The cyclamen, a popular house plant, is native to the Mediterranean Basin. Their vivid flowers blossom from fall to spring and then the plants go dormant throughout the summer months. Cyclamens are available in a wide variety of colors including white, pink, purple, magenta, yellow, red & multi-colored.  With special care, cyclamens will produce beautiful flowers for many months at a time.  Cyclamens like to have temperatures ranging from 50-70 degrees and can be fussy if they get too hot or too cold. They prefer brightly lit windows with southern, eastern, or western facing exposure.

Cyclamens can be sensitive to both underwatering and overwatering and require excellent drainage. It’s best to water them when the soil feels dry to the touch – but if the leaves and flowers start to droop it’s a sure sign it’s needing more water. You probably do not need to worry too much about fertilizing your cyclamen.  If done incorrectly, fertilizer can actually prevent cyclamens from blooming. When Cyclamens bloom their flowers will form a fruit that is filled with seeds.  It is possible to germinate and replant the seeds by soaking them in water for several days and sprouting them in a tiny greenhouse. The best time to collect the seeds is in the summertime & they will sprout into leaves in the fall. It may take a year or more to see blooms from freshly germinated cyclamen.

Tips:  If the leaves turn yellow it can be a sign that the temperature is too warm.  When cyclamen is exposed to temperatures above 70 degrees its flowers will quickly fade.  Sometimes rot can occur if too much water touches the flowers and leaves, in which case you should begin watering the plant from beneath by placing an outer pot around and filling that pot with water.  Be sure to drain well afterward. It’s important that the cyclamen tuber has a large enough pot and may require repotting occasionally.  Be gentle with the plant when repotting.  A wonderful zero waste organic fertilizer to encourage blooms is EarthPods Bloom Flowering Plant Food.

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