If you received or purchased a blooming cyclamen over the holidays, here are tips for taking care of this regal queen. Also called florist’s cyclamen (Cyclamen persicum), this houseplant blooms during the winter with flowers raised high above the foliage, lasting for several months. Cyclamen is available in a range of sizes, from mini to large, as well as magenta, red, pink, and white flower colors. Beautiful as it is, cyclamen is not an easy plant to grow.
While it is blooming, give it bright indirect light. It prefers day temperatures of 60-70 degrees and night temperatures of 40-50 degrees. It also prefers high humidity. Usually homes in the winter have low humidity so place the plant on a tray of pebbles with a little water. However, make sure you have a saucer between the container and the pebbles. The root system is a tuber that is prone to rot.
Water when the soil feels dry, like dry in the top inch, but before it is completely dry. Do not let it sit in water and do not let it sit in the saucer of water. Likewise, when watering, aim for the side of the crown, not on the leaves, and not on the crown (central growing point). If you purchased it in the decorative foil covering, it best to remove that and put the pot (make sure it has drainage holes) on a saucer.
Feed the plant with a diluted liquid low nitrogen fertilizer to prolong the blooms, such as an African violet fertilizer.
After flowering, the leaves will turn yellow. Your first thought may be that it is dying and you need to water or fertilize but don’t do that. The plant is beginning its dormant stage. Don’t try to keep it green with more watering, let it rest during the summer. Put the plant in a cool, dark area with good air circulation. Don’t water or feed during its dormant period.
In the late summer, early fall, bring the plant back to bright indirect light and water thoroughly at first. You will see new green growth. Treat it like when you first purchased it and it should bloom again. It may not look as luscious, but the regal queen should continue to hold her court as a long lasting houseplant.
Oh, I remember when these were respected perennials. It is frustrating to now grow them as disposable annuals. Of course, we do not actually dispose of them. Instead, we put them into other landscapes where they can grow wild if they survive their first season. I do not grow them as houseplants though. I have kept them inside while they are blooming, but then retire them to the garden. That is how I am familiar with them.