Gord: Duraniums are one that are more popular annuals and people love the plants standard duraniums like we have here. But, we brought in Rob Winsic, explained what we have got here in the land different kinds of duraniums. Hi Rob?

Rob: Hi Gord.

Gord: Now, we have got some I guess Martha Washington's here and we have got another one here that looks very similar but they are quite a bit different right?

Rob: Actually, they are very different. You have the Martha Washington or Regal, is also in the Pelargonium family as Zola, are all of these duraniums,

We call them duraniums but they are actually,

Gord: (Laughing)

Rob: Pelargoniums.

But, yes, this is a scented leave duraniums called citronella so, it gives off the fragrance from the leaf, not from bloom but from the leaf, whereas the Regal or the Martha Washington’s, there is no scent to them, but they got fantastic flowers and made work great as a hose pot and they work well as a garden plant as well as specially if you are in the region that gets cool mates.

That cool mates that keep blooming right through the summer.

Gord: Okay.

Rob: Now these on the other hand, the citronella, that is a citronella dream, that is a scented leaf,

Gord: I love the smell of this, (Laughing)

Rob: Yes, it is great. And you know that the beauty of it is, you may love the smell but mosquitoes hate it.

Gord: I have heard that. I have seen the candles. People can burn the candles, (Voice Overlap)

Rob: That is great, that is great.

What they have done is they have bred a duranium with a grass from the Far East, the tropical grass. And, they have got the citronella out of the grass and into the duranium.

Gord: Now, okay.

Rob: Yes, and it really does worth off mosquitoes and some other insects.

What I found and you can do this if you are comfortable with the plant, you know it does not have pesticide on it. You can actually pick off a leaf,

Gord: Alright,

Rob: And, you can rub it on your arms. And, if you got a lot of mosquitoes around, it will actually keep the mosquitoes off you.

What other people going to do is they take a citronella and put right in the middle of the table outside,

Gord: Yes,

Rob: You have dinner and stuff and it does definitely help worth them off.

Gord: Ah, okay.

Rob: And the forest are great too.

Gord: They are! I actually never really saw the flowers of the citronella for years because, when they are in the garden center, you can actually seeking them

Rob: They are all late blooming, they are late blooming. Yes.

So, usually duraniums always come into bloom in April or so, so would then, the garden is there all wide color and everybody loves them where the citronella’s often do not start blooming and tell late June or in July when most people done the shopping already.

Gord: Okay.

Rob: But, it is worth looking for and buy them green and let them flower in your garden.

Gord: Now, I guess what another thing you can do is you can actually plant the Martha Washington’s with the citronellas?

Rob: Oh, absolutely.

Gord: So that one needs sort of petered out, and the ones would come on and start flowering the,

Rob: Definitely.