Cyclamen: Plant Care & Growing

Cyclamen is a petite flowering plant that has sweet-scented, small blooms on long stems that stretch up above the leaves. The flowers may be gorgeous or scented and are set off by marbled, heart-shaped leaves. The heart-shaped leaves are medium green and often with silver marbling.

Flowers come in shades of pink, purple, red or white. They are widely available in garden centers and at the florist in autumn, in winter and are often given as gifts. Florist’s cyclamen dies back in spring, when in preparation for a period of dormancy in summer. For this reason, people discard their plant.

How to Grow

Cyclamen needs a cool and bright spot to thrive. Avoid direct sunlight. Keep the soil moist but don’t overwater – this is a common and short way to kill cyclamen. If you want to plant cyclamen, you will need to let it go dormant over the summer, reducing watering. Keep the seeds in a cool room that’s around 10-15°C – a cool conservatory, porch or east- or north-facing windowsill is ideal.

If you keep your cyclamen in a warm room, the leaves will turn yellow, the flowers will fade quickly and the plant will go into early dormancy. But if you want to keep it going from year to year, it’s worth planting it into a loam-based compost with added horticultural grit. Make sure that the new pot has drainage holes and ensure the top of the corm sits just above the soil surface.

Care

Water once when the soil begins to feel dry. Let excess water to drain away. Cyclamen don’t need much feeding, otherwise they will produce lots of foliage rather than flowers. Feed every couple of months with a house plant fertilizer if you’re planning to keep your plant from year to year. Remove any dead or dying flowers or leaves by tugging them away gently.

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