Geranium caespitosum

Geranium caespitosum
Conservation status
	; Apparently Secure (NatureServe)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Eudicots
Clade:	Rosids
Order:	Geraniales
Family:	Geraniaceae
Genus:	Geranium
Species:	G. caespitosum
Binomial name
	Geranium caespitosum; E.James, 1823
Synonyms
	List Geranium atropurpureum A.Heller (1898) ; Geranium cowenii Rydb. (1907) ; Geranium eremophilum Wooton & Standl. (1913) ; Geranium fremontii Torr. ex A.Gray (1849) ; Geranium furcatum Hanks (1907) ; Geranium gracile Engelm. (1849) ; Geranium intermedium E.James (1823) ; Geranium marginale Rydb. (1907) ; Geranium parryi A.Heller (1900) ; Geranium pattersonii Rydb. (1902) ; Geranium pentagynum Engelm. (1848) ; Geranium toquimense N.H.Holmgren & A.H.Holmgren (1974) ; ;

Geranium caespitosum, the purple cluster geranium or pineywoods geranium, is a perennial herb native to the western United States and northern Mexico. Its US distribution includes Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, Utah, and Wyoming.^[3]

It has a purple to red flower with 5 stamens, and the sepals are acuminate, tapering with a long point. It has palmately lobed leaves. The fruit is a schizocarp made up of 5 mericarps. Flowers bloom May to September.^[4] Geranium caespitosum has fleshy roots that penetrate deeply into the soil.^[5] It grows in damp soils, as in the understory of coniferous forests and in canyons.

Uses

The Gosiute use the plant as an astringent and a decoction of the root to treat diarrhea. The Keres use roots crushed into a paste to treat sores, and the whole plant as turkey food.^[6]

Cultivation

The pineywoods geranium is grown in xeriscape and native plant gardens for their well displayed pink flowers.^[5]

Varieties

The four varieties may known by the following common names:

G. c. var. caespitosum – pineywoods geranium
G. c. var. eremophilum – purple cluster geranium
G. c. var. fremontii – Fremont's geranium
G. c. var. parryi – Parry's geranium

In the United States, all four varieties are found in Arizona and New Mexico, and the purple cluster geranium is only found there. The other varieties are all found in Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming, and the pineywoods variety extends into Nevada and Texas.^[3]

Image gallery

red individual
lilac individual
foliage
var. fremontii
var. fremontii

References

^ NatureServe (2024). "Geranium caespitosum". Arlington, Virginia. Retrieved 26 September 2024.
^ "Geranium caespitosum E.James". Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 26 September 2024.
^ ^a ^b Geranium caespitosum. PLANTS Profile. USDA. Accessed 23 June 2013.
^ "Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center - The University of Texas at Austin". www.wildflower.org. Retrieved 2022-03-02.
^ ^a ^b Barr, Claude A. (1983). Jewels of the plains : wild flowers of the Great Plains grasslands and hills. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press. p. 18. ISBN 0-8166-1127-0.
^ Geranium caespitosum. Native American Ethnobotany. University of Michigan - Dearborn. Accessed 23 June 2013.

[NatureServe-1] NatureServe (2024). "Geranium caespitosum". Arlington, Virginia. Retrieved 26 September 2024.

[POWO-2] "Geranium caespitosum E.James". Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 26 September 2024.

[plants-3] Geranium caespitosum. PLANTS Profile. USDA. Accessed 23 June 2013.

[4] "Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center - The University of Texas at Austin". www.wildflower.org. Retrieved 2022-03-02.

[Jewels-5] Barr, Claude A. (1983). Jewels of the plains : wild flowers of the Great Plains grasslands and hills. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press. p. 18. ISBN 0-8166-1127-0.

[mich-6] Geranium caespitosum. Native American Ethnobotany. University of Michigan - Dearborn. Accessed 23 June 2013.

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