perennial
Bigroot geranium
Geranium macrorrhizum
Preview: plant data is awaiting horticulturist review. A professional horticulturist hasn't reviewed our plant table yet. Lists still follow fixed rules for zone, sun, pets, deer and invasive status.
Geranium macrorrhizum is a semi-evergreen perennial for gardens in zones 3–8. Expect 1–1.5 ft of height and 1.5–2 ft of spread; our lists space it 1.5 ft apart. It does best in part sun to shade with little water once established. Expect pink flowers in May to June. In a FloraVista list it usually plays the filler role: a flowering plant that fills the middle or front of the bed. Deer usually leave it alone, and it is toxic to dogs and cats. Our rules leave it out of lists in Florida and the Gulf, the Desert Southwest and Texas and the South-Central states, where summer heat, humidity or mild winters hold it back even inside its zone range.
Facts from our plant table
- Botanical name
- Geranium macrorrhizum
- Plant type
- Perennial, semi evergreen
- Hardiness zones
- 3 to 8
- Sun
- Part sun (4–6 hours); Part shade (2–4 hours); Shade (under 2 hours)
- Water
- Low
- Soil
- Tolerates dry shade and clay.
- Mature size
- 1–1.5 ft tall × 1.5–2 ft wide
- Spacing
- 1.5 ft apart (centre to centre)
- Growth rate
- Medium
- Bloom
- May–Jun · pink
- Roles in a bed
- Filler
- Styles
- low water, classic, cottage
- Deer resistance
- High: deer rarely eat it
- Pets
- Toxic to dogs and cats. No ASPCA entry for hardy Geranium (ASPCA's toxic 'geranium' is Pelargonium). Marked toxic as a precaution, as for every hardy Geranium in the table.
- Native to
- Not native to the US (or a garden hybrid)
- Pot size and price
- 1-gallon pot, typically $12–$20 (sometimes stocked)
- Plant in
- Spring or Fall
- First-year watering
- Water weekly through the first summer until roots establish, then only during long dry spells.
- Pruning
- Little needed; remove tatty leaves in spring.
Sources: ASPCA Toxic and Non-Toxic Plant List (from general knowledge; not re-checked unless verification is web-checked); Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder and grower tags; State extension service guidance and USDA PLANTS distribution maps; Rutgers NJAES Landscape Plants Rated by Deer Resistance; Invasive Plant Atlas of the United States and state noxious weed lists; Typical 2026 US garden-centre and big-box retail listings (estimate). Not yet reviewed by a horticulturist.
Good companions
The plants our list engine most often puts in the same bed as Bigroot geranium, across the sun, zone, pet, deer and style combinations it fits.
- Pennsylvania sedgeCarex pensylvanicaornamental grass · zones 3–8
- White wood asterEurybia divaricataperennial · zones 3–8
- Northern bush honeysuckleDiervilla lonicerashrub · zones 3–7
- Barrenwort 'Sulphureum'Epimedium × versicolor 'Sulphureum'perennial · zones 5–8
- Oregon grape 'Compacta'Mahonia aquifolium 'Compacta'shrub · zones 5–9
- Northern bayberryMorella pensylvanicashrub · zones 3–7
If you can't find it
Substitutes our engine offers for Bigroot geranium: same role in the bed, passing the same rules.
How this page was made
This page was generated from this plant's record in FloraVista's plant table by fixed rules. The companions and substitutes come from the lists our rules engine composes. No named expert has reviewed this page.
Data status: the plant table is awaiting review by a horticulturist. Check each plant with a local nursery or extension office before you buy.
Sources
- Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder, state extension services and the USDA PLANTS database (zones, size, sun, water, bloom, native range)
- ASPCA toxic and non-toxic plant lists (dog and cat toxicity)
- Rutgers NJAES and regional extension deer-resistance ratings
- State noxious-weed and invasive-plant lists and the Invasive Plant Atlas of the US
- Typical US garden-centre listings (pot size and price band)
Generated . How FloraVista chooses plants