Small-flowered Crane's-bill (Geranium pusillum)
Description
Geranium pusillum, commonly known as small-flowered crane's-bill or (in North America) small geranium, is a herbaceous annual plant of the genus Geranium. The genus name is derived from the Greek (géranos) or (geranós) ‘crane’. The English name ‘cranesbill’ derives from the appearance of the fruit capsule of some of the species. Species in the genus Geranium have a distinctive mechanism for seed dispersal. This consists of a beak-like column which springs open when ripe and casts the seeds some distance. The fruit capsule consists of five cells, each containing one seed, joined to a column produced from the centre of the old flower. The common name ‘cranesbill’ comes from the shape of the unsprung column, which in some species is long and looks like the bill of a crane. However, many species in this genus do not have a long beak-like column.
Taxonomic tree
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Domain: Eukarya
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Kingdom: Plantae
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Phylum:
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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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