Geum, Avens: how to choose it?

According to the colour of the flowers

Orange/Salmon Flowered Geums

Well represented, orange Avens are ideal for energising a flowerbed. Here’s a selection of some interesting varieties:

• For the Avens ‘Fire Storm’, its name perfectly represents its generous flowering of very bright crumpled orange flowers. There can be up to 10 flowers at the top of a stem!
• The lovely variety Geum rivale ‘Mai Tai’ produces flowers that start as apricot and turn to salmon over time. The added bonus of this Avens is its very long flowering from May to August.
• Geum coccineum ‘Cocktail Wet Kiss’ surprises us with a changing colour gradient throughout its flowering: starting as pink-red, it transitions to pink-orange and finally pale orange.

Yellow Flowered Geums

Stimulating, the yellow Avens comes in various shades:

• The Avens ‘Lemon Drops’ reveals delicate little flowers of a very pale yellow from May.
• In contrast to ‘Lemon Drops’, Geum chiloense ‘Lady Stratheden’ is vivid! Its petals undulate around a heart filled with numerous stamens.
• As for the variety ‘Karlskaer’, it displays cymes of yellow-orange flowers!

Pink Flowered Geums

Pink Avens integrate perfectly into rustic and poetic settings:

• The flowering of the Avens ‘Flames of Passion’ is a subtle blend of pink and red. This raspberry pink is truly unique!
• Very delicate, the Avens ‘Cosmopolitan’ is romantically charming! The petals at their base are coloured a soft cream-white that gradually turns to a gentle pink at the tips.
• Here’s another variant of pink flowers: Geum rivale ‘Leonard’s Variety’ is elegant with its pink-orange bell-shaped trailing flowers.

Geum ‘Mai Tai’, ‘Lemon Drop’ (photo Guido) and ‘Flame of Passion’

Red Flowered Geums

For lovers of bright red flowers, Geum chiloense ‘Mrs Bradshaw’ and Geum coccineum ‘Red Wings’ offer exceptional blooms of scarlet red flowers! Less extravagant, the variety ‘Feuerball’ features flowers with petals red mixed with a touch of orange.

White Flowered Geums

White flowering Avens are rare. The most well-known is certainly Geum rivale ‘Album’. This variety produces delicately curved flowers of cream-white from May to July, set against a light green calyx. It works wonders in a monochrome white flowerbed.

Multicoloured Flowered Geums

For something original, opt for varieties with multicoloured or changing flowers.

• In warm tones, Geum coccineum ‘Nonna’ and Geum ‘Cocktail Tequila Sunrise’ are dressed in yellow and orange.
• The gentle Avens ‘Pretticoats Peach’ bears flowers with wavy petals in soft, changing colours: pink, salmon or apricot.
• Finally, like a watercolour, the Geum ‘Censation Lipstick’ yellow is edged with pink-orange as if diluted in water!

Geum ‘Red Wings’ (photo Scarlet Avens), ‘Album’ and ‘Nonna’

According to the shape of the flowers

The flowers of Avens, solitary or in corymbs, are often cup-shaped with varying numbers of petals, but they can also be closed and pendulous.

Single Cup-shaped Geums

In Avens, single flowers consist of 5 to 7 petals crowning a prominent centre with numerous stamens. Notable examples include the Common Avens, Geum urbanum, whose flowers turn into hooked, round fruits, Geum coccineum ‘Eos’ and ‘Feuermeer’, with bright orange single flowers grouped in cymes of 2 or 4.

Semi-double Cup-shaped Geums

Semi-double flower varieties are numerous. Here are our favourites: Geum ‘Bell Bank’ with charming crinkled pink flowers veined with purple, lighter at the centre than at the edges, the highly floriferous Geum coccineum ‘Cocktail Sea Breeze’ with frilly orange flowers, and the fresh and delicate Avens ‘Cocktail Gimlet’ with very light yellow flowering and slightly frilled petals.

Double Cup-shaped Geums

For double flower varieties, the Avens Geum chiloense ‘Mrs Bradshaw’ is a must-have: it produces large flowers in scarlet red, well-rounded, measuring 5 cm in diameter! With its crinkled petals, Geum chiloense ‘Dolly North’ competes by offering large double flowers tinted in deep orange.

