By Martha Washington’s, I assume you mean regal geraniums. Both of these plants are not a good choice for the summer months in our climate. Geraniums do well during the winter, spring and fall months.

As temperatures begin to warm they might hang in there for a time on the east and north sides with lots of indirect light. They will need at least four hours a day of good light, good soil water drainage as their roots will rot out if they don’t get it. This means really good soil preparation at the time of planting.

Mulch the soil to keep the soil moist but don’t overwater. This is where it gets tricky for Geraniums, finding the balance between enough and too much water when they can require maybe up to half an inch of water each day. In a pot in the summer? Forget it.Snaps are just a winter flower here. It is tough to make them work in the heat.

If you have had luck in the summer with them here you are a good gardener, very observant, with plenty of patience and time to commit to them. Now Golden Desert Snapdragon is a different story, a desert native of the Southwest.

By Robert Morris