''Erodium'' is a genus of flowering plants in the botanical family Geraniaceae. The genus includes about 60 species,

native Native may refer to: People * Jus soli, citizenship by right of birth * Indigenous peoples, peoples with a set of specific rights based on their historical ties to a particular territory ** Native Americans (disambiguation) In arts and entert ...

to North Africa, Indomalaya, the Middle East, and

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

. They are perennials, annuals, or

subshrub A subshrub (Latin ''suffrutex'') or dwarf shrub is a short shrub, and is a woody plant. Prostrate shrub is a related term. "Subshrub" is often used interchangeably with "bush".Jackson, Benjamin, Daydon; A Glossary of Botanic Terms with their Der ...

s, with five-petalled flowers in shades of white, pink, and purple, that strongly resemble the better-known ''

Geranium ''Geranium'' is a genus of 422 species of annual, biennial, and perennial plants that are commonly known as geraniums or cranesbills. They are found throughout the temperate regions of the world and the mountains of the tropics, but mostly in ...

'' (cranesbill). Cultivated plants are known as filarees or heron's bill in North America, whereas in the British Isles they are usually called storksbills.

Taxonomy

Carl Linnaeus grouped in the same genus (''Geranium''), the three similar genera ''Erodium'', ''Geranium'', and ''

Pelargonium ''Pelargonium'' () is a genus of flowering plants that includes about 280 species of perennials, succulents, and shrubs, commonly called geraniums, pelargoniums, or storksbills. '' Geranium'' is also the botanical name and common name of a separ ...

''. The distinction between them was made by Charles Louis L'Héritier de Brutelle based on the number of

stamen The stamen (plural ''stamina'' or ''stamens'') is the pollen-producing reproductive organ of a flower. Collectively the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filame ...

s or

anther The stamen (plural ''stamina'' or ''stamens'') is the pollen-producing reproductive organ of a flower. Collectively the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filam ...

s: five for ''Erodium'',Parnell, J. and Curtis. ''Webb's An Irish Flora.'' Cork University Press. seven for ''Pelargonium'', and ten for ''Geranium''. However, the three genera have the same characteristics in regard to their fruit, which resemble long bird beaks. That characteristic is the basis for the names: ''Geranium'' evokes the crane (Greek ''geranos''), ''Pelargonium'' the stork (''pelargos''), and ''Erodium'' the heron (''erodios'').

Cultivation

In cultivation, erodiums are usually seen in

rockeries A rock garden, also known as a rockery and formerly as a rockwork, is a garden, or more often a part of a garden, with a landscaping framework of Rock (geology), rocks, stones, and gravel, with planting appropriate to this setting. Usually t ...

alpine gardens An alpine garden (or alpinarium, alpinum) is a domestic or botanical garden, or more often a part of a larger garden, specializing in the collection and cultivation of alpine plants growing naturally at high altitudes around the world, such as in ...

. The

hybrid Hybrid may refer to: Science * Hybrid (biology), an offspring resulting from cross-breeding ** Hybrid grape, grape varieties produced by cross-breeding two ''Vitis'' species ** Hybridity, the property of a hybrid plant which is a union of two dif ...

cultivar ''E.'' × ''variabile'' 'Roseum' (''E. corsicum'' × ''E. reichardii''), a compact, spreading perennial with rose-pink flowers in summer, has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's

Award of Garden Merit The Award of Garden Merit (AGM) is a long-established annual award for plants by the British Royal Horticultural Society (RHS). It is based on assessment of the plants' performance under UK growing conditions. History The Award of Garden Merit ...

Ecology

''Erodium'' species are used as food plants by the larvae of some

Lepidoptera Lepidoptera ( ) is an order (biology), order of insects that includes butterfly, butterflies and moths (both are called lepidopterans). About 180,000 species of the Lepidoptera are described, in 126 Family (biology), families and 46 Taxonomic r ...

species including the

pasture day moth The pasture day moth (''Apina callisto'') is a species in the moth family Noctuidae which is active during the day, as its common name implies, making it unlike most other noctuid species. It is found in most southern areas of Australia, ranging ...

Species

, the ''World Checklist of Selected Plant Families'' accepts 119 species: Hybrids include: *'' Erodium × anaristatum'' Andreas *''

Erodium × bolosii ''Erodium'' is a genus of flowering plants in the botanical family Geraniaceae. The genus includes about 60 species, native to North Africa, Indomalaya, the Middle East, and Australia. They are perennials, annuals, or subshrubs, with five-petall ...

'' Romo *''

Erodium × fallax ''Erodium'' is a genus of flowering plants in the botanical family Geraniaceae. The genus includes about 60 species, native to North Africa, Indomalaya, the Middle East, and Australia. They are perennials, annuals, or subshrubs, with five-petall ...

'' Jord. *'' Erodium × viscosum'' Salzm. ex Delile

Uses

Species such as ''E. cicutarium'' and ''E. moschatum'' are edible.

Taxonomy

Cultivation

Ecology

Species

Uses

See also

References

Further reading