Question
My geraniums have stopped flowering. I’ve fed them, but to no avail. What’s wrong?
Answer
You may be overfeeding them. Geraniums, of the genus Pelargonium, come from the Mediterranean and thrive in full sun and relatively poor soil. If you’re getting an abundance of leafy growth and the plants look healthy, overfeeding may be the problem. Stop feeding them for a while. If, however, your plants are aging and the stems become leggy, it may be time to propagate. The average life expectancy of a geranium is about two years, and although they will last much longer than that, they tend to get woody and the blooms diminish. Luckily, propagation is easy with geraniums. Simply take four-inch stem tip cuttings with at least two pairs of healthy leaves. Remove the lowest pair of leaves, dip the cut stem in hormone rooting powder, and insert the cutting in a mix of half sand and half peat moss. Water well, cover with plastic to help retain the moisture, and repot in regular soil in about three weeks. A simpler technique is to stick the cutting in water and let it develop roots, then pot.
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