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Overview
Sowing cyclamen from seed is surprisingly easy, but it's not a job for the impatient gardener: grown this way it can take a year or more before you are rewarded with beautiful blooms. To produce indoor plants you need to use seeds of tender large-flowered varieties, which are available in a wonderful range of colours.
Do it:
July - August
At its best:
January - March
Takes just:
15 minutes
How to do it
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Before sowing, soak the cyclamen seeds in warm water for at least 12 hours, to soften the seed coat, then rinse. Sow seeds into pots of compost, spacing them evenly. -
Sprinkle a layer of fine vermiculite or compost over the seeds until the surface is covered completely. -
Water, then cover with a sheet of glass and a layer of black polythene to shut out the light and encourage germination. Keep temperature no higher than 16° - 21°. -
Check pot regularly. Germination can take 30 - 60 days, and once the seedlings appear, remove the covering and pop your pot into a bright position. -
Leaves develop from a tiny tuber, and once two or three leaves have formed the plants can be potted up separately. -
Plant individually into 7.5cm pots of multi-purpose compost, keeping the tiny tuber level with the surface of the compost. -
Pot on into larger containers as your plants grow, watering them regularly and feeding them once a week. Most varieties should begin flowering about nine months after sowing. Keep them in a cool spot.
"Remove faded flowers or yellowing leaves by twisting stems and giving them a firm tug."
