Cyclamen, a favourite house plant

Mar 13, 2013

By Ankaret Dean, Lanark County Master Gardeners

At this time of the year, the flowers in the local grocery shops look so tempting. They make a perfect cheer-up gift for an ailing friend, a thank-you present or sometimes just to spoil yourself. A cyclamen is reasonable price and great value; it will flower for ages and then it can go in the garden for the summer and come back into the house again for next winter.

There are a few tips that will help your cyclamen thrive, and as always, the more you know the happier your plant will be.

Cyclamen grow from a corm, which is like a tuber, and is planted on the top of the soil. It does not like to be soaked with water, therefore be careful. Wait until the soil is dry; then it is best to water the plant by placing it in a sink or bowl of water and allow the water to soak up from the bottom. Do not over water as this will cause the leaves to turn yellow. If it gets too dry the leaves will wilt; this can be easily remedied by watering at once and they will recover. Fertilize with a low nitrogen fertilizer every 2 weeks when the plant is flowering. Too much fertilizer will encourage leaf growth but not flowers.

It is important to place the cyclamen in indirect light and out of direct sun. It is sensitive to cold, so keep it away from a very cold window. They are a Mediterranean plant and do not like the temperature to drop below 50F or 10C.

Cyclamens flower in the winter, die back and rest in the summer, re-grow the leaves in the fall. At the end of the winter flowering the leaves will die back, and it is now ready to rest, either in the basement or to put out in the garden once the danger of frost is over. They should be put in the shade, and it is suggested to place the pot on its side to avoid over-watering during rainstorms. As the weather cools down, re-pot the cyclamen and begin to water again, the leaves will start to re-grow, followed by the flowers. There is no reason why these pretty flowers should not last for years if well treated. They sometimes produce little corms which, if planted up, will grow successfully into new flowering plants.

All your gardening questions can be submitted and answered on our website at www.lanarkmastergardeners.mgoi.ca

Are you interested in becoming a Master Gardener? Contact Ankaret Dean at 613-278-1203 for more information