Plant Doctor Archive

What next for cyclamen?

I have had a wonderful display from several hyper tufa pots planted with miniature cyclamen. How should I care for them over the summer?

AS the leaves die off, gradually cut down on watering until the mix is quite dry. If practical, move the pots to a cool shady spot giving them just a little water every now and then over summer to stop the corm shrivelling up. If you want to use the pots for summer annuals, you could dig out the cyclamen corms, clean off any soil and store as you would with bulbs. Plant again in late summer, or as soon as new shoots start to appear. Alternatively, depending on the variety (some miniature cyclamen are more cold - tolerant than others), you can plant them in a cool, lightly shaded corner of the garden and leave them there.

Some types, like Cyclamen hederifolium and C. purpurascens should establish well and flower each year. Make sure to plant the corms so that the tops of the corms just show above the ground.

Reproduced with permission from the former Weekend Gardener magazine. The views expressed here are not necessarily those of the RNZIH.