How to Best Care for Cyclamen Flowers
Living Knowledge Series: This article covers the cultivation techniques and care essentials for cyclamen, as well as tips on how to care for cyclamen flowers best. Let's explore these together.
Cyclamen, also known as common cyclamen or sowbread, is a perennial herbaceous plant belonging to the Primulaceae family. It is a famous winter and spring greenhouse pot plant. Cyclamen has a compact and attractive growth habit, with colorful and beautiful flowers, usually blooming from December to May of the following year, from winter to late spring. Keeping a few cyclamen pots indoors during winter adds endless vitality, with flowers as warm as spring, and can be placed on coffee tables, desks, window sills, and other places. So, how to cultivate cyclamen? What are the main care points?
I. Cultivation Techniques
1. Sowing Method
Cyclamen seeds are usually sown in autumn. The seeds should not only be large but also plump. First, clean the seeds, then soak them in a sodium phosphate solution for ten minutes to disinfect, or soak them in warm water for a day to promote germination.
After soaking the seeds, do not rush to plant them. It is better to place them at room temperature for two days before planting in loose and fertile sandy soil. Then, pay attention to moisture and warmth. Generally, the seeds can germinate after a month.
2. Division
The time for division is usually after the cyclamen flowers, when the cool spring weather will not cause the divided wounds to rot.
First, carefully remove the cyclamen's bulbous corm, cut according to the distribution of the buds to ensure each division has a bud, then apply some wood ash to the cut surface and transplant it into another pot, pressing down. After division, water sufficiently and place it in a shaded area.
II. Care Points
1. Watering should be moist but not waterlogged: Keep the soil moist, and do not let the roots accumulate water.
Cyclamen has a contradictory relationship with water absorption; it loves a humid environment but fears too much water.
Therefore, when watering, water it moderately every day to maintain the moisture level of the pot, while also controlling the amount of water to prevent waterlogging and root rot. In summer, spray more water to ensure normal water absorption.
2. Fertilizing should be light, not thick: Apply a light fertilizer every ten days during the growing season, and less or no nitrogen fertilizer during the flowering period.
Cyclamen is a plant that enjoys fertilizing, but it prefers light fertilizers, especially during its growing season. Every ten days or so, apply a light fertilizer, and when the cyclamen is forming buds, apply a liquid fertilizer again.
During the flowering period, try to apply less fertilizer, or apply a light fertilizer occasionally, avoiding nitrogen fertilizer. Be careful when fertilizing not to pour the fertilizer directly on the leaves, as it can easily cause corrosion.
3. Lighting should be warm, not hot: Sunlight should be warm and gentle, avoiding direct sunlight in summer and providing shade.
When the sunlight is warm and not dazzling, let cyclamen receive plenty of sunlight, which is beneficial for promoting flowering. In summer, try to place cyclamen in a place with scattered light, and shade it if necessary to avoid sunburn.
Moreover, the cultivation site of cyclamen should have good ventilation. Otherwise, if the weather is too hot and the environment lacks ventilation, cyclamen can easily go dormant.
In addition, the appropriate temperature is also important for the growth of cyclamen. Try to maintain a temperature of 20 degrees during the day, and when it gets too hot in summer, make sure to cool and shade it. In winter, keep the indoor temperature above ten degrees, or it may affect the normal growth of cyclamen.
When newly transplanted cyclamen bulbs are forming new roots, do not water too much to prevent bulb rot. It is better to keep the pot slightly dry. If you like cyclamen, you can try to grow one at home.
The above is the complete content on the cultivation techniques and care points for cyclamen, and how to care for cyclamen flowers best, for your comprehensive understanding and reference!