Cyclamen hederifolium (Ivy-Leaved Cyclamen)

Popping up in the fall garden when most plants have finished blooming, award-winning Cyclamen hederifolium is a perennial plant that creates a captivating sight when massed. Opening before or with the leaves, elegant nodding flowers in shades of rich magenta to white, 1 in. across (2.5 cm), rise above the foliage in late summer to mid-fall. Sometimes fragrant, they are borne on 4-6 in. stems (10-15 cm) and feature gracefully, upswept petals, darker around the mouth. The variegated foliage is also decorative with its large, ivy-shaped leaves in shades of green, gray, pewter, or silver. Long-lasting, it creates an almost evergreen ground cover and adds color and beauty to the garden during the winter months and well into spring.

Native to the Mediterranean region, Cyclamen hederifolium is the hardiest, most robust, and easiest Cyclamen to grow. Produced from a tuber, it is long-lived and truly bejewels the fall garden.

• Growing up to 4-6 inches tall (10-15 cm) and 6-12 in. wide (15-30 cm), it will self-seed and naturalize freely if left undisturbed.
• Recipient of the prestigious Award of Garden Merit of the Royal Horticultural Society for its outstanding qualities
• Easily grown in moderately fertile, humus-rich, dry to medium moisture, well-drained soils in part shade. Tolerant to all average garden soils, this Cyclamen can grow in areas with more sun. Cover the plants with mulch when the leaves wither. Do not water excessively in the summer (dormant period) to avoid rot problems.
• Deer, drought, and dry soil tolerant
• Low maintenance, this Cyclamen doesn’t need weeding or deadheading!
• Best planted en masse in front of shrubs, around trees, and in rock gardens. Also, great in woodlands or containers.
• Watch for mice and squirrels.
• Propagate by seed, sown in darkness as soon as ripe. It can be beneficial to soak the seed for 10 hours prior to sowing.
• Toxic to dogs, toxic to cats, toxic to horses.

Cyclamen are low-growing tuberous perennials with delicate, winged ‘butterfly’ flowers in shades of pink to white and dark green leaves beautifully shaped like ivy and marked with a lovely silver. Some species flower early in the year, while others wait until late summer, sending successive waves of attractive blooms into early fall. Easy to grow, there are about 20 species of Cyclamen, and almost all of them are native to the Mediterranean.