Tender and vibrant cyclamen flowers often attract shoppers. Their popularity is great due to the fact that the flowering time falls on the darkest and coldest winter days. Lush buds and the original coloring of the leaves will decorate any home. However, some will be disappointed when the acquired plant suddenly dies due to improper care, because for its long life it is necessary to follow certain rules.
Botanical Description
Cyclamen (Cyclamen) belongs to the genus of herbaceous perennials, its name in Latin translates as "round" due to the shape of tubers and leaves. In total, there are about 20 species in nature that are common in Turkey, the Mediterranean region, Iran, and Northeast Africa. As a home flower, cyclamen is grown in 2 species: Persian and European, the first of which is the most common.
Its flowers are, as a rule, the color of many shades of pink, purple and red, there are varieties and variegated. The flowering time is quite long: from October to the first spring month, some bloom even longer.
Seeing once what a cyclamen flower looks like, everyone will want to grow it at home. The height of a houseplant reaches 30 cm, the original rounded leaves with beautiful patterned veins are located below, the back of them depends on the species and can be green, silver or purple.
On top of the leaves are flowers with a diverse color, which sometimes reach 7–9 cm in length, but there are also miniature varieties that are small in height (up to 15 cm), with small inflorescences up to 1.5 cm.
Most types of cyclamen are ephemeroids, that is, they have 2 periods of development: flowering and dormancy. However, hybrid varieties are now bred, which are distinguished by a diverse color, terry, size and are able to bloom for almost a whole year.
Home cyclamens, Persian differences
In the store, most often they buy these plants already in bloom in late autumn. Those who do this for the first time should know that the rules for keeping a cyclamen flower, how to care for it at home, depend on the type of plant: European purple (Cyclamen purpurascens) or Persian (Cyclamen persicum). The latter is more capricious and whimsical in the care and breeding.
Outwardly, both species are very similar, but there are differences:
- the leaves and flowers of the Persian cyclamen are larger;
- the lower side of its leaves has a green or burgundy hue;
- the European flower “rests” less capriciously and does not shed its leaves, unlike the Persian, which prefers to be at rest from March to September, requiring special attention and special care.
European cyclamen
The popular name for European or purple cyclamen is alpine violet, it is given for the similarity of the shape of the flowers. Cyclamen purpurascens has smaller inflorescences (2-4 cm) with a pleasant smell. The difference between this species is the formation of lateral tubers, which can subsequently be used when propagating the plant.
European cyclamens bloom longer: in young plants, this period reaches one year, but decreases with age to 6 months. Also, they can meet a wider range of shades.
Recommendations on how to care for a cyclamen flower of a European species are as follows: the dormancy period lasts from early spring until the end of autumn, and the plant does not drop leaves, however, it is better to lower the temperature of maintenance, it should be watered a little.
Dormant flower care
The rest period in ephemeroid plants begins in early spring. How to make sure that the cyclamen home flower does not get sick or die, how to care for it at this time? The answer to these questions will be recommendations for the implementation of certain rules of care. A signal of the beginning of the dormant period is yellowing of the leaves of the plant after flowering and their death.
Rules for cyclamen care at such a time:
- tear off all dry flowers and leaves, stronger cut at the root;
- Be sure to reduce watering during these months, keeping the soil in a state of low humidity;
- transfer the pot to a shaded, cool place;
- Some gardeners advise cutting off dried leaves and transplanting the tuber into fresher soil, sprinkling it on top and putting it in the shade.
Starting in June, watering can be increased and daily spraying done. By the beginning of September, with a strong entanglement with roots of a coma and ground, cyclamen is transferred into a larger pot, not deepening the tuber, but cleaning its tip, from which young leaves will later begin to grow. The plant is exposed in a cool place.
Some flower growers advise storing asleep tubers in dry soil in the refrigerator, but this method is fatal due to overdrying. Most often, after this the flower no longer wakes up.
Buying a Healthy Plant
In order to have a healthy and beautiful flower cyclamen, care at home which will be successful, when buying in a store, you should carefully examine it and pay attention to the following nuances:
- specimens with yellow leaves or spots on them, weak inflorescences do not fit unambiguously;
- for verification, it is recommended to press a little on the tuber at the base of the flower: it should not be soft to the touch; if damage or spots are visible on it, then it is not recommended to buy such a plant;
- carefully inspect the leaves: if they are wrinkled or twisted, this is a signal of illness or damage by pests and fungi, which will lead to the death of the flower;
- when buying only a tuber, it should be inspected for spots and wet places that can lead to failure during cultivation;
- cyclamens are often grown from seeds, upon purchase of which it is necessary to check the date (no more than 2 years ago) and the expiration date;
- for abundant flowering, it is better to acquire a plant already flowering, in which there are many buds;
- after purchase, the flower must be quarantined for 2 weeks.
Cyclamen Home Flower: Care and Planting a Tuber
Cyclamen prefers to grow in a cool place at a temperature of + 12 ... + 16 º; placement on a glazed balcony or on a windowsill is ideal for him. Lighting like diffused, from direct sunlight may cause burns on the leaves. The soil is slightly acidic, loose and nutritious, you can buy a ready-made mixture for violets, place drainage at the bottom. The pot is shallow and small, transplanting an adult plant can only be done once every 2-3 years.
Cyclamen does not tolerate drafts, but likes airing and high humidity. In the winter months it is better to keep it away from the battery.
The depth of tuber planting depends on the type:
- in Persian roots are located below, because the top of the tuber should rise above the ground;
- in European it can be deepened, because the roots grow on all sides.
