Sweet Mimosa Pelargonium Plants

Sweet Mimosa Scented-Leaf Pelargonium Plants

Sweet Mimosa is a gorgeously scented pelargonium that will flower its socks off all summer with a little judicious deadheading. Reliable and cheerful, they're ideal for pots and window boxes in a sunny spot. The soft, scallop-shaped leaves are perfumed, as well as the flowers, and will release their deliciously rose-scented oils when brushed past or crushed. The beautifully shaped flowers hover over the low-growing mounded plant like little pale-pink butterflies from May to September – even beyond. The flowers and foliage can be dried and used in pot pourri, as well as in drinks or baking. You'll need to bring them indoors or to a greenhouse over winter as they're not frost-hardy. 

Browse our other Pelargonium varieties.

Features

• Uses: pot pourri, ornamental, plus culinary such as jellies, cakes, vinegars and cordials
• Harvest: rose-scented leaves, May to November
• Storage: use dried or fresh
• Height: 50cm
• Scent: pungent rose
• Flower colour: shell pink with dark pink flecks
• Flowering: May to September
• Spacing: 40cm
• Life: tender perennial; bring indoors over winter
• RHS Award of Garden Merit
• Pot grown; delivery while stocks last

Growing Sweet Mimosa Pelargoniums

The ideal scenario is a nice pot of multi-purpose compost for growing pelargoniums. Which makes it easy to move them indoors over winter (they won't survive frosts). You can, of course, plant them in beds and borders, too, where they prefer well-drained soil enriched with some garden compost or leaf mould. Either way, give them a sunny spot that's either south or west facing. They're remarkably drought-tolerant, so pelargoniums are a great choice for a patio hotspot (where the volatile oils in the leaves will really burst into life), or if you're a forgetful or busy gardener.

If you're growing on small plants received in early or mid spring, then you'll need to acclimatise them gradually to outdoor temperatures. Do this by popping them outside for a couple of hours a day initially, and little by little increasing the time spent outdoors until they're out all day and in a greenhouse or coldframe just overnight. Once you're sure there are no frosts about, which tends to be mid to late May, you can get planting. Spacing them around 40cm apart, packing them in for impact and maximum scent power, then water in well.

As well as keeping them lightly watered through spring and summer, add some high-potash tomato feed every couple of weeks to keep those flowers coming. Deadheading regularly throughout the flowering season will also reward you with more and more blooms.

In autumn, give your plants a trim and bring them in to a greenhouse or cold frame. If you have neither, a cool windowsill in the house will do. Water sparingly over winter, letting the compost dry out between watering.

Planting Companions for Sweet Mimosa

It's hard to beat a hanging basket or window box stuffed full of scented pelargoniums, the perfume billowing out on a warm summer's day. Plant en masse and keep things simple for knockout effect. If you prefer to mix things up a bit, a romantic combination of pinks, purples and whites is always a winner – we're thinking a perfume powerhouse patio container of lavender, purple petunias, chamomile and heliotrope. In a border, why not give Sweet Mimosa a go as low-growing ground cover alongside a sunny pathway? Each time you brush past, you'll release those heavenly scented oils.

Did you know?

The name comes from the Greek, pelargos, for 'stork'. Take a look at the seedheads and you'll see how they do indeed resemble a stork's beak. This particular cultivar was introduced in the 1970s, and is sometimes also known as Sweet Miriam.

All scented-leaved pelargoniums come from the wild plant that originated on South Africa's Cape, where they grow wild and woody on the arid hillsides.

Scented-leaved pelargoniums were introduced to Britain in the 17th century, when they were popular among wealthy orangery owners, keen to show off their exotic plant collections. The Victorians took on their breeding with enthusiasm, expanding their collections hugely. It is reported that lemon-scented Pelargonium 'Graveolens' was a must-have in every well-to-do Victorian home.

Scented-leaved pelargoniums come in an array of different 'flavours', including peppermint, rose, cinnamon, mint, balsam and orange. A word of warning to the plant connoisseur: with such variety, they can become addictive.

Bees: Both hoverflies and bees adore the open flowers of pelargoniums. Sweet Mimosa's dark pink central streak helps to guide pollinators into the flower.

How to plant Pelargonium Sweet Mimosa

Choose a spot with as much light as possible. Improve the soil from the hole by removing roots, weeds, large stones and other rubbish and mixing in about 25% by volume of well-rotted compost or manure.

Position your Sweet Mimosa plants 40cm apart, then backfill the hole with mixed soil and compost, firming it gently as you go. Water in thoroughly.

Deadhead. Trim back in autumn. Bring indoors or to a coldframe or greenhouse.