Quick Guide - How to grow Cyclamen
Name - common name Cyclamen. Perennial.
Location - easier to grow in a container as it needs special cares and a different location through its blooming and dormant period. It needs to be protected from direct rainfall, which makes it a difficult choice for a permanent plant into your garden.
Light - grows best in semi-shady to full shade spots, as it needs indirect light, and cooler temperatures. When exposed to direct sunlight the leaves start to soften and if the plant gets more than 4 hours of direct sunlight during the day, it won't last long. It is best to place it in an eastern or northern facing location. If you have western or southern location, place them in a shady spot. If you choose to grow your cyclamen indoors, make sure to choose a cool room with indirect light.
Temperature - optimal temperatures are 40-50°F (4-10°C) at night and 55-65°F (12-18°C) during the day. The majority of the species will survive frost even over long periods of time - check out this section of the Cyclamen Wikipedia page for the frost tolerance of the different varieties (this is a very good article btw, one of the few good articles on flowers, that they have). Cyclamen don't put up well with the higher heats however. Once temperatures go higher than 68°F (20°C), the plant doesn't feel as comfortable and will eventually slowly start to go dormant. If you constantly keep the plant at higher temperatures above 85°F (30°C) it will fail you.
Note: Where I currently live the daily temperatures often get above 68°F (20°C) already, to be more precise they are even getting to 80°F (26°C) at times, and my cyclamen are still blooming. This is happening in the second week of March. I can see that the flower bulbs start emerging slower than before when it was a bit cooler, but they are still in quite a good shape.
Watering - water the cyclamen only during their blooming period. Water them regularly to keep the soil moist, it can go slightly dry but do not neglect it - 2-3 times a week should be enough, as the temperatures are supposed to be low anyway. The most important thing is to water the soil around the base of the plant but never on top of the plant. The center of the cyclamen will start molding and rotting very easily. If you live in an area with lots of rain, try to move the plant to a place where rain will not reach it. During the dormant period, do not water.
Dormant Period - when cyclamen stop blooming they enter a so called dormant period. This usually happens when temperatures rise too much. When the plant stops blooming, its leaves turn yellow and it start to wither, stop watering the plant, and place it in a dry cool location away from direct sunlight. Keep the soil dry - some accidental watering will not kill it but it should be on the dry side for the majority of the dormant period. During the dormant period all the leaves will eventually fallout - don't worry this is normal. The dormancy should end around the end of September, beginning of October and new leaves will start emerging. Once this happens start watering again, but with small amounts at the beginning. If leaves fail to emerge until end of October, beginning of November, go ahead and water the plant. This should wake it from dormancy.
Soil - the best time to pot your cyclamen is during the dormant period in the middle of summer. Use a regular potting mix, you can add some leaf mulch. Plant it so that the base of the plant is right at the level of the soil. Do not plant it deeper or higher than the soil level.
Fertilizing - fertilize monthly with an all purpose liquid fertilizer according to fertilizer's instructions
Propagation - can be propagated from seeds, although it is a fairly difficult process and developing the blooming plant will take over a year. The seeds need to be planted right after they are collected from the flower. You can soak them in warm water for 24 hours and then put them into the soil. This will help germination. If you collect the seeds and let the seeds dry out before you plant them however, the chances for germination are lowered significantly. Place the seed pots at a cool darker location. Cyclamen can also be propagated with divisions of the dormant tuber (the root of the cyclamen) but this method is even more difficult as both divisions need to have a growth eye and a rooting part.
Additional care
- remove the old blossoms/seed buds to stimulate more blooming. The easiest way to do that is to pull out sharply the stem of the old blossom or seed bud
- if your cyclamen get more moisture directly on the plant and the base of the stems start molding, try to eliminate all of the "injured" stems and put the cyclamen in a dry location to help it heal itself
Name - common name Cyclamen. Perennial.
Location - easier to grow in a container as it needs special cares and a different location through its blooming and dormant period. It needs to be protected from direct rainfall, which makes it a difficult choice for a permanent plant into your garden.
Light - grows best in semi-shady to full shade spots, as it needs indirect light, and cooler temperatures. When exposed to direct sunlight the leaves start to soften and if the plant gets more than 4 hours of direct sunlight during the day, it won't last long. It is best to place it in an eastern or northern facing location. If you have western or southern location, place them in a shady spot. If you choose to grow your cyclamen indoors, make sure to choose a cool room with indirect light.
Temperature - optimal temperatures are 40-50°F (4-10°C) at night and 55-65°F (12-18°C) during the day. The majority of the species will survive frost even over long periods of time - check out this section of the Cyclamen Wikipedia page for the frost tolerance of the different varieties (this is a very good article btw, one of the few good articles on flowers, that they have). Cyclamen don't put up well with the higher heats however. Once temperatures go higher than 68°F (20°C), the plant doesn't feel as comfortable and will eventually slowly start to go dormant. If you constantly keep the plant at higher temperatures above 85°F (30°C) it will fail you.
Note: Where I currently live the daily temperatures often get above 68°F (20°C) already, to be more precise they are even getting to 80°F (26°C) at times, and my cyclamen are still blooming. This is happening in the second week of March. I can see that the flower bulbs start emerging slower than before when it was a bit cooler, but they are still in quite a good shape.
Watering - water the cyclamen only during their blooming period. Water them regularly to keep the soil moist, it can go slightly dry but do not neglect it - 2-3 times a week should be enough, as the temperatures are supposed to be low anyway. The most important thing is to water the soil around the base of the plant but never on top of the plant. The center of the cyclamen will start molding and rotting very easily. If you live in an area with lots of rain, try to move the plant to a place where rain will not reach it. During the dormant period, do not water.
Dormant Period - when cyclamen stop blooming they enter a so called dormant period. This usually happens when temperatures rise too much. When the plant stops blooming, its leaves turn yellow and it start to wither, stop watering the plant, and place it in a dry cool location away from direct sunlight. Keep the soil dry - some accidental watering will not kill it but it should be on the dry side for the majority of the dormant period. During the dormant period all the leaves will eventually fallout - don't worry this is normal. The dormancy should end around the end of September, beginning of October and new leaves will start emerging. Once this happens start watering again, but with small amounts at the beginning. If leaves fail to emerge until end of October, beginning of November, go ahead and water the plant. This should wake it from dormancy.
Soil - the best time to pot your cyclamen is during the dormant period in the middle of summer. Use a regular potting mix, you can add some leaf mulch. Plant it so that the base of the plant is right at the level of the soil. Do not plant it deeper or higher than the soil level.
Fertilizing - fertilize monthly with an all purpose liquid fertilizer according to fertilizer's instructions
Propagation - can be propagated from seeds, although it is a fairly difficult process and developing the blooming plant will take over a year. The seeds need to be planted right after they are collected from the flower. You can soak them in warm water for 24 hours and then put them into the soil. This will help germination. If you collect the seeds and let the seeds dry out before you plant them however, the chances for germination are lowered significantly. Place the seed pots at a cool darker location. Cyclamen can also be propagated with divisions of the dormant tuber (the root of the cyclamen) but this method is even more difficult as both divisions need to have a growth eye and a rooting part.
Additional care
- remove the old blossoms/seed buds to stimulate more blooming. The easiest way to do that is to pull out sharply the stem of the old blossom or seed bud
- if your cyclamen get more moisture directly on the plant and the base of the stems start molding, try to eliminate all of the "injured" stems and put the cyclamen in a dry location to help it heal itself