Cold hardiness & minimum temperature

Is Geranium wallichianum 'Buxton's Variety' (Geranium wallichianum 'Buxton's Variety')cold hardy? Hardiness zone & min temp

Also called Buxton's Variety cranesbill, Buxton's Blue geranium.

More about geranium wallichianum 'buxton's variety'

About Geranium wallichianum 'Buxton's Variety'

Geranium wallichianum 'Buxton's Variety' · also called Buxton's Variety cranesbill, Buxton's Blue geranium · flowering

An award-winning late-season cranesbill with trailing stems carrying saucer-shaped, violet-blue flowers each marked by a striking large white eye and dark veins, from July to October. 'Buxton's Variety' scrambles gracefully through borders and over edges, knitting among other plants. Hardy and long-flowering, it provides cool late-summer colour when many perennials have finished.

Cold limit: USDA 5-8 (hardy garden perennial) · RHS H4 (-10 to 27°C)

What geranium wallichianum 'buxton's variety''s hardiness rating actually means

Yes — geranium wallichianum 'buxton's variety' is genuinely cold hardy. Rated RHS H4 and USDA 5-8 (hardy garden perennial), it lives outdoors all year and needs winter cold rather than protection from it. Its RHS rating of H4 means: Hardy in an average winter across much of the temperate world. On the US scale that maps to USDA 5-8 (hardy garden perennial) — the zones where it can be left outdoors year-round.

New to these scales? The USDA hardiness zone map explained covers how the zone numbers work, and you can find your own zone with the zone finder.

Minimum temperature — and what happens below it

Minimum survivable temperature is roughly about −10 to −5 °C. Geranium wallichianum 'Buxton's Variety' is built for winter — once established it takes hard frost and snow in its stride.

Concretely, for geranium wallichianum 'buxton's variety' as it gets too cold:

It tolerates winter lows to about −10 to −5 °C once established.
Below its rated zone, the visible damage is browned or blackened top growth and, in the worst case, a killed crown or root.
First-year, newly planted, or container-grown specimens are noticeably less hardy than established garden plants — the roots are exposed.

Can geranium wallichianum 'buxton's variety' go outside or overwinter — and where?

Plant it out within USDA 5-8 (hardy garden perennial) and it overwinters with little or no help.
It does not want to come indoors — a warm winter room actually weakens a hardy plant by denying it dormancy.
The real risks in its range are waterlogging, wind-rock on young plants, and a late hard frost on new growth — not ordinary winter cold.

Work back from your local frost dates with the frost-date calculator: the last spring frost and first autumn frost are what really decide when geranium wallichianum 'buxton's variety' can be outside. US growers can check USDA zones; UK growers should use the RHS hardiness ratings, which match the H4 figure above.

Geranium wallichianum 'Buxton's Variety' hardiness — frequently asked questions

Is geranium wallichianum 'buxton's variety' cold hardy?

Yes — geranium wallichianum 'buxton's variety' is genuinely cold hardy. Rated RHS H4 and USDA 5-8 (hardy garden perennial), it lives outdoors all year and needs winter cold rather than protection from it. An outdoor plant. Geranium wallichianum 'Buxton's Variety' is hardy across USDA 5-8 (hardy garden perennial); it belongs in the ground or a frost-proof container, not on a windowsill, and many types actively need a cold winter to perform.

What is the minimum temperature geranium wallichianum 'buxton's variety' can survive?

Minimum survivable temperature is roughly about −10 to −5 °C. Geranium wallichianum 'Buxton's Variety' is built for winter — once established it takes hard frost and snow in its stride.

What hardiness zone is geranium wallichianum 'buxton's variety'?

Geranium wallichianum 'Buxton's Variety' is rated USDA 5-8 (hardy garden perennial) and RHS H4 — Hardy in an average winter across much of the temperate world.

Can geranium wallichianum 'buxton's variety' survive winter outside?

Plant it out within USDA 5-8 (hardy garden perennial) and it overwinters with little or no help. It does not want to come indoors — a warm winter room actually weakens a hardy plant by denying it dormancy. The real risks in its range are waterlogging, wind-rock on young plants, and a late hard frost on new growth — not ordinary winter cold.

What happens to geranium wallichianum 'buxton's variety' below its minimum temperature?

It tolerates winter lows to about −10 to −5 °C once established. Below its rated zone, the visible damage is browned or blackened top growth and, in the worst case, a killed crown or root. First-year, newly planted, or container-grown specimens are noticeably less hardy than established garden plants — the roots are exposed.