The Georgenberg Chilean Avens, otherwise known as the Geum X Heldreichii ‘Georgenberg’ or Hakone Grass ‘Alboaurea’, Japanese Forest Grass ‘Alboaurea’, Golden Japanese Forest Grass, Golden Hakonechloa, is a rather well known ornamental grass plant by gardening enthusiasts around the world.
Best known for its low maintenance and moderate growth, this ornamental grass will likely liven up your house (or garden) with its green colored leaves. But, only if you learn how to take proper care of it for it to thrive.
This is why all the topics you need to know in order to achieve this will be covered in this Georgenberg Chilean Avens Care Guide. Ready? Let’s go!
In order to take proper care of your Georgenberg Chilean Avens you’ll need to keep in mind the following guidelines:
- Water: The Georgenberg Chilean Avens needs evenly spread moist soil – try to avoid letting the soil dry out.
- Light: Keep your Geum X Heldreichii ‘Georgenberg’ in an environment where it can receive partial to full sun on a daily basis.
- Soil: Make sure to keep the Georgenberg Chilean Avens in soil with moist but well-draining properties, so ideally, one that is made of clay, loam, chalk, and sand.
That’s it – sunlight, water and soil! The basic 3 fundamentals for all plant care, and with the Georgenberg Chilean Avens this is no exception. With these three elements, your leafy friend will live healthy and happy.
Scientific / Botanical Aspects
In botanical terms, the Georgenberg Chilean Avens belongs to the Poaceae family, the genus Hakonechloa and the species Macra, hence its scientific (or botanical) name Geum X Heldreichii ‘Georgenberg’ (JEE-um).
The Poaceae family also includes other plants like Korean Feather Reed Grass, Exochorda ‘Blizzard’, Calamagrostis X Acutiflora ‘Karl Foerster’, Hakonechloa Macra ‘Aureola’, Japanese Silver Grass ‘Strictus’, Chinese Silver Grass ‘Morning Light’, Phyllostachys Aurea, Calamagrostis X Acutiflora ‘Avalanche’, Panicum virgatum ‘Haense Herms’, Clump-Forming Bamboo, Fagus Sylvatica ‘Rotundifolia’ and Eulalia ‘Flamingo’.
As with other Hakonechloa’s, the Georgenberg Chilean Avens is a herbaceous plant, which means it will die back to the ground every year.
Growing Region
The Georgenberg Chilean Avens is a plant native to the Japan.
You might be wondering why your Georgenberg Chilean Avens’s native region is important. Well, if you know where your plant originally came from, you’ll know which environment conditions it prefers, and with it, knowledge on how to replicate it at home.
With this in mind, the Geum X Heldreichii ‘Georgenberg’ will be most used to the heat zones in the 5 – 9 region, as the plant hardiness level falls between 4a, 4b, 5b, 5a, 6b, 6a, 7b, 7a, 8a, 8b, 9b, 9a and the ideal climate zone is between 2B, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24.
Growth and Size
Growth
In terms of size and growth, the Georgenberg Chilean Avens is a relatively moderate grower, which makes things somewhat easy for any plant enthusiast.
Size
But, how big does the Georgenberg Chilean Avens actually get? What should you expect in terms of size? Let’s dive right in…
The Geum X Heldreichii ‘Georgenberg’ can grow up to 1′ – 2′ (30cm – 60cm) in 1′ – 2′ (30cm – 60cm) and 1′ – 2′ (30cm – 60cm) in 1′ – 2′ (30cm – 60cm).
These dimensions make the Georgenberg Chilean Avens a relatively medium ornamental grass compared to others, so it’s best to keep this fact in mind since it will affect where you want to keep yours at home.
This is why experts recommend keeping an area of approximately 18″ (45cm) free so the Georgenberg Chilean Avens can spread to its best extent.
Water
In terms of watering, the Georgenberg Chilean Avens is a fairly complicated plant to take care of.
This is mostly because it has a not so straightforward watering schedule and somewhat irregular watering needs.
Specifically, most experts agree that the Geum X Heldreichii ‘Georgenberg’ needs evenly spread moist soil – try to avoid letting the soil dry out.
Which is why it is considered a plant with relatively average needs in terms of water.
Watering
As a rule of thumb, you should remember to keep your Georgenberg Chilean Avens in soil with moist but well-draining characteristics, as these will guarantee the right conditions for your plant to grow and thrive.
When you consider this, this is why you should aim to choose soil that has good drainage, and moist properties to keep the right moisture levels at all times.
In our experience, the famous ‘thumb’ or ‘finger’ test is what works best for the Georgenberg Chilean Avens since with it, you will be able to give it the right amount of water, every time – regardless of the environment or placement where you do decide to keep it.
Soil Mix
As mentioned earlier, the Georgenberg Chilean Avens prefers to have soil with good drainage, and moist properties at all times, reason why you need to make the soil mix out of clay, loam, chalk, and sand.
This is why most experts agree that the Georgenberg Chilean Avens requires soil with high organic matter, which will give you the right conditions it needs.
In addition to this, expert gardeners recommend having preferably alkaline, acid or neutral soil.
Light and Exposure
In terms of light & exposure, the Georgenberg Chilean Avens requires partial to full sun in order for it to thrive under the right conditions.
Most experts agree that this ornamental grass will do well as long as you keep it in shade, or partial sun to full sun, and it will be able to grow properly.
Specifically, we recommend that you place your Geum X Heldreichii ‘Georgenberg’ in from full or deep shade (no direct sunlight or at most 2 hours per day), to little to partial shade (only 2-6 hours of direct sunlight a day), to dappled or moderate shade (under other plant’s canopy).
Season
Being a herbaceous plant, the Georgenberg Chilean Avens will die back to the ground every year.
But, you can expect it to have its ‘prime-time’ during the spring (mid, late), the summer (early, mid, late), and during the fall.
Flowers
You can expect your Georgenberg Chilean Avens to flower around the summer months from July to September (summer).
In particular, this ornamental grass is well known for its flowers for cutting and showy flowers around the plant enthusiast community.
The Georgenberg Chilean Avens produces some beautiful orange flowers around this time of year.
Foliage
The leaves from the Georgenberg Chilean Avens have a beautiful green color during most of the year.
You can expect the leaves from your Geum X Heldreichii ‘Georgenberg’ to be around (> 6 inches) in size.
Attracts, Tolerance and Resistance
The Georgenberg Chilean Avens is well known for its tolerance to animals like deer, so don’t worry if any of these come along, your Geum X Heldreichii ‘Georgenberg’ will be fine.
Garden
Now, let’s talk garden and how your Georgenberg Chilean Avens will look best in it.
Most Geum X Heldreichii ‘Georgenberg’ owners agree that this ornamental grass will look great in most cottage gardens of all types.
Other owners consider that they complement well most gardens of japanese garden, informal and cottage, and in modern garden styles.
In particular, the Georgenberg Chilean Avens’s best location within your garden is in ground covers, beds and borders, edging, and in patio and containers, others use it for landscaping in a rock garden, border, cutting garden, or a woodland garden.
Conclusion
And we’ve come to an end. Fortunately, that’s everything you need to know about your Georgenberg Chilean Avens to keep it safe and sound in your garden or home. Enjoy planting!
