Cyclamen plants are difficult to grow indoors, but they're so attractive that sometimes they are received as a holiday gift.
They are natives of Syria and prefer temperatures in the range of 50-60 ⁰F. They have dark green, rounded leaves with splashes of silver, and the flowers are pinkish, red, mauve, or white and held on stems above the leaves.
Cyclamens enjoy airy, light rooms indoors and moderately cool temperatures. When you water them, stand the pot in water so that the roots are made wet. Surface watering splashes the leaves, and if water stands on the surface of the soil for long, the corms will rot.
Buy cyclamens that have a number of unopened buds to prolong their flowering. Check the number of buds before purchasing a plant and pull any decorative paper away from the rim of the pot in order to see the plant below and count the number of buds. This will provide an idea of how long the plant will flower once you purchase it.
Once all the flowers are spent the foliage will turn yellow, and the pot can be placed on its side in a basement or garage. When new growth starts, repot the plant in fresh soil and begin watering and fertilizing again.
