News from the Geraniaceae Group

[Maggi Young]

David Victor tells me that he, along with a group of enthusiasts from the Geraniaceae Group, have put together a specialist discussion forum for the family.  This is currently being launched and there is an open invitation for any one to join who is interested in that family or has questions about particular plants.

The formal starting date for the Forum is 1st July but interested persons can sign up now by going to:

www.geraniaceae-group-forum.org

Basic details are as follows : The aims of The Geraniaceae Group are to promote knowledge of the species of Geraniaceae, to unite people who are interested in these plants all over the world, to encourage interest in its growing and exchange of information between our members.

 

To participate in this Forum you need to be a member of the Geraniaceae Group

You may apply for membership and send your payment according the following terms

Subscription rates for 2013 

UK £ 10.00

EUROPE £ 12.00 (or Euro 20.00, cash */ETP), including Air mail Postage

OTHER OVERSEAS £ 15.00 (or US $ 25.00, cash /ETP), including Air mail Postage

Membership runs for 12 months and benefits include the following:

·       Four printed newsletters each year

·       Participation in this online forum and access to the Group website

·       Access to the annual seed exchange

·       Opportunities to buy specialist Books

·       Use of the Slide Library

Please visit their Website http://www.geraniaceae-group.org/index.html#The%20Group%20Newsletter    to get more information on the following topics:

The Specialist Booklist
Geraniaceae Photo Gallery
Meeting and Events
Links to related societies and websites
The annual Seed Exchange
International Cultivar Registrar for Geranium and Erodium

The Forum of the Geraniaceae Group provides communication between members in real time. You can share your experience and photos about species growing, hybridizing and your travels to natural habitat, nurseries, botanical gardens. You can also create own topic about your Geraniaceae collection.

Only Group members can participate at the Forum. Internet users (not members) are able to see two sections – Membership and Group News.

To become a Forum’s participant you should press ‘Create Account’ button at the right upper corner of the page and fill in registration form. You will receive confirmation of your registration from administrator via email.

 Please do not hesitate to send your questions: forum@geraniaceae-group-forum.org


Best of luck to the Geraniaceae Group with this project.

[Maggi Young]

The forum mentioned above  seems to  now  be  under this link :
https://www.geraniaceae-group.org/community/     ( that forum is for members only)

 However, the  Geraniaceae Group  site remains  https://www.geraniaceae-group.org/

 These links may also be of interest
http://www.geraniaceae-group.org/old/a_french_connection.html
http://www.geraniaceae-group.org/old/mount_ossa.html     for a couple of  articles  by Allan Robinson, Sutton Bridge , The Fens, England.

http://www.growsonyou.com/bowl_you/blog/25361-bloomin-erodiums for John Beaulieu's blog which contains  some notes of  Erodium 'Bishop's Form, which is now  correctly  Erodium 'William Bishop'

[John H. Beaulieu]

Sadly, two of the links to information at the Geraniaceae site no longer work. They have deleted many articles and changed a lot of information to 'members only' status. I can see the point of creating a reason to join the group, but also dissapointed that so much is no longer available to the public. I always figure that sharing information is a goal of specialist groups. I for one, can no longer afford to join all the groups that I would like to.

Thank you for putting up the link to my erodium (and other blogs) blog, which still works. It is mainly a compilation of a lot of info gleaned about erodiums over the last few years, plus lots of photos.

[Maggi Young]

Welcome  to the  Forum, John - sad to hear  there  are  links which have  lost  their  use  - as  you  probably  know  from the  SRGC site, we  are  all about  sharing  our  knowledge  and  information with as  wide  a  range  of  people  as  possible, not  only  full SRGC members, so the  vast  majority of  our  content  is  free  for  all to read  and  save  as they wish.

I agree, it  is  getting  harder than ever  to afford  membership fees  for  all the  groups  one   might  like  to support.
 The  SRGC  has  a  natty  "donate"  button where  we  hope  those  who have  found the  likes  of  the free access we  provide  to the  International Rock Gardener with, for  instance,  so many open  access  species  descriptions  in its  pages,  to be  useful  that  anyone  can use  the  button to make  a  donation of any  size  to our  "work."
 I use the  term "work" loosely, of  course, since  we  are  all volunteers!

[John H. Beaulieu]

It was really good to see that the International Rock Gardener re-published one of the deleated (from the Geraniaceae site) articles in the Dec. 2019 issue.

Myself, I am mainly into the hardy geraniums and the erodiums. Erodiums are a challenge to come by here in central Ontario. I do not see a lot of forum entries here, regarding either the geraniums or erodiums. Maybe I need to start a thread? I mainly grow mine in rockery conditions... They all seem to take to that quite well.

[Maggi Young]

John, I believe  a  thread  on the  hardy  geraniums  and  erodium would  be  popular - you  are  most  welcome  to start  one!

[John H. Beaulieu]

Flipping back through the forum, I realize that I put up a photo of erodiums, but did not identify them (2 posts back). These are Erodium cheilanthifolium (album). This is a very variable species, and this is one of the most common forms available... Identical to what is sold as 'Stephanie'. It is a naturally occurring form that is found mostly in the very southern mountains of Andalusia, Spain. The bottom petals are whiter (less veining than the forms a little further north in the Sierra Nevada mountains.

[ashley]

Here's one from the north of Spain, Picos de Europa, a form of E. (petraeum ssp.) glandulosum which is also variable.