As the cold weather approaches, the star of November, the Cyclamen, cheers us up with its elegance and colors!
Before delving into the many varieties available, let’s understand together the main characteristics of this highly appreciated and cultivated species.
Cyclamen, classified as Cyclamen persicum and belonging to the botanical family Primulaceae, is a tuberous perennial herbaceous plant 20 to 30 cm tall, with a globose habit outlined by the particular variegated heart-shaped leaves arranged in a rosette from which emerge the stems bearing the flowers with a tuberous corolla and petals with vivid and bright shades that give color and light even during the coldest season mainly in pots and planters but also, for some varieties, in flowerbeds or borders in temperate climates.
Some cultivation tips
For proper vegetative development, cyclamen requires peaty, well-draining soil.
For use in planters or pots, we recommend a spring plant substrate or a specific cyclamen soil containing peat, perlite, granulated clay and wood fibre.
Full flowering requires excellent light, but shelter from direct sunlight during the hottest days, as well as fertilization in both spring and autumn with a specific and balanced liquid fertilizer to be added regularly to the substrate or soil diluted in the irrigation water.
Watering can be done above the canopy until the end of October. In November, with short days and higher humidity, it’s best to water from below, but not excessively, to avoid rot in the center of the plant. If you can no longer water from below because you’ve repotted it in trays, it’s important to water only in the morning so that the leaves and buds within the canopy dry before evening, thus preventing rot from developing due to nighttime humidity. It’s important to always prevent waterlogging, which can lead to root or collar rot and subsequent plant death.
Until mid-October, it’s best to place cyclamen outdoors on balconies and terraces in partial shade. After that, they can also be placed in full sun on south-facing sides. When temperatures drop below 3/4°C, for many varieties, it’s often advisable to protect them with shutters or bring them indoors only at night.
A wide assortment of varieties…
Resulting from ongoing genetic improvement that has led to the selection and, consequently, the definition of numerous new traits related to flower size, morphology, and color tones, many series and varieties are available today. Let’s explore some of them together!
Maxi Cyclamens
HALIOS Series
The Halios series includes large-flowered varieties with a broad, rounded and harmonious crown, in particular Halios Curly Litchi stands out for its particular fringed flower as in the variety HALIOS CURLY® LITCHI® FUCHSIA which has large flowers with fuchsia petals framed by a light pink edge, erect and well centered on the basal foliage; the Halios Fringe Litchi must always be kept outside but protected from frost in order to flower from early autumn until early spring, producing up to 40/50 flowers at a time for a long period.
Also from the HALIOS series are the cyclamens Halios Flammè with large flowers in shaded or flamed colours and a thin white edge that gives a touch of originality to the flowering, as in HALIOS VIOLET FLAMME’ which, thanks to its rusticity, expresses good resistance on the balcony, being able to place it outside in full sun or in light shade from the beginning of October, while to obtain continuous flowering it will be sufficient to shelter it on nights when the temperature drops below 3/4°C for more than 4 hours.
The HALIOS VICTORIA 50 ROSE À OEIL variety also has large flowers, highly ornamental due to its highly scented blooms featuring two-tone white petals with a pronounced burgundy eye, slightly fringed on the upper edge. Its flowers can also be collected as cut flowers and placed in water, lasting up to 15 days if the cut at the base is renewed and water is re-watered every 3 or 4 days.
The HALIOS BLUSH INTENSE variety is definitely worth mentioning, with its ever-evolving bloom color: white at higher temperatures and progressively more intensely colored as temperatures drop. The rounded, robust silver-leaf crown with leaves featuring broad silver zones also contributes to its elegance.
The Latinia Success series includes large-flowered varieties with a more uniform canopy and more frequent flowering than the Latina Standard series. Because it tolerates heat, it is suitable for the first blooms in late summer, which then continue throughout autumn and winter.
From the series, the variety LATINIA SUCCESS MAGENTA FOUNCE’ which has petals of an intense and deep color, blooms from late summer and is resistant to heat as well as cold and rain, for this reason it is also suitable for cultivation in flowerbeds if temperatures do not drop below -2°C until spring.
Midi Cyclamen
Serie METIS VICTORIA
Metis Victoria are compact, uniform miniature cyclamens with distinctive flowers that are slightly fringed along the upper edge of the petal, where they are also more intensely colored. They appear from late summer to early autumn until late winter. This heat-resistant series has longer-lasting flowers than the Metis and maintains their intense colors for a long time. The METIS ABSOLU DE MOREL variety is the most fragrant of the miniature cyclamens, with petals with slightly fringed edges and a fuchsia border that make it unique.
