Cyclamen

repandum

FRAGRANT SICILIAN CYCLAMEN

Cyclamen repandum
FRAGRANT SICILIAN CYCLAMEN

Cyclamen repandum is a triple treat, with showy flowers, fetching scent, and highly decorative leaves. 

Twirling harum-scarum flowers

Firstly a treat with eye-catching flowers in a range of pinks, occasionally white, but often a lovely rich carmine pink, and each adorned with a deep carmine nose.
Plus the petals are delightfully twirled and twisted giving the flowers a harum-scarum, fly-away look.
Cyclamen repandum blooms very early in spring, and so makes a good interplanting with other autumn blooming Cyclamen.

Sweet scent

Secondly the spring blooms treat with sweet, spicy scent.

Attractive foliage

While the foliage of Cyclamen repandum is also particularly attractive.
With heart shaped leaves delicately marked by silver chevrons and lacing.
And each bulb will vary in its own the lace patterning, so creating much interest and texture in dull areas way before and after the blooming season.

Well suited to hot or dry summers

Cyclamen repandum is native to the Mediterranean region of southern Europe, Sicily and with some outliers also northern Africa.
So obviously it is ideally suited to so many gardens in Australia with similar climatic conditions.
It can also tolerate some summer humidity, and is untroubled by cold or wet winters, providing it is grown in well drained soil.
Like most tubers it rots out in soggy conditions.

Hardy under deciduous, evergreen or pine trees

Grow Cyclamen repandum under trees and shrubs where it enjoys Dappled Light, Morning Sun or Full Shade or Deciduous Shade.
It is perfectly used to coping with stony soil, gravel, shallow soil and limestone conditions in the wilds of Greece and northern Africa.
Where it can be found amongst the roots of both deciduous or evergreen trees, including pines, oak trees and scrub.
It appreciates the drainage provided by the companion roots.

Perfect for gardeners with limited summer water

Cyclamen repandum makes a hardy tuber, and will pull itself down out of the heat.
So it can withstand the heat and dry of summer or the cold and wet of winter quite happily.
Before coming back on duty with those delightful blooms and foliage in late winter and spring.

Decorates under trees & shrubs for months

Once established the tubers will go on for many many years, as well as colonizing by self seeding more babies around itself.
So creating a carpet of flower, scent and foliage beauty amongst the roots of trees and shrubs.

15cm. High in twirling blooms x 15cm Wide of silver laced foliage.

SEED SOWING ADVICE:

Cyclamen repandum seeds are best sown late autumn or winter.

First soak seeds in warm water with a little detergent for 24 hours, then rinse thoroughly in fresh water before sowing.

Indoors: Now sow the seeds in a punnet on the surface of good quality seed raising mix.
Then cover the seeds with sieved mix or fine gravel to a depth equal to the diameter of the seeds.

Now thoroughly moisten the sown punnet by standing it in a shallow water bath, so the moisture percolates up to the surface from below.
Then cover the punnet with a dark lid, such as a piece of cardboard or black plastic.
Cyclamen seeds germinate better in the dark.

Continue to keep moist & dark at approx. 16C. for rapid germination.

Most seed should germinate in 28-42 days, but some may be longer so do not discard punnet.
It is a natural process for Cyclamen repandum seed to germinate at different times, as a cunning trick by the plant to give the seed a sporting chance to germinate into a good period of weather.

Seed Count: 5 seeds per pack (Seed of this beautiful variety is very limited this year).

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