''Pelargonium sidoides'' is a plant native to

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

Eswatini Eswatini, formally the Kingdom of Eswatini, also known by its former official names Swaziland and the Kingdom of Swaziland, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. It is bordered by South Africa on all sides except the northeast, where i ...

, and

Lesotho Lesotho, formally the Kingdom of Lesotho and formerly known as Basutoland, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Entirely surrounded by South Africa, it is the largest of only three sovereign enclave and exclave, enclaves in the world, t ...

. Its common names include African geranium and South African geranium. The current conservation status is Least concern.

Description

African geranium forms a basal rosette of

cordate Cordate is an adjective meaning ' heart-shaped' and is most typically used for: * Cordate (leaf shape), in plants * Cordate axe, a prehistoric stone tool See also * Chordate A chordate ( ) is a bilaterian animal belonging to the phyl ...

leaves with a velvet texture and a few short

trichomes Trichomes (; ) are fine outgrowths or appendages on plants, algae, lichens, and certain protists. They are of diverse structure and function. Examples are hairs, glandular hairs, scales, and papillae. A covering of any kind of hair on a plant ...

on long petioles. Its flowers have five dark red to nearly black petals, two of which are sometimes fused. It is often found in flower nearly year-round. It prefers to grow in grasslands with rocky soils. It can be difficult to distinguish from '' Pelargonium reniforme'' which grows in a similar area, but tends to have more kidney-shaped leaves.

Uses

In cultivation in the UK, ''Pelargonium sidoides'' has received the

Royal Horticultural Society The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), founded in 1804 as the Horticultural Society of London, is the UK's leading gardening charity. The RHS promotes horticulture through its five gardens at Wisley (Surrey), Hyde Hall (Essex), Harlow Carr ...

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

. If grown as a

perennial In horticulture, the term perennial ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the year") is used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. It has thus been defined as a plant that lives more than 2 years. The term is also ...

it requires protection in winter, as it does not tolerate temperatures below . It needs a sunny, sheltered position. A 2013 Cochrane review found limited to no evidence of benefit with ''Pelargonium sidoides'' root extract for the symptoms of

acute bronchitis Acute bronchitis, also known as a chest cold, is short-term bronchitis – inflammation of the bronchus, bronchi (large and medium-sized airways) of the lungs. The most common symptom is a cough. Other symptoms include sputum, coughing up mucus, ...

, the

common cold The common cold, or the cold, is a virus, viral infectious disease of the upper respiratory tract that primarily affects the Respiratory epithelium, respiratory mucosa of the human nose, nose, throat, Paranasal sinuses, sinuses, and larynx. ...

and acute rhinosinusitis. A summary of this review found that all studies were "from the same investigator (the manufacturer) and performed in the same region (Ukraine and Russia)." Root extract of ''Pelargonium sidoides'' may be sold as a

dietary supplement A dietary supplement is a manufactured product intended to supplement a person's diet by taking a pill (pharmacy), pill, capsule (pharmacy), capsule, tablet (pharmacy), tablet, powder, or liquid. A supplement can provide nutrients eithe ...

traditional medicine Traditional medicine (also known as indigenous medicine or folk medicine) refers to the knowledge, skills, and practices rooted in the cultural beliefs of various societies, especially Indigenous groups, used for maintaining health and treatin ...

under various brand names, including Umckaloabo and Zucol, but there is limited high-quality clinical evidence it provides any benefit. File:PelargoniumSidoides.jpg,

References

sidoides Flora of Lesotho Flora of South Africa Flora of Swaziland Medicinal plants of Africa {{Geraniaceae-stub