Bell-shaped Geums

There are also Avens producing flowers in the shape of pendulous and slightly open bells, such as Geum rivale with pink inflorescences veined in red, the white Avens ‘Album’, the bright Geum ‘Lionel Cox’ with yellow bell-shaped flowers, and the sparkling variety ‘Coppertone’ with copper-orange petals.

Geums with Bract Flowers

Finally, the Geum triflorum, also known as Three-flowered Avens, has an original flowering that is completely different from other Geums. Indeed, its recurved flowers are always grouped in threes and do not fully open, allowing only a few bracts to escape from their base. After flowering, the flowers give way to light, decorative plumes!

On the left: single flower of Geum urbanum (photo Wikipedia), semi-double flower of Geum ‘Bell Bank’, in the centre Geum triflorum, on the right double flower of Geum ‘Mrs Bradshaw’ and bell flower of Geum ‘Coppertone’

According to the size of the flowers

1. The size of flowers can also be a criterion for determining your choice. For varieties with the smallest flowers of approximately 2 cm, we can mention ‘Prinses Juliana’, which offers us beautiful bright orange double flowers.
2. However, the vast majority of Geums have flowers measuring between 3 and 4 cm, such as the hybrid Avens ‘Banana Daiquiri’ with its cup-shaped lemon yellow flower clusters, or Geum coccineum ‘Werner Arends’, which bears flowers of approximately 3 cm grouped in clusters of 2 to 4.
3. Some Avens stand out particularly for their large flowers, such as ‘Censation Lipstick’, ‘Dolly North’, ‘Mrs Bradshaw’, and ‘Scarlet Tempest’, which produce flowers in spring measuring between 5 and 6.5 cm in diameter.

Flowers of the varieties ‘Prinses Juliana’, ‘Banana Daiquiri’, and ‘Dolly North’

According to the colour of the foliage

If most of the Avens have rather plain foliage in light or medium green, some varieties stand out. For example, Geum ‘Scarlet Tempest’, ‘Totally Tangerine’ and ‘Karlskaer’ form cushions with dark green foliage. In contrast, Geum ‘Eos’ boasts very bright golden foliage, almost yellow.

Foliage of the varieties ‘Banana Daiquiri’, ‘Karlskaer’ and ‘Eos’

According to their size

The lowest avens

Let’s start with the lowest varieties of avens, often used as ground cover. The river avens ‘Lionel Cox’ and ‘Alabama Slammer’ have a creeping habit and form compact cushions about thirty centimetres high. They are ideal for planting at the edge of borders or in flower beds. Geum rivale ‘Lemon Drops’ does not exceed 25 cm in height, however, it does not spread like its previously mentioned cousins and maintains a more upright habit.

The intermediate avens

The intermediate-sized avens, around 40 to 50 cm high, are the most numerous. For example, the ‘Borisii’ variety, the most common of the coccineum species, stands at about forty centimetres high, with a spread at ripeness of 30 cm. A bit taller and wider by about ten centimetres, Geum chiloense ‘Sigiswang’ forms a bushy, well-ramified clump.

The tallest avens

Finally, Geum ‘Cosmopolitan’ and ‘Feuerball’ reach 60 cm high, followed by Geum ‘Totally Tangerine’, which peaks at about 75 cm.

Geum ‘Totally Tangerine’

According to the use

• In beds, the choice is immense. The vast majority of Avens are perfectly suited. The most important thing is to design your bed well: the lowest Geums should be placed at the front, preferably in groups, so they are not hidden by other more imposing perennials. Those of intermediate height can be installed in the second row.
• To brighten up a border, opt for low varieties with warm hues like ‘Lemon Drops’ that you can pair with other warm perennials.
• As a ground cover: some varieties that spread easily are perfect for covering soil. For example, the Avens ‘Alabama Slammer’ and ‘Eos’ form dense cushions that can spread up to 40 cm.
• Thanks to their natural style, Avens integrate well into rockeries, such as the compact Geum coccineum ‘Borisii’ which thrives in ordinary, cool, and even calcareous soil. Prefer a semi-shaded exposure and pair them with other rockery plants.
• At a pond edge, the water Avens (Geum rivale) feels at home in moist conditions and is not afraid of occasional flooding.
• In a container, favour smaller varieties, such as ‘Karlskaer’.

Avens in beds, borders, or rockeries.