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This genus is accepted, and its native range is St. Helena, Eritrea to S. Africa, Madagascar, Turkey to Arabian Peninsula, N. Thailand, Australia, New Zealand.

[FZ]

Geraniaceae, T. Müller. Flora Zambesiaca 2:1. 1963

Morphology General Habit
Annual or perennial herbs, shrublets or shrubs, sometimes with underground tubers; erect or decumbent, sometimes acaulescent or with subsucculent stems; often viscid and aromatic, variously hairy, often glandular.
Morphology Leaves
Leaves usually petiolate, stipulate, opposite or alternate, serrate, crenate, dentate, lobed, variously dissected or compound, rarely entire; stipules membranous, sometimes setaceous, rarely forming spines.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Inflorescence a 2-many-flowered pseudumbel (flowers rarely solitary); bracts present.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers
Flowers zygomorphic, 5-merous.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Calyx
Sepals imbricate, often with a membranous margin, posterior sepal produced at the base into a spur which is decurrent along the pedicel and adnate to it.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corolla
Petals 5 (rarely 0–4 by abortion), usually unequal, imbricate, unguiculate or sessile.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Disc
Disk or extra-staminal glands absent.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Androecium
Stamens 10, connate at the base; 2–7 filaments bearing anthers, the remaining ones often vestigial (staminodes); anthers dorsifixed.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Gynoecium Pistil
Ovary 5-lobed, 5-locular (rarely 3–4-locular by abortion), rostrate; loculi 2-ovulate; style present, short or long; stigmas 5, usually filiform.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Fruit a rostrate schizocarp; mericarps rostrate, 1-seeded, tapering from the apex to the base and ending in a point, hirsute; rostrum persistent, helically twisting when ripe, plumose on the inside.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Seeds
Seeds ± oblong-obovoid; endosperm absent; embryo curved.

[FSOM]

M. Thulin et al. Flora of Somalia, Vol. 1-4 [updated 2008] https://plants.jstor.org/collection/FLOS

Morphology General Habit
Annual or perennial herbs, shrublets or shrubs, sometimes with underground tubers, aromatic. Leaves opposite or alternate, lobed, dissected or compound, rarely entire
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Flowers in umbels or rarely solitary, zygomorphic. Sepals imbricate, the uppermost produced at the base into a spur which is adnate to the pedicel
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corolla
Petals 5 or fewer, usually unequal. Stamens 10, united at the base, only 2–7 bearing anthers
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Gynoecium Style
Styles short or long; stigmas 5, generally filiform
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Mericarps with beak spirally twisted at maturity.
Distribution
Some 290 species, mostly in tropical and subtropical regions, especially numerous in South Africa.

[FTEA]

Geraniaceae, J. O. Kokwaro (University College Nairobi). Flora of Tropical East Africa. 1971

Morphology General Habit
Annual or perennial herbs, shrublets or shrubs, sometimes with underground tubers, erect or decumbent, sometimes acaulescent or with subsucculent stems; stems viscid and aromatic, variously hairy, often glabrous
Morphology Leaves
Leaves opposite or alternate, usually petiolate, serrate, crenate, dentate, lobed, variously dissected or compound, rarely entire; stipules membranous, sometimes setaceous, rarely forming spines
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Inflorescence a 2-many- flowered simple umbel, flowers rarely solitary
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers
Flowers zygomorphic, mostly 5-merous, pedicellate, bracteate
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Calyx
Sepals imbricate, often with a membranous margin; posterior sepals produced at the base into a spur which is decurrent along the pedicel and adnate to it
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corolla
Petals 5, rarely 0–4 by abortion, usually unequal, imbricate, unguiculate or sessile
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Androecium Stamens
Stamens 10, connate at the base, with only 2–7 filaments bearing anthers, the remaining ones vestigial (staminodes); anthers dorsifixed
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Nectaries
Extrastaminal glands absent
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Gynoecium Pistil
Ovary 5-lobed, 5-locular (occasionally 3–4-locular by abortion), rostrate; each locule usually 2-ovulate, 1 ovule later aborting; style short or long; stigmas 5, generally filiform
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Fruit a rostrate schizocarp; mericarps rostrate, 1-seeded, tapering from the apex to the base and ending in a point, hirsute; rostrum persistent, helically twisting when ripe, plumose on the inside
Morphology Reproductive morphology Seeds
Seeds ± oblong-obovoid, exalbuminous; embryo curved.

Native to:

Angola, Botswana, Cape Provinces, Chatham Is., Eritrea, Ethiopia, Free State, Iraq, Kenya, KwaZulu-Natal, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, New South Wales, New Zealand North, New Zealand South, Northern Provinces, Queensland, Saudi Arabia, Socotra, Somalia, South Australia, St.Helena, Sudan, Swaziland, Tanzania, Tasmania, Thailand, Tristan da Cunha, Turkey, Uganda, Victoria, Western Australia, Yemen, Zambia, Zaïre, Zimbabwe

Extinct in:

Norfolk Is.

Introduced into:

Amsterdam-St.Paul Is, Assam, Belgium, Bermuda, California, Canary Is., Cape Verde, Corse, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, East Himalaya, Ecuador, Great Britain, Haiti, India, Korea, Madeira, Mexico Southwest, Morocco, Myanmar, Norfolk Is., Puerto Rico, Spain, Trinidad-Tobago, Uzbekistan, Vietnam

Pelargonium L'Hér. ex Aiton appears in other Kew resources:

Date Reference Identified As Barcode Type Status
11853.000

First published in Hort. Kew. 2: 417 (1789)

Accepted by

  • Le Roux, M.M. (2019). A taxonomic revision of the southern African species of Pelargonium section Peristera (Geraniaceae) Phytotaxa 418: 119-157.

Literature

Flora Zambesiaca

  • in Ait., Hort. Kew. 2: 417 (1789).

Flora of Somalia

  • Flora Somalia, Vol 1, (1993) Author: by M. Thulin [updated by M. Thulin 2008]

Flora of Tropical East Africa

  • Hort. Kew. 2: 417 (1789)

Flora Zambesiaca
Flora Zambesiaca
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

Flora of Somalia
Flora of Somalia
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

Flora of Tropical East Africa
Flora of Tropical East Africa
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

Herbarium Catalogue Specimens
'The Herbarium Catalogue, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Published on the Internet http://www.kew.org/herbcat [accessed on Day Month Year]'. Please enter the date on which you consulted the system.

Kew Backbone Distributions
The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Selected Plant Families 2021. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and http://apps.kew.org/wcsp/
© Copyright 2017 World Checklist of Selected Plant Families. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

Kew Names and Taxonomic Backbone
The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Selected Plant Families 2021. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and http://apps.kew.org/wcsp/
© Copyright 2017 International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Selected Plant Families. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

Kew Science Photographs
Digital Image © Board of Trustees, RBG Kew http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/