Cyclamen

Latin name: Cyclamen
Family: Primrose - Primulaceae
Homeland: Mediterranean, Central and South. Europe, Asia Minor
Cultivation Difficulty: For those with little experience.
Lighting: Bright light
Humidity: Moderate

Description:
Perennial tuberiferous plant, numbering over 20 species, grows in the Mediterranean and Asia Minor. The plant is known under other names: dryakva, alpine violet. Some species, such as the Colchis cyclamen, Kuznetsov cyclamen and others, are on the verge of extinction and are listed in the Red Book of Plants. Cyclamen has long been used in room culture. It should be remembered that he belongs to the poisonous plants.

Tip: to reduce the temperature, enclose part of the window sill with a screen of film or place it in a dry aquarium.

Plant Care

Location

It grows well on window sills on the western and eastern windows. In the room, a pot with cyclamen is placed in the coldest place, for example, between the frames of a window with bright light, but without direct sunlight. In winter, they are kept in a very bright place with a temperature of 12-14 ° C. In a warm room cyclamen will not live long.

Lighting

Bright ambient light.

Watering

Flowering plants are watered evenly, avoiding overdrying or overmoistening, trying not to fall on the tubers. During the rest period, watering is reduced, without bringing the earthen room to a complete dryness. During rooting water is rare. It is better to water from the saucer in the summer plentifully, but not to fill in, and in the winter very moderately. The water temperature should be 3-4 ° C below room temperature. After 1-2 hours, the excess water is drained from the saucer so that the roots do not rot.

Air humidity

The pot is placed on a tray with pebbles or in wet peat.

Humidity: additional information

From time to time until the appearance of the buds, the plant should be sprayed, and after the appearance of the buds, the spraying stops.

Care

C. European does not have a pronounced period of rest. In C. Persian comes a period of peace in the summer. At the beginning of summer, all the leaves will turn yellow and dry, and the tubers will remain naked. Since this period, water cyclamens very rarely. In general, for the rest period, it is better to put the pots into the garden, loggia or balcony and place them in a place protected from the sun. At the beginning of autumn the tubers need to be brought into the room and transplanted. Cyclamen is transplanted into a loose mixture of turf, leaf, humus soil and sand (2: 1: 1: 1), pH 5.5 - 6, and the tuber is buried by 1/2 -1/3. Good drainage is required.
Now you can put a pot of tuber in a bright cool place, but until rooting occurs, water it rarely. Then watering gradually increase. With the development of the leaves before flowering, feed every two weeks with a full mineral fertilizer (1g / l). However, you can not give a lot of nitrogen fertilizers - may rot tuberous roots.

Cyclamen grows well when put the pot in pots, at the bottom of which pour sand or fine gravel. In winter, plants partially lose their leaves. At this time, it is very useful for them to light up for 3-4 hours in the evening. Moisturize little and keep in cool places. Transplanted in the spring (every 3-4 years), when several tubers are formed. When doing so, do not damage the roots. The tops of the tubers should protrude above the soil surface (large to half). With each transplant, increase the amount of sod land.

Breeding

In hydroponic culture, cyclamen works well, but provided that the nutrient solution does not contain large concentrations of nitrogen. Seedlings with a nodule are planted in hydroponic dishes (after the second and third picks). During the rest period of the plant, the concentration of the nutrient solution is reduced to 30-40%. By the summer the plant sheds leaves. In June, new leaves appear, after which it is necessary to increase the concentration of fertilizer to 100%. By autumn, cyclamen is covered with leaves, forms many buds, blooms and, depending on the external conditions, blooms 2 to 5 months.
In greenhouses, cyclamen is propagated by seeds; amateurs can propagate by dividing the tuber. Seedlings bloom 13-14 months after sowing.
In room conditions, reproduction is rarely possible, so it is more expedient to purchase plants in the fall in flower shops.

Transfer

With the beginning of the growth of new leaves, the plant is transplanted into a wide dish in the soil mixture of leafy earth, humus, peat and river sand (3: 1: 1: 1). Tuber c. Persian covered with earth half, and c. European - completely.

Possible difficulties

Yellowing leaves, flowers are strong and healthy - warm dry air, cyclamen does not tolerate temperatures above 17 ° C, other reasons are insufficient watering, direct sunlight.
The death of a plant, flower stalks and leaf petioles are soft and rotting — over-wetting the soil, especially when watering from above — never pour water on the tuber.
A short flowering period - too high a temperature, improper watering and dry air.
Deformed small leaves - cyclamen mite.
Terrible diseases of cyclamen - blackleg and vascular wilting, which are caused by fungi. To warn the black leg, you must carefully disinfect the soil and containers for flowers. The cause of vascular wilting is an increased air temperature.