Pelargonium denticulatum

Pelargonium denticulatum, the fern-leaf geranium or pine-scented geranium is a sprawling shrub that grows to 1 m in height. Being single-stemmed, the plant does not resprout after veld fires.

The leaves are hard and rigid, very deeply divided or dissected along the main veins with unevenly spaced serrations along the margins. The Afrikaans common name of kantblaarmalva (lace-leaved pelargonium) relates to this feature. The leaves becoming 10 cm in diameter are sticky to the touch, being covered in tiny glandular hairs. They are also strongly scented, hence the other descriptive common name of pine-scented geranium or internationally simply pine pelargonium, where it is a traded garden plant.

rare plant and threatened (on the Red List of SA plants in 2009). The species distribution is in the Western Cape, in parts of the Langeberg and Kammanassie Mountains of the southern Cape and near Herbertsdale.

The habitat is sandy soil, often near montane watercourses. This is a rare, range-restricted plant still considered to have a stable population early in the twenty first century.

The species resembles P. radens, but has sharp teeth on the leaf margins that are rounded and not rolled under (Vlok and Schutte-Vlok, 2010; www.plantzafrica.com; http://redlist.sanbi.org).