Perennial of the Geraniaceae family, Erodium x kolbianum is a horticultural hybrid resulting from the cross between Erodium chrysanthum, native to Greece, and Erodium guttatum, a species from the western Mediterranean basin. The cultivar 'Natasha' is selected for the particular finesse and elegance of its flowers.
The plant forms a low and compact clump, rarely exceeding 15 to 20 cm in height when in flower. The foliage is one of its most immediate assets: the leaves are finely cut, pinnatisect with very laciniated leaflets, of a silky silvery gray-green, reminiscent in texture and color of the foliage of the parent Erodium chrysanthum. This silvery rosette remains decorative well beyond the flowering period.
The flowers are borne on slender, thin stems, in groups of two to four. They are very pale pink, entirely traversed by fine radiating purple veins, with a well-marked dark purple central spot on each petal, distributed fairly evenly across all five, unlike other species in the genus where the spotting is reserved for the two upper petals. This detail gives the flowers of 'Natasha' a particularly balanced and refined appearance. In its natural habitat, the parents bloom from May to July; in cultivation, 'Natasha' blooms from May to August, sometimes beyond.
It requires a very well-drained, mineral soil, in full sun, with protection against stagnant winter moisture. It shows its best in a raised rock garden, in an alpine trough, or between the blocks of a mineral rock garden.