Wild Geranium (Geranium maculatum): pink Minnesota wildflowers

Wild Geranium

Plant Info
Also known as:	Spotted Geranium, Spotted Cranebill, Wild Cranebill Alumroot
Scientific name:	Geranium maculatum
Family:	Geranium (Geraniaceae)
Life cycle:	perennial
Origin:	native
Habitat:	part sun, shade; woods
Bloom season:	spring
Plant height:	1 to 2 feet
Spotted in Ramsey County at:	Battle Creek Regional Park Long Lake Regional Park Rice Creek Trail Corridor Vadnais/Snail Lake Regional Park

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Flower:: Flowers are 1 to 1½ inches across, 5 rounded pink to lavender petals and 10 stamen with yellow or light brown tips. The petals are streaked with darker lines along the length, and may fade to white at the center of the flower. From 1 to several flowers branch off the top of the main stem.
Leaves and stem:: Leaves surrounding the base of the plant are 3 to 6 inches across and deeply divided into 3 or 5 lobes, which may be further divided and coarsely toothed, on long leaf stems. There are a few smaller leaves at the top of the plant near the flowers that have no leaf stem. Leaves and the main stem are both hairy.
Fruit:: Fruit is a long slender capsule to 1½ inches long with 5 cells, each containing 1 seed. The color changes from green to deep brown as the seeds ripen.
As the seed matures, the leafy part of the cells curl back and fling the seeds out away from the mother plant.