I did not know until recently how awesome wild geranium (Geranium maculatum) fruits are.
![wild geranium Geranium maculatum wild geranium Geranium maculatum](http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8244/8490725392_82dd1aca38_z.jpg)
This geranium is from April 5th, 2012. Geranium started flowering a couple weeks later this year (you’ll recall last year was freakish).
![wild geranium Geranium maculatum wild geranium Geranium maculatum](http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5526/9140076754_d530edf990_z.jpg)
This guy’s ready to pop! The developed fruit photos are from June 19th, 2013.
![wild geranium Geranium maculatum wild geranium Geranium maculatum](http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7442/9140077598_b7c72e04dd_z.jpg)
And whoosh. The seeds have been flung far from momma/poppa. If you want to get real fancy about it, this fruit structure is called a
polachenarium, a dry schizocarpic fruit consisting of monocarps separating from a longitudinal central axis (columella or carpophore), often remaining attached to the axis at maturity…
![wild geranium Geranium maculatum wild geranium Geranium maculatum](http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5474/9137857375_5be1c596f7_z.jpg)
And a little planthopper nymph (?) for good measure.
Here is a photo by Ronald Toth of NIU’s plant sciences department, showing a relative (Geranium bicknelli, endangered in Illinois) going from flower to furled fruit.