Native Pelargonium Pop Up

Native Pelargonium Pop Up (Pelargonium 'Edna Walling Pop Up') is the groundcover to reach for when a bed is hot, dry and nobody wants to maintain it. It sits about 30cm tall and spreads to roughly 60cm, carrying soft pink and white flowers above grey green foliage through the warmer months. Selected from the Australian native pelargonium group, it takes frost, salt air and thin soil without complaint.

Why you'll love it

• It covers ground quickly. Fast growing and spreading, so plants set 50cm apart knit together within a season.
• A long flowering season. Pink and white blooms sit clear of the foliage rather than hiding inside it.
• It survives the difficult corners. Drought tolerant, happy in poor soil, frost hardy and unbothered by coastal salt.
• Bees and butterflies work it. The open flowers are easy to land on, which counts if there is anything productive growing nearby.

Where it works best

Groundcover and mass planting. Plant 50cm apart in a staggered grid for even cover. On a slope the spreading habit holds soil between the crowns while the plants close in.

Rockeries and edging. Low enough to skirt a path without flopping across it, and the sharp drainage of a rockery is exactly what it wants.

Pots and containers. One plant fills a 300mm bowl, and given an edge to fall over it softens the hard line of a raised planter.

Growing Native Pelargonium Pop Up in Australia

Position and climate. Full sun brings the heaviest flowering. It suits subtropical, warm temperate, cool temperate, Mediterranean, arid and semi-arid gardens, and it is frost hardy once established. The wet tropics are the one place to skip it, because constant humidity and heavy summer rain sit badly on the crown.

Soil. Drainage matters far more than fertility here. Sandy or gravelly ground is ideal, and heavy clay needs a raised bed or a mound with coarse grit worked through it.

Water and feed. Water weekly through the first summer, then only in long dry spells. Feeding is close to unnecessary; a light dressing of slow release native fertiliser in early spring is plenty.

Pruning. Shear the whole planting back by about a third once the main flush finishes. That keeps the centre furnished instead of letting it open out and go woody at the base.

What to expect when it arrives

This one is grown as tube stock, which is the sensible way to buy a groundcover. Small plants establish faster than large ones, and at tube prices you can afford the numbers a mass planting actually needs. Each arrives as a young plant a few centimetres across with a strong root system, ready to go straight into the ground.

Tubes travel well and settle within a fortnight. Allow one to two growing seasons for a bed to close over. Plants are delivered Australia wide, with delivery from $29.95, and every plant carries our 30 day healthy plant guarantee.

Plant care guides and related reading

• Compare groundcover plants
• How to choose and plant a groundcover
• Browse the Australian native range
• Plants that bring in bees and butterflies

Common questions

How far apart should I plant it?

Fifty centimetres apart is right for full cover. Planting tighter costs more without closing the gaps any sooner, and it makes the bed harder to weed while the plants are still young.

Is it safe around cats and dogs?

No. Pelargoniums are toxic to cats and dogs if chewed, and can bring on vomiting and skin irritation. Choose something else if you have a pet that grazes on garden plants.

Will it survive frost?

Yes, it is frost hardy once established, which is why it works in cool temperate and inland gardens. Give first year plants a little shelter through their first winter while the roots are still shallow.

How long until it looks established?

Individual plants look settled within about six weeks of planting in warm weather. A whole bed planted at 50cm reads as continuous cover after one to two growing seasons.