Zone 6b - Mid-Atlantic Gardening

Cyclamens are a good alternative to poinsettias during the holiday season. The lovely variegated foliage contrasts nicely with the blossoms – ranging from white to pink to lavender, to purple, to red – that seem to float like small butterflies atop slender, erect stems. I’d rather receive a cyclamen than a poinsettia during the holidays. (Then again, I’d rather receive a staph infection than a poinsettia.)

The genus cyclamen consists of 20 species, all part of the Myrsinaceae family, although the Cyclamen Society insists on the traditional view that they are in the Primulaceae (primrose) family, much to the annoyance of the myrsinaceae camp. Plant people are like that.

Many types of cyclamen (especially C. hederifolium) are winter-hardy and can be found at garden centers in late summer into fall. The cyclamens you’ll find being sold as houseplants at florists’ shops are usually C. persicum, and these need to stay indoors. However, cyclamens can be picky about just where they’ll thrive indoors. The three most important factors in maintaining healthy cyclamens in your home or office are temperature, fresh air, and moisture.

Cyclamens like bright indirect light, and prefer temperatures that stay at or below 65 degrees F during the day and 50 degrees at night. So, don’t set them up on or near radiators or in sunny windows, as they’ll get too much heat. Keep the soil moist, but not soggy, and water the outer perimeter of the soil instead of the crown of the plant itself. Mist them daily, as cyclamens like humidity, but keep them away from drafts.

Most cyclamens will bloom for a long time if they are kept cool and evenly moist via infrequent-but-thorough soakings in the sink rather than tossing a tablespoon into the pot twice a day.

If you bring one home that’s just budding up in December, it might bloom all the way past Valentine’s Day. Snip off spent foliage and flowers to encourage regrowth. In the spring, the corm of the cyclamen will go dormant. At this point, you can cut back on watering and let the corm dry out slowly. Replant it in a shady spot in your garden in the spring, making sure that half the corm is exposed.

Later, in July/August, you should see some tiny new leaves emerge from the corm; at this stage you can replant it in a pot containing rich potting soil and feed it monthly with half-strength (diluted) liquid plant fertilizer. Keep it outdoors in shade, and ensure it stays well-watered. Bring it indoors in early fall, place it in a spot where it gets morning sun,

Some people get their cyclamens to rebloom without ever moving them from their indoor locations. These people are obviously shamans or in league with some underworld deity, and they probably balance their checkbooks every month, too. To these folks, I say “Wow.” Clearly, they have found the perfect spot for their cyclamens.

Stumble it!