Shining cranesbill (Geranium lucidum)
Description
Geranium lucidum, commonly known as shining cranesbill or (in North America) shining geranium or shiny geranium, is a herbaceous annual plant of the genus Geranium. It is native to Europe, western Asia and North Africa. It has been introduced to North America as a garden plant and in places, particularly the Pacific Northwest, has become naturalised and is viewed as an invasive species and noxious weed. The shining cranesbill is an annual plant with stems up to 35 cm (14 in) long, brittle, fleshy, hairless and often red. Leaves round or kidney-shaped and glossy, palmately-lobed or divided bluntly to about two-thirds of their depth, sometimes with short hairs on the upper surface. Flowers with parts in fives, with sharply keeled sepals and bright pink, rounded petals, some 10 mm (0.4 in) in diameter, the 8 to 10 mm (0.3 to 0.4 in) petals having long bases and flat blades. These are born in pairs from May to August. The fruits are beaked capsules, ridged and slightly hairy, at least on the edges, and splitting open into five parts. The seeds are smooth. The whole plant has a tendency to turn red.
Taxonomic tree
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Domain: Eukarya
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Kingdom: Plantae
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Phylum: Magnoliophyta
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Class: Magnoliopsida
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Order: Geraniales
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Family: Geraniaceae
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Genus: Geranium
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