TIANIS Series
The Midi cyclamen from the Tianis series is very versatile as it can be grown in both warm and cooler climates, in fact it was the first cyclamen to be used successfully in flowerbeds.
From the TIANIS FANTASIA series, with slightly smaller bicolor flowers than the Halios series, these are hardy cyclamens that are resistant to rain and cold, able to tolerate a few degrees below zero for a few hours without any damage. They are therefore the cyclamens to keep on the windowsill without needing to be protected, even with minimum temperatures of -3°C, and therefore more resistant than other cyclamens. Furthermore, if applied correctly, they can flower continuously until March-April.
Serie MIDI+
A series well-established for its voluminous varieties with medium-large flowers compared to the Tianis which instead has medium flowers, easy to grow and for their resistance to rain and cold with leaves and flowers that can tolerate 2 or 3°C below zero for a few hours without consequences. Therefore, where temperatures do not drop below these values, as in many urban centers, they can be left on the balcony or on the windowsill throughout the winter. The MIDI+ is also one of the best performing in the flowerbed thanks to the hardiness of the plants with strong stems and tall on the crown as for the variety MIDI+® ROUGE VIF F1, compact and with flowers with scarlet red petals.
INDIAKA Series
The Indiaka cyclamen has enjoyed great success in the sector market in recent years due to the particular shade of its two-coloured flowers where the white in the lower part and the intense colour of the upper half of the petals is clearly marked and increasingly bright as temperatures progressively decrease.
Furthermore, it is resistant to heat and cold like few other series and therefore easy to grow both in summer and winter; it is also one of the best-performing cyclamens in flowerbeds due to its hardiness and resistance to rain, water stress, and heat.
The INDIAKA ROUGE variety is fascinating with a unique two-tone contrast, where the bright red hue stands out.
Mini Cyclamen
Serie MACARON
The mini Macaron is one of the most compact and early miniature cyclamens on the market. Due to its small size, it is suitable for arrangements in small pots. It is often sold in very small pots, therefore, with a limited water reserve between waterings. Consequently, when it is still hot, one watering a day is not enough if kept in its original pot, especially if placed outdoors. It is therefore recommended to grow it with a saucer that is kept frequently watered, or repotted in a pot or kept indoors in a very bright and cool location. The MINICYCLAMEN MACARON ROSE DE PERSE variety is fascinating, blooming from late summer to early winter with flowers with pink petals.
This is a new type of cyclamen with a unique double flower. The flowers are long-lasting, lasting up to 100 days each, allowing for complete color coverage of the foliage from late summer to mid-spring. The foliage is midway between a Mini and a Midi.
It is often kept outdoors, except during the coldest periods with frosts, during which it is recommended to shelter it indoors, in a bright and relatively ventilated place, to make it last longer with a lush flowering.
TUXEDO MAGENTA INTENSE is a special miniature cyclamen, very elegant thanks to the spectacular contrast between the dark magenta flower and the silver leaves. It blooms early (from late summer until late winter), so it can be placed on the balcony or terrace when it is still warm, taking care to place it in the shade until mid-October and water it regularly every day. From November onwards, it can also be placed in a south-facing position in full sun, watering it in the saucer to prevent rot in the centre of the plant. Alternatively, if you cannot water from below, it is important to water only in the morning so that the leaves and buds inside the crown dry before evening.
News
Awarded in 2024 as the best indoor flowering plant by the National Plant Show (Horticultural Trades Association), it is a compact variety that is new to the world of cyclamen for the high quantity of flowers it produces but above all for their open, upside-down and upward-facing shape, almost giving the impression of looking at us, with a darker-colored center (eye) surrounded by a first set of fringed petals called “beards”.
Suitable for indoors, in a very bright and ventilated position, although outside on the balcony the flowers tend to last a long time on the plant, on average longer than other varieties.
DJIX Series
A high-value cyclamen with a compact crown that produces a lush, long-lasting flowering (in November and December, a single plant can have 50/60 flowers open simultaneously for about 2 months). Its flowers have an unusual shape, with open, downward-facing petals and a white calyx that contrasts with the color of the corolla, making it even more unique.
Tolerant to heat as well as cold, the individual flowers are also very resilient to bad weather and last longer on the plant than standard varieties.
Until about mid-October, it’s recommended to place the cyclamen Djix outdoors on balconies or terraces, but only in the shade or in the morning sun, or indoors in a bright spot. Later, as temperatures drop, place it in direct midday sun, while indoors only if the room is frequently ventilated and the radiators aren’t on for many hours a day.
