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A perennial of the Geraniaceae family, this species is native to Siberia, Mongolia, and northern China, where it grows in grassy meadows, forest edges, and open slopes in a cold continental climate.
It forms dense, compact clumps, reaching 30 to 50 cm in height, with a rounded habit. The foliage is one of its most remarkable features: the leaves are palmately lobed, deeply cut, covered with a noticeable pubescence that gives them a velvety texture to the touch. Their color varies with the season and sunlight, shifting from dark green tinged with purple-brown in summer to flamboyant shades of orange, red, and copper in autumn, one of the most intense autumn colorations of the genus.
The flowers are a deep purple-violet, veined with dark red, borne on slender peduncles above the foliage. In its natural habitat, its flowering extends from July to August.
The photo, taken early in the season, clearly shows the still juvenile foliage with coppery and orange reflections, traversed by slanting light that reveals the dense hairiness of the leaves.
It thrives in full sun or partial shade, in well-drained, moderately rich soil, and tolerates very harsh winters. Its dual value, floral in summer and colorful in autumn, makes it a unique perennial geranium in rock garden or border compositions.