How to grow Cyclamen (hederifolium)

Cyclamen hederifolium

🌸 Flower 🔁 Perennial

Little pink or white swept-back flowers in September and October, followed by marbled, ivy-shaped leaves all winter. Spreads into carpets under trees.

At a glance: Sow early August to mid September.

When to sow, plant and harvest

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec

Sow outdoors

Flowers

Timed for a typical UK garden (last frost mid-April). The app uses your own town's frost dates.

Growing Cyclamen (hederifolium): what it needs

Light: Part shade · 6+ hours a day
Watering: Water pots in dry spells while in leaf; keep drier when dormant
Soil: Well-drained soil or bulb compost
Spacing: 15 cm
Height: 10 cm
In pots: Grows well in containers
Feeding: A sprinkle of leaf mould after flowering
Hardiness: USDA zones 5–9

Step by step

Early August – mid September · 11 weeks before the first autumn frost
Plant Bulbs
Plant 2–3 cm, smooth side down deep and 15 cm apart, pointy end up, in well-drained soil or pots. Water in.
14–45 days after “Plant Bulbs” · Mid August – mid September
Look for Shoots
Green shoots should be showing. Keep pots moist but not wet and watch for slugs on young leaves.

Every year

June
Leave Dormant in Summer
The leaves die away in summer — mark the spot so you do not dig into the tubers.
September
In Flower
Autumn cyclamen in flower.
November
Mulch with Leaf Mould
Spread a thin layer of leaf mould over the patch while the leaves are out.