Scented Geraniums

[tomatoaddict]

A friend of mine just recently gave me a potted scented Geranium plant. I love this thing. I read somewhere that it is gaining in popularity as a potted plant and as an edible leaf.
I don't know much about them and wondered if anyone has any real info on them or grows them?

[flowerpower]

What scent is it? I have several varieties of Scented Geranium. Water only when very dry. Most like full sun, but will take part shade. The Peppermint I found does better in flitered light or pt shade. No pest or disease problems that I have had. If they look "leggy" you can replant a bit deeper or add soil to cover the base (Kinda like maters). They are very easy to propagate from cuttings.

I have heard of using the leaves as flavoring for sugar, the way vanilla bean is used. They have tiny hairs on the leaves. So I am not sure how palatable they would be -even cooked.

If you look up Gilberties Herbs, they have alot of pics and descriptions. The next one I must have is Pine Scented.

[lavandula girl]

Eating the leaves themselves can sometimes be less than pleasant, due to the stringiness factor. Also, there is always that geranium smell underlying the scent of a scented geranium. Stronger in some varieties than others. Here's Susan Belsinger's recipe for making flavored sugars, though, and these are wonderful. You can also use the geraniums to scent butter, if you'd like something sweet and floral-ly for muffins, or a brunch.

Scented-Geranium Sugar

Scented sugars are easily made the same way that the Europeans have been making vanilla sugar for years. Placing a vanilla bean, or a handful of herb leaves or flowers, in a pint jar of sugar transforms the sugar into a pleasing, fragrant addition to cakes, cookies, custards, whipping cream, and all sorts of sweets. I like to use this in baked fruit desserts--crumbles, crisps, or cobblers-it lends a subtle interesting flavor. If you do a lot of baking, make this in larger quantities; you will find that you use it often. Sgs I like best for sugar are rose, lemon, nutmeg, orange, peppermint, and my current favorite is 'Rober's Lemon Rose'.

About 2 cups sugar
1 handful of herb leaves &/or flowers

To prepare scented sugar, use a clean pint jar with a tight-fitting lid. Fill the jar about one-quarter full with sugar, place a few herb leaves &/or flowers in the sugar. Cover with sugar so that the jar is half full, add a few more herbs and add sugar until the jar is three-quarters full, add a few more leaves, cover with sugar to fill the jar, leaving about 1/2 inch headspace. Shake the jar and place on a shelf in a cool, dark place.

The sugar will be ready to use in two to three weeks and will become more flavorful with age. As the sugar is consumed, add more plain sugar to take its place and it will take on the fragrance in the jar. Since herbs contain moisture, the sugar will absorb some of it and perhaps cake together, or even harden. If this happens, just use firm pressure to crumble it with your hands, or the back of a wooden spoon.

[piegirl]

Tomatoaddict - one of my all time favorites! I try and
grow 5-6 different ones each year. The rose scented ones
are fantastic and the lemon. One of the major US growers
is located here and has a sale each spring. I find them
somewhat difficult to overwinter and generally have to buy
new each year. Twice I have had one winter over in the garden
just a lot leaves covered it and the herb garden in quite
sheltered. They do seem to like it on the dry side. Mine
always seem to languish for awhile and then wham they are
suddenly huge. Piegirl

[celestina]

We sometimes line cake tins with rose geranium leaves and pour the batter over the leaves. The cake has a very slight fragrance of rose when it is done. Remove the leaves and ice. Also, the small flowers of the scented geranaiums are great for candied flowers.

[flowerpower]

I have 2 of the lemon- The mosquito one (Shoo Fly?) and (Atomic)Snowflake. 2 Peppermint- Peppermint & Chocolate Chip. And Nutmeg. I am not really into the floral scented ones. Some of them remind me of air freshener.

Since they are annuals here, I take cuttings in late July or early August. They root very easily, even without rooting hormone. Just keep the soil moist until they root.

[tomatoaddict]

Thanks for all of the info. I am definately going to try the sugar and the cake pans. That's right up my alley.
I just ordered 3. Atomic Snowflake, Juicy Fruit and Chocolate Mint.
Believe it or not, I went to one huge nursery here and they didn't have any and then I called another and they also didn't have any. So, I ended up ordering them over the internet.
I have no idea how to do the cuttings to root. Tomatoes are my big thing so I have almost no flower knowledge at all. I tried to do some flowers from seed and with all the tomatoes and peppers I was feeling light-headed trying to keep it all straight. So I figured I better stick with what I know best.

[Granny]

tomatoaddict, I have never heard of those varieties of scented geraniums - years since I've had any - but they used to come in apple, lemon, orange and pineapple. One of the most famous of Shaker cake recipes was to put the scented geranium leaves in the bottom of your cake pans - mostly lemon I believe they used.

Is your chocolate mint a geranium or real chocolate mint? I have a chocolate mint plant that got to be the size of a bushel basket last year. Trying to figure out what to do with the harvest this year.

[jenn_sc]

Can someone post a recipe for candying the flowers? Also, I love the idea of lining cake pans with the leaves!

Jennifer

[tomatoaddict]

Granny,
I don't know much about them myself as they are new for me. The ones I ordered are all Scented Geraniums.
When I was looking to buy some, they had them in all kinds of scents.
Maybe they are the newer versions they have come out with.
The Chocolate mint is suppossed to smell like that and the one called Juicy Fruit smells like the gum. The Atomic Snowflake I believe smells like Roses.

[Granny]

Jenn_sc, the only flowers I know of that are candied are violets and rose petals. They are really easy to do. Pick very early in the am, but just as the dew has burned off. Bring them inside. If you are using roses pull the petals apart. For violets cut off the long stems.

Beat an egg white until it is foamy in a small bowl, and have another handy with fine white sugar in it. Dip either the petal or the flower into the eggwhite, turning to coat, then plop it onto the sugar & turn gently to coat there too. Set them aside to dry on racks or waxed paper. (If you use the wax paper you will have to turn them over after several hours.) Let them dry very thoroughly, then pack in tins between layers of wax paper.

NOTE: Do not candy flowers that have ever been sprayed for anything. So no commercial roses unless they are certified as "food safe."

The scented geranium leaves you just use fresh. Your plants can be brought in over the winter and grown on the windowsill. Just pick a leaf. BTW, I noticed above somebody lines the whole pan with leaves. The Shaker recipe specifies just one leaf in the bottom of the pan.

[flowerpower]

Granny, "chocolate mint" is the name of the scented geranium. It has a variegated leaf.

[Granny]

Flowerpower, I ran across a Chocolate Daisy this morning. Maybe I should plant a Chocolate Garden

[flowerpower]

Chocolate Daisy? Sounds different. I think there are quite a few plant names with "Chocolate". I bet there are even more with "Vanilla" in the name. Sounds like a theme garden to me.

[biscgolf]

bringing this thread back from the dead... anyone know where to buy seed?