Home care for a cyclamen flower depends on the season:
- during active growth, the plant is watered regularly without stagnation using the immersion method or pan;
- the flower loves high humidity, because around it you can often spray air from the spray gun;
- fertilizing with mineral fertilizers is used only during the flowering period every 2 weeks, using ready-made complex mixtures intended for flowering plants;
- when leaf fading or yellowing occurs, it is necessary to feed it with an iron chelate, spraying the green parts or making it into the soil.
Proper watering
Cyclamen is a moisture-loving flower, because at home it needs regular and plentiful watering. Experts recommend pouring water not into the pot, but into the pan. This is due to the fact that moisture on the stems, inflorescences or the tuber itself can provoke the process of decay. First, the cuttings are covered with brown spots, and then the flower dies.
Water for irrigation should only be used at room temperature, it is better not to use tap water. In extreme situations, you can take boiled water, cooled to the desired temperature.
The moisture in the pan or pot should not stagnate for a long time, it is better to pour the excess when all layers of soil have already been saturated. Watering Persian cyclamen can be done by the usual method, because the top of the tuber in them is above the ground level.
Diseases and Pests
If the leaves on cyclamen begin to turn yellow and fade, this means that the plant is uncomfortable: dry or hot air in the room, direct sunlight, lack of watering. With proper adjustment of conditions and care, the condition of the flower should improve.
Some inexperienced flower growers ask why cyclamen has flowers and leaves rotting. The answer may be a possible overmoistening of the soil or regular ingress of water during irrigation to the top of the tuber, which needs to be fixed: it must be taken out of the ground, cut off the decayed area, washed in a solution of manganese and dried. Then the tuber can be re-planted in soil previously steamed or disinfected.
The reason for the plant to bloom too quickly lies in the excessive heat in the room or in the lack of nutrients. To help the flower, it is better to rearrange it in a cool place and feed it.
If the air is too dry, a spider mite often appears, and a cyclamen flower can also damage thrips and aphids. When pests appear on the plant, leaves and flowers begin to deform. In such a situation, treatment should be done with special chemicals against pests.
Useful and poisonous properties of cyclamen
Cyclamen is a flower not only beautiful, but also healing, energetic. Some signs and superstitions endow him with positive properties: he can attract love, increase the material well-being of his master, help him become more confident, protect him from evil spells and spirits, and create a positive friendly atmosphere at home.
Useful properties of cyclamen are used in the treatment of runny nose, sinusitis and sinusitis. Juice, which is obtained from tubers, is diluted with water in a proportion of 1:10 and instilled 1-2 drops in the nasal passages. The water-based infusion has a sedative, antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory properties, it is used to treat liver, gynecological diseases. Ground mass helps with hemorrhoids.
However, care must be taken, since undiluted juice, as well as the seeds and roots of the plant are poisonous, can cause burns or irritation, fever and sore throat.
Methods of propagating cyclamen
Cyclamen flowers can be propagated in 3 ways: by seeds, division of tubers and children. The latter is the simplest, but it is only suitable for European cyclamen.
For propagation by dividends, it is necessary to divide the ripened tuber. To do this, you must carefully choose a healthy plant, which is in a dormant period. Remove his tuber from the ground, dry and cut into several parts. Each piece must contain a kidney and roots. The place of cut should be dried in a shady place and sprinkled with charcoal (activated or other antiseptic). All shares are planted in pots.
Propagation and growing of seeds is most often used for the Persian species, since the tuber dividing method often causes its rot and death.
Artificial pollination
To get seeds from your cyclamen, it is necessary to conduct its artificial pollination during the flowering period. Experts advise doing this in January in the morning with good sunlight.
There are 2 ways to do this:
- fingers to fold and click on the peduncle, after which a cloud of pollen falls out;
- using a match, gently shake the pollen off the nail, then dip the flower’s pistil in it so that it sticks to the stigma.
Such pollination is best done for several days in a row. After fertilization, cyclamen flowers in a pot quickly dry out, tilt their stems and hang. During this period, it is placed in a bright place with a temperature of 18 º in the daytime and +12 ... + 14 º at night. After a few weeks, a box with seeds is formed, which gradually crackes. So that the seeds do not spill out, you can remove it a little earlier and put it to ripen.
Seed propagation
The home-grown cyclamen flower grown from seeds is obtained by a stronger plant and better adapted to the prevailing growing conditions.
Cyclamen seeds can be bought in a store or obtained from your own plant by making artificial pollination. Sowing is carried out in early spring, after soaking them in a solution of "Zircon" or "Epina" at night (it is possible in a solution of potassium permanganate). It is also recommended to disinfect prepared soil. It can be prepared from a mixture of peat and sand, dolomite flour is also added as an oxidizing agent.
They plant seeds with a distance of 2-3 cm in grooves, in a loose nutrient mixture, deepening to 1 cm. The box is put in a dark place, conducting regular soil moisture. At a temperature of + 18 ... + 20 º they usually germinate up to 40 days, however, the process can be even longer - up to six months.
After emergence, the container must be rearranged into the light, but without bright sunlight. When the first 2 leaves appear, the seedlings dive at a distance of 5 cm from each other, digging in the nodules completely. As a rule, young seedlings grow quickly, not resting even in summer. In these months, they need to be regularly watered, sprayed and fed with small portions of fertilizer. After a few months, the seedlings are carefully transplanted together with the ground into small pots with drainage, carefully controlling the depth of the tuber: the top should protrude 1/3 above the soil.
Only after 1-1.5 years after sowing, already grown cyclamen flowers can bloom, bringing a lot of joy to their caring owner.