types of geraniums there is also a plant that boasts not only gorgeous flowering, but also its duration. This is the Max Fry blood red geranium. You will learn about the features of this flower, how to reproduce it and how to care for it in this article. Also watch useful video.

Botanical Description

Geranium "Max Fry" refers to the class of dicotyledonous plants, the geranium family, the genus of geraniums. Max Fry Geranium is a dwarf perennial. The rhizome of Max Frey is fleshy, knotty and very long, which distinguishes it from other types of geranium.

Vegetation (development) is long. One generation of leaves is formed per season. Stems with dichotomous (forked) branching, an average height of 20 cm. They are covered with long, multiple hairs. In autumn, the stems and lower leaves may turn red.

Wintering leaves are located on long stubby petioles. Externally deeply divided into 5 - 7 shares, which are also divided into 3 -5 linear shares. Below are covered with fluffy white hairs.

Bracts in the plant are ovoid, brownish. The flowers are arranged in 1 or 2, and the sepals, nectaries and petals are in 5. The sepals are elongated, ovate, have small spikes at the end. Petals are about 2 times longer than the sepals. The shape of the petals is ovoid with recesses on the outside. On the ovary there are 5 lobes and 5 filiform stigmas.

ATTENTION: the fruit of this geranium is fractional, breaks up into single-seeded parts.

It blooms from June to August. Fruits in the period from July to September. Propagated by seed. This geranium is characterized by natural seeding of the soil. As a result, new plants grow that begin to bloom for 2 years. The vegetative method of reproduction is also widespread.

History of occurrence

Widely geranium "Max Fry" became known since the XVI century. Grows in the deciduous forests of Western Europe. It is very popular among gardeners for its unpretentiousness, because it can bear fruit abundantly and bloom without transplanting and dividing up to 15 years.

Photos of plants

Here you can find the photo of geranium "Max Fry".

Appearance

The leaves of "Max Fry" light green in color form an even spherical shape of the bush. The height of such a sphere is not more than 30 cm. In autumn, the leaves acquire a beautiful red or brown hue.

The stems practically do not exceed the leaves, so the shape of the shrub is very even, which is rare for geraniums. Dense foliage that changes color in the fall, allows you to successfully include "Max Fry" in the composition at any time of the year: in the fall and spring, in the summer.

"Max Fry" flowers cover the plant abundantly. There are a lot of them, so the flowering of this variety of geranium looks very noble. The flowers are simple pink with dark veins inside.

The flower "Max Fry" in diameter reaches 3 cm, has 5 petals. To the touch semi-double or plain. Flowers are localized one at a time on long peduncles. One geranium flower blooms from 7 to 12 days.

After flowering, a geranium fruit is formed, which looks like a beak of a crane. There are seeds in it.

Where to plant?

Geranium can grow under almost any conditions. But the main requirement for its planting is the absence of excessive soil moisture. Since "Max Fry" is considered a drought tolerant plant, stagnation of water in the ground is fatal for this variety.

IMPORTANT: A place must be chosen where sewage and flood waters do not stagnate.

If the garden is located in a lowland, it is recommended to build a retaining wall for geranium "Max Fry", where water stagnation will be reduced to zero.

Landing tips

Through the rhizome

This involves the purchase of planting material in February. The rhizome of a geranium seedling should be dense, have additional roots. This seedling is stored in the refrigerator (+ 1 ° С - + 2 ° С), periodically moisturizing (1 time in 14 days).

Landing on the site is planned only when the soil on the site is well warmed up. When planting, roots should be placed carefully, preventing them from bending. Otherwise, the plant may not take root and die.

In pots

Florists can buy "Max Fry" in pots - these are already grown seedlings. When the weather stabilizes, the soil warms up, they are planted in the ground in a permanent place.

The disadvantage of this method is the rather high cost of such pots.

General rules

The difficulty in planting the geranium "Max Fry" arises from the long rhizome:

The landing fossa should not be too wide, but deep enough.
The distance between the bushes is about 30 cm.
Before planting, the nutrient mixture is poured into the pit, the roots of the plant are placed on top and covered with earth.
Be sure to water.

Transplanted geranium "Max Fry" in the fall, possibly in early spring. In parallel, divide the bush into parts for reproduction.

Max Fry geranium grows very fast. Do not allow excessive overgrowing.

The transplant is tolerated quite stressfully, so this kind of geranium should be planted immediately on a permanent place in the flower garden. Proper planting of geraniums is the key to good growth and abundant flowering.

Lighting and location

This kind of geranium loves good lighting.. A sunny landing area is ideal, but landing at partial shade is also possible.

In the shade, "Max Fry" does not bloom, only grows leaves and stems. Due to what this plant looks good in any composition: on ceremonial flower beds, in flower beds, near borders.

It is used in flowerpots for landscaping houses and roofs. "Max fry" is planted both singly and in groups with other varieties and plants (chamomile, bluebells, daylily).

Soil requirements

Geranium is undemanding to the composition of the soil, grows in any garden areas. Nevertheless, it is desirable that the soil is loose and not rich in organic matter. An ideal option is sandy loamy and loamy calcareous soils. They usually grow well in acidic, slightly acidic and neutral soil.

Care Rules

Caring for this geranium is primitive and uncomplicated:

Watering. After planting, water often and plentifully, gradually reducing the number of waterings. On especially hot days, increase the frequency of watering. If the leaves droop or fade, this indicates a lack of moisture.
Weeds. It is important to weed all the first time after planting. Further, geranium itself depresses them.
Fertilizers. Additional fertilizers are not required, but you can use mineral fertilizers to feed in the spring.
Removing Faded Buds. This is necessary for prolonged flowering of geraniums - new buds will appear in place of the removed ones.
Shelter. This frost-resistant plant does not require shelter for the winter.

Common Diseases and Pests

This variety of geraniums is not prone to disease and resistant to pest attacks. High volatility provide volatile and essential oils. May be affected by powdery mildew if kept in low light and high humidity. In this case, Bordeaux fluid is used.

Prolonged excessive humidity provokes the appearance of rot. Such a shrub is removed from the flower garden, because it is practically impossible to save it. If brown spots appeared on the plant, then it is treated with a solution of fungicidal powder.

Propagation Features

Separately, it is worth highlighting the breeding procedure, which is part of the general care for "Max Fry."

There are 2 ways to reproduce:

Rhizome division. In early spring or late summer (early fall) Max Fry geranium bushes are divided into parts: each “lobule” should have a part of a rhizome with a kidney.TIP: It’s not worth delaying this process, because the plant needs to take root before the first frost.
Seed propagation. In the early spring or late autumn, seeds are sown. And the first sunrises are seen already in May. Young seedlings are developing rapidly. They do not get sick often. But they bloom only in the second year. This variety is characterized by self-sowing. However, during seed propagation, daughter plants do not always inherit the characteristics of the mother plant. Therefore, varietal geraniums such as "Max Fry" is recommended to propagate by dividing the rhizome.

Max Fry geraniums will be an excellent solution for gardeners: it is unpretentious, and at the same time pleases owners with its flowering for more than a month. In the fall, she will delight with her brown leaves. And in winter you do not need to worry about her condition.