Spring waits for no-one. In a year when I’ve often felt as though I’m treading water, a year that’s sometimes seemed colourless and dreary, I’m now noticing gardens are bursting with blooms. It’s clear that Mother Nature has not been idle during lockdown - she’s now announcing brightly that Spring has arrived in Victoria.

My garden is pretty eclectic, full of mismatched bits’n’pieces, colours and shapes. I’ve always liked to have a few plants growing that my kids can access. Geraniums are my favourite for kids: they’re safe, cheap and cheerful, and they come in an array of bright and pretty colours. When my youngsters would set up elaborate play ‘cafes’ or ‘shops’ in the backyard, or if they decorated a tray of Mother’s Day treats, they’d always include a vase of geranium blossoms.

I realised today, as I snapped the photos below, that I’ve got quite a lot of geraniums, growing in both pots and garden beds, and, best of all, they were all grown from cuttings. This is a method of plant propagation. If you’re not a gardener this may sound tricky - believe me, it’s not. My thumbs aren’t green (tho my nail polish usually is!)

In fact I’m honestly very slapdash when it comes to geranium cuttings. I break off a piece of stem of any plant that catches my eye and basically bung it in a pot, sometimes immediately, and sometimes days later. I have even tried popping the stem into a jar of water first. It’s a bit ‘hit and miss”, but apparently my method is quite legitimate according to the factsheet on propagation on the Gardening Australia website, which says:

“Taking cuttings is … very easy. For geraniums and pelargoniums snip a piece and leave on the ground in a pathway for a couple of days until the end callouses over and so it won't ooze sap, and then plant in a pot.”

Ha! Seems I’ve been doing the right thing all along!!

It’s really lovely to grow plants with your kids, and any geranium cuttings you strike will be perfectly happy in yogurt or icecream tubs with holes pierced in the base. A good tip for gardening with kids is to plant more cuttings than you need to limit the risk of disappointment if they don’t take. You’ll need to keep geraniums well-watered, but they’re a hardy and forgiving plant.

Here are just some of the ‘freely-acquired’ geraniums growing happily in my backyard:

Petal craft

It’s easy to use petals (of geraniums or any any other child-safe plant you may have handy) to create a sweet Spring Sun-catcher. You’ll just need some clear sticky vinyl (the type used to cover books), some tape, string and scissors.

1. Roll out a section of vinyl (around 30 cm will be fine) and spread it onto a tabletop, with the sticky side facing up

2. Peel off the backing paper and fasten the vinyl flat with some small bits of tape.

3. Invite children to collect some petals (and/or flat leaves) and let them arrange them onto the sticky surface.

4. Once filled, cut a second piece of sticky vinyl and peel off the backing paper.

5. Cover the petal arrangement with the second piece of sticky vinyl, both sticky sides facing each other.

6. Press and smooth down the entire surface with your hands to seal edges, and to ensure all the petals are sandwiched between the two layers.

7. Trim the edges off (including the bits of tape), attach some string and hang up to catch the sun.

Have fun x