Cyclamen 2010

[Maggi Young]

Some wonderful leaves there, and lovely perfume too.

Too right.... I'm  regretful that the majority of out C. purpurascens are plain leaved...... hope some of the seed sown  last year will make flashier babies!!

[Lesley Cox]

I'm just grateful to have any at all, (courtesy Ashley A.) but I think we can get hung up sometimes on the highly decorated foliage and ignore the plain, to our loss. My most favourite plant of C. coum has good white flowers and very large, absolutely plain, deep green leaves and in a good clump which it now is, is a superb plant. The leaves have an almost oiled look, quite glossy.

[bulborum]

Maggi

If you know somebody near Ashfort in Kent
I can give you some good marked C. purpurascens
sending is 16€ from France so a little extreme

Roland

[Herminarik]

Hello Herminarik

very nice collection
Do you have a trick for germinating Cyclamen purpurascens

Roland

Hi Roland,

I think that each grower of Cyclamens has his own trick how the seeds of C. purpurascens could be carrying to the germination. And that is true that C. purpurascens germinate very occasionally and quite unwillingly. I do not know if the used substrate play any sense but we use the torf with loam and grounded dolomite and we cover the seeds with thin layer of the finely broken rubbish (we use only the fraction 1-2 mm in diameter, no dust but nor greater fractions). The temperature is 15-18 oC, the substrate may not dry up. When the tubers are a little bit greater (c. 6 months old), we change the upper layer of the substrate so that the tubers are surrounded with new airy substrate and the roots only stay in the original substrate. For new covering we use the ground dolomite or broken rubber (2-3 mm in diameter, no larger). Igor

[Maggi Young]

Maggi

If you know somebody near Ashfort in Kent
I can give you some good marked C. purpurascens
sending is 16€ from France so a little extreme

Roland

You are very kind to suggest that, Roland.
But no need to find a  friendly Kentish man, because we do have some marked babies coming on from seed so I will be patient here!

[Thomas Huber]

...... we do have some marked babies coming on from seed so I will be patient here!

Good news from your seeds - are you interested to see the parents of your babies in my garden?

Lots of different leaf colours, silver leaves, good markings and flowers from darkest pink to bright rosy - I love this species :

[Thomas Huber]

And some more - what a pity the computer can't send their scent:

[Maggi Young]

My word Thomas, they are looking REALLY GOOD! 
The fragrance must be intoxicating.... it is one of Ian's favourite scents.
 If our babies grow as well as these we shall be more than delighted!!

[Maggi Young]

Thomas, do you have any special ingredient added to the soil these superb cyclamen are growing in to make them so healthy or is it the good Newstadt air?

[Thomas Huber]

No special treatment or ingredients for my Cyclamen, Maggi. They are growing in my standard soil mix with lots of sand and some compost. But the best flowering is in the soil I mixed up with PUMICE. In the same corner of the garden I watered the crocus bulbs with liquid fertilizer in spring - probably the Cyclamen also had their benefit from this food? Some weeks ago they had to survive direct sun for 3-5 hours per day with temperatures around 35°C - and they are still alive!

[Maggi Young]

That is bad heat they have had... on top of the rain storms as well, eh? !! These plants are tough!

I'm thinking that the pumice may be a vital aid....

[Roma]

Fantastic Cyclamen purpurascens, Thomas.  I planted 4 in the garden earlier this year and I can see three growing with one flower and one bud.  I must look for more planting places.  In the shadier spots more vigorous plants are likely to smother them.   

[angie]

Thomas what a show...wish I could be there and admire them all, still its lovely being able to see a picture of them.

Angie

[Roma]

Some of my Cyclamen flowering in pots in the greenhouse.
Cyclamen purpurascens 'Fatra Form'
Cyclamen purpurascens album
Cyclamen purpurascens babies sown in 2007
a very poor show compared with Thomas and it was too wet today to lie on the grass and photograph the one flower in the garden

Cyclamen intaminatum which has been flowering since the middle of June
The flowers open white with a green eye and turn pink later

[Lesley Cox]

A magnificent show Thomas and the scent must almost be overpowering.

Roma, that is a very good silver leaf in pic no 4