Cyclamen 2014

[SJW]

A couple of good flowering forms of C. persicum var autumnale, a particularly deep colored C. confusum and a couple of C. persicum with good leaves.

Really lovely, Oron. Fantastic colour on the confusum. Is there a 'standard' leaf type for var autumnale or do you get the same variation and good leaf forms as you do with ordinary C. persicum?

[SJW]

Hello everyone. New here. I recently bought some C. africanum and C. greacum from Ashwood nurseries. Is there any special ways of sowing and caring for them or do I just put them in a pots and wait?

Hello, Lewis, welcome. Both species will need greenhouse cultivation rather than outdoors. I get very patchy germination from late sowings (after October) probably because the temperature is getting too low moving into winter. You could sow and leave the pots in the greenhouse and some may come up, or they'll wait until next year. Or leave for now, give the seeds a good soak in August, and sow then. Or, if you have a spot indoors that stays around 15 C you could soak the seeds overnight and sow in a gritty compost. Top dress with grit and keep them in the dark at around 15 C. Check for signs of germination after 4 weeks and then every few days after that. If nothing comes up after a couple of months then you could move them to the greenhouse...and wait! But these two species usually germinate well for me using this method. The downside is that you'll then have small, fragile seedlings to nurse through the worst of the winter but they do OK on a bright windowsill indoors and they can be moved out to the greenhouse as the weather improves in the spring.

[krisderaeymaeker]

A couple of good flowering forms of C. persicum var autumnale, a particularly deep colored C. confusum and a couple of C. persicum with good leaves.

Very beautiful stuff Oron .My special vote goes to 'Persian Beauty'   ......

[Maggi Young]

Quote from: Lewis Potter on November 13, 2014, 09:26:54 PM

    Hello everyone. New here. I recently bought some C. africanum and C. greacum from Ashwood nurseries. Is there any special ways of sowing and caring for them or do I just put them in a pots and wait?

Hello Lewis, welcome to the forum.

 Good advice from Steve for you - you'll find plenty of good cyclamen growing advice here whenever you need it. 

[Oron Peri]

Really lovely, Oron. Fantastic colour on the confusum. Is there a 'standard' leaf type for var autumnale or do you get the same variation and good leaf forms as you do with ordinary C. persicum?

Steve,
I must say the leaves of persicum var autumnale are not very exciting, there is little variation.
So far the only better leaf pattern is the 'Christmas tree',I have never found  any plant with silver leaves or different patterns.

[Oron Peri]

Very beautiful stuff Oron .My special vote goes to 'Persian Beauty'   ......

Thanks Kris,
 in fact it is a stunner, this was the reason for naming it 'Persian Beauty'

[johnstephen29]

The silver is a beautiful plant as well oron.

[Roma]

Beautiful leaves, Oron.
I have 4 Cyclamen persicum from Cyclamen society seed from a CSE plant collected in Israel.  They are not spectacular but survived being frozen in winter 2010.

[Roma]

First flower on a seedling from a dark coloured Cyclamen hederifolium.  I am not sure if it was 'Red Sky'
A silver leaved hederifolium still flowering well
I must have missed a few seed capsules on this plant
I like the leaves on this white flowered plant

[johnstephen29]

Loverly leaves on the white plant Roma

[SJW]

Steve,
I must say the leaves of persicum var autumnalis are not very exciting, there is little variation.
So far the only better leaf pattern is the 'Christmas tree',I have never found  any plant with silver leaves or different patterns.

Thanks, Oron, that's useful to know.

[SJW]

I have 4 Cyclamen persicum from Cyclamen society seed from a CSE plant collected in Israel.  They are not spectacular but survived being frozen in winter 2010.

Roma - presumably offspring of the high-altitude form that was collected in 1990? I had a similar experience in those two really bad winters we had and my couple of plants certainly coped better than other forms of persicum I grow. (Not as 'nesh', as we'd say in Yorkshire!).Forumists may be interested in details of this Cyclamen Society collection:

Two plants were collected at an altitude of 1,200 m (90560, 90561) and the field notes say:

...we were particularly interested in the plants found growing with C. coum at the summit of Mt Meron. It was very cold with rain and hail...and there were the last remnants of earlier snow falls. There were many C. persicum growing at the summit and as well as C. coum the companion plants were Ornithogalum lanceolatum, Iris histrio, Sternbergia clusiana, Hyacinthus orientalis, Gagea and Colchicum spp.

It's listed in the Seedex this year.

Photos of my two plants from Israel (ex 90561) and a CSE persicum ex Rhodes

[SJW]

Steve,
I must say the leaves of persicum var autumnale are not very exciting, there is little variation.
So far the only better leaf pattern is the 'Christmas tree',I have never found  any plant with silver leaves or different patterns.

Hmmm...so I think I'll re-label this young plant as 'var notumnale'.

[SJW]

Young plant of C. purpurascens sending up a small, second flush of flowers.

[Melvyn Jope]

Roma - presumably offspring of the high-altitude form that was collected in 1990? I had a similar experience in those two really bad winters we had and my couple of plants certainly coped better than other forms of persicum I grow. (Not as 'nesh', as we'd say in Yorkshire!).Forumists may be interested in details of this Cyclamen Society collection:

Two plants were collected at an altitude of 1,200 m (90560, 90561) and the field notes say:

...we were particularly interested in the plants found growing with C. coum at the summit of Mt Meron. It was very cold with rain and hail...and there were the last remnants of earlier snow falls. There were many C. persicum growing at the summit and as well as C. coum the companion plants were Ornithogalum lanceolatum, Iris histrio, Sternbergia clusiana, Hyacinthus orientalis, Gagea and Colchicum spp.

It's listed in the Seedex this year.

Photos of my two plants from Israel (ex 90560) and a CSE persicum ex Rhodes

It is nearly twenty five years since Peter Moore and I made that trip but your post was a nice reminder, even though we were freezing cold on that day.