Geranium Paper

Geranium Report

On earth, there are hundreds of thousands of different species of plants. Pelargoniums are a genus of plants that contain an estimate of between 230-300 species. They are commonly known by the name of geraniums, which can be confusing because there is another genus with the same name. Most of the species of pelargoniums are naturally found in the areas of Southern Africa that contain a Mediterranean climate. They can also be found in areas around the world with similar climates. Pelargoniums have a wide variety of uses. Some scented-leaf geraniums are used for culinary purposes to flavor different foods such as jellies, cakes, and teas. They also have a history of different types of medicinal uses. The oils extracted from geraniums are used as a relaxant in aromatherapy. Also, there have been cold remedies made from different species that have been sold in Europe and in the United States.

Although different species of pelargoniums don’t have all the same looks and characteristics, the leaf morphology of them is primarily all the same. Geraniums have compound leaves with an alternate leaf arrangement. They are stipulates and also are petiolates, which means the leaves attach to the stem with a petiole. Pelargoniums are dicots. This can be proven by the leaf venation in which the veins of the leaf are netted instead of parallel. If geraniums were treated 2,4-D, which is a synthetic auxin, it would eventually wilt and die. This proves it is a dicot because 2,4-D does not affect monocots. Also, more evidence that it is a dicot is that if someone were to look at the stem anatomy under a microscope, they would see that the vascular bundles are arranged in a ring rather than just scattered as they are in monocots.

Pelargoniums have their own set of characteristics when it comes to their flowers. Each flower has 5 sepals, 5 free petals, and a total of 10 stamens. Of the 10 stamens, 7 or fewer of them will be fertile. Also, the flower will divide...