Cyclamen is a compact, dark green indoor plant.a flower with heart-shaped leaves and small flowers on short stems, reminiscent of a flock of light-winged white-pink or purple-red carefree butterflies. This houseplant has long won an army of fans among gardeners. The genus of cyclamen has more than 60 species and belongs to the primrose family. This is a perennial flower with tuberous roots, growing mainly in the countries of Asia Minor, in central and southern Europe, in the Caucasus and in the Crimea. Sometimes cyclamen is called dryakva or alpine violet.
Cyclamen cultivation
Growing cyclamens as an ornamental plantindoor plant has been going on for a long time. And now you can admire its many varieties: large, medium and dwarf sizes. Cyclamen flowers have a pleasant smell, sometimes there is no smell. At home, mainly Persian cyclamen and European cyclamen are grown. The first blooms in winter, and the second - in summer. Having both types at home, you can enjoy cyclamens almost all year round. To make the flowering period long - up to two months, follow the basic requirements for caring for this beautiful plant.
- Do not allow high temperatures in the room for the entire flowering period of cyclamen, +17 is quite enough;
- During flowering, provide bright diffused room lighting;
- When the cyclamen fades, take the pot away to a dark place, lay it on the side and stop watering, without allowing the final drying of the soil.
Cyclamen disease
If caring for indoor cyclamens at homeconditions are not provided properly, the flower begins to get sick. Lack of moisture or excess of warm dry air, especially in winter, leads to a reduction in the flowering period of cyclamen, yellowing and curling of leaves. You need to fight these deficiencies correctly: place the flower on constantly damp moss or peat, regularly humidify the air around the plant with a spray bottle. Do not overdo it with moisture, since such care for cyclamen is no less harmful than its absence. If you notice that cyclamen flowers are withering and leaves are curling, treat the plant with a soap-tobacco solution - it is quite possible that it is affected by aphids, scale insects. You can get rid of another pest - ticks only mechanically, removing affected flowers and leaves. Cyclamen tolerates the most difficult care of the underground tubers of the elephant beetle larvae. While its adults gnaw flowers and leaves, the larvae eat the roots. The attack on all fronts can only be stopped by comprehensive measures. It is necessary to change the soil and treat the flower and tubers with insecticides.
How to care for Cyclamen
When buying indoor plants,Ask the seller how to care for cyclamen, or read special literature. Water the cyclamen generously, but carefully - water should not get on either the core of the rhizome or the base of the leaves, only on the soil. It is even better if you simply immerse the pot in water or place it on wet moss. Spray the air around the flower, do not forget to add mineral fertilizers from time to time, water with soft, settled water - and your cyclamen will delight the eye with its lush color for a long time. At the beginning of the autumn season, cyclamen will need to be replanted. Make a mixture at home from equal parts of turf, leaf soil and peat, add half a share of sand. Thoroughly clean the roots from old soil, remove damaged, rotten or dried out shoots of the rhizome. The planting depth should be no more than the middle of the tuber. The top covered with moss from above will give growth of new young leaves. If it is not possible to replant the cyclamen for some reason, try to at least renew the top layer of soil. Leave the replanted flower on the northern windowsill, having previously fully fertilized it with fertilizers. If everything was done correctly, the cyclamen will bloom by the end of autumn.
Reproduction of cyclamen
Cyclamen reproduces both by tubers andseeds. To obtain seeds, you should do artificial pollination and wait for the seed pod to ripen. But do not miss the moment when the small seeds fall into the soil on their own, collect them in advance. This is how Persian cyclamen is most often propagated. Seeds are sown around July or August - immediately after collection. They are placed in peat pots with well-moistened soil, and a greenhouse effect is created - they are covered with a film. Humidity should be moderate, and the air temperature should be about +17 degrees Celsius. When the first leaves appear on the shoots, the plants are transplanted, completely covering the tubers with earth. After a couple of months, the transplantation procedure should be repeated, leaving the upper part of the tubers above the ground, carefully covered with moss. Such a young cyclamen will begin to bloom no earlier than in one and a half to two years. Growing cyclamens from seeds requires a lot of patience and a serious attitude to the matter. Propagating cyclamen by tubers is less troublesome. Basically, daughter tubers of European cyclamen are used for this. The procedure involves dividing old tubers into several parts and planting them in different pots with soil mixture. The soil moisture in the pot should be moderate, do not allow the soil lump to dry out or become over-watered. Propagating cyclamen in this way allows you to see flowers much earlier than in the first option. Growing cyclamens is a fascinating process that allows you to surround yourself with spring beauty throughout the year.
