Cyclamen (Cyclamen persicum) care

Flowering · needs attention to keep

Cyclamen (Cyclamen persicum) wants bright indirect light, and cool. Water it every 6 days. Water from below, into the saucer, and never into the crown. Let it take up what it wants for twenty minutes, then pour the rest away. Pot it in free-draining compost with grit. A weak high-potash feed every two weeks while in flower, and repot once a year. Humidity: above 50%. Toxic to cats and dogs — the tuber especially, which can cause heart problems in quantity.

Cyclamen: swept-back flowers in white, pink and red over marbled heart-shaped leaves, flowering right through winter. It wants a cool room — 12–15 °C — and collapses in a warm one, which is why most are treated as disposable. Kept cool and rested dry through summer, the tuber comes back for years.

Quick facts

Water: Water every 6 days. Water from below, into the saucer, and never into the crown. Let it take up what it wants for twenty minutes, then pour the rest away.
Light: Bright indirect light, and cool.
Humidity: Above 50%.
Soil: Free-draining compost with grit.
Feeding: A weak high-potash feed every two weeks while in flower.
Repotting: Repot once a year.
Toxic to pets: Toxic to cats and dogs — the tuber especially, which can cause heart problems in quantity.
Difficulty: Needs attention.
Mature size: 20–30 cm tall.
Native to: The eastern Mediterranean.

Watering a Cyclamen

Water every 6 days. Water from below, into the saucer, and never into the crown. Let it take up what it wants for twenty minutes, then pour the rest away.

That cadence is the one PlantParlour sets for this species when you name it, and it is deliberately on the cautious side — a plant that asks a day early is safer than one that asks a day late. Log each watering and the reminder moves with the plant rather than with the calendar.

Light

Bright indirect light in a genuinely cool room — 12–15 °C. A cyclamen in a warm lounge collapses within a fortnight, which is why most are treated as disposable.

Humidity and temperature

Above 50%. Central heating in winter is what turns a comfortable room into a dry one, and it is the usual reason an established plant suddenly browns at the edges or picks up spider mites.

Soil and potting

Free-draining compost with grit, and the top of the tuber left proud of the surface — buried, it rots.

Feeding

A weak high-potash feed every two weeks while in flower. Stop feeding in autumn and start again when you see new growth in spring — feeding a plant that isn't growing just builds up salts in the pot.

Repotting

Repot once a year. Repot the dormant tuber in late summer, keeping its shoulders above the compost.

Common problems

Collapsing, floppy leaves and stems
Too warm — or water in the crown.

Fix: Move it somewhere cool and water from below only.
Yellow leaves in spring
Normal. It is going dormant.

Fix: Stop watering, let it die back, and keep the tuber dry until late summer.
Grey fuzzy mould on the stems
Botrytis from damp still air.

Fix: Remove affected parts, improve airflow, and keep water off the crown.

Propagation

From seed. Tubers do not divide successfully.

A cutting taken in PlantParlour keeps its link to the plant it came from, so a propagation years later still traces back to the mother plant — which is the point if you ever sell or trade it.

Toxicity and safety

Toxic to cats and dogs — the tuber especially, which can cause heart problems in quantity.

Questions people ask

How often should you water a Cyclamen?

Water every 6 days as a starting point — that is the cadence PlantParlour sets for Cyclamen persicum. Water from below, into the saucer, and never into the crown. Let it take up what it wants for twenty minutes, then pour the rest away. Light, pot size and the time of year all move that number, so treat it as a reminder to go and check rather than a rule.

How much light does a Cyclamen need?