I have grown them at my previous house since I had some shade there for them to grow in a semi-woodland setting. The four years I had them, they returned faithfully and bloomed for me. Mine were tubers (that is what the packaging said anyways) that were purchased from a seller at the Charlotte Christmas show. The biggest problem for me with them was that I had a hard time telling what was the top and what was the bottom of the tubers so I solved the issue by planting them on their side.

Thanks for your info. It sounds like they're pretty easy to grow. I'm going to purchase them through a mail order nursery. Is now a good planting time?

Timely query - I was just thinking about these myself! Another question, do the squirrels like to dig them up and eat them like many other tubers?

Hi ZigZag,
Where are you planning on getting your cyclamen from? I was just on an Auction website and noticed where someone had some seeds on Buy it Now. Are you going to get the seeds or the tubers/corms? Judy

They are easy to grow from seeds...just slow. I used winter sowing, and you need to cover the containers for a few weeks as they "like" darkness initially. Some types are not hardy around here. I like C. coum as it blooms in January or so. You can find all of this on a website. Gethsemane Gardens in Brown Summitt near Greensboro almost always has some.

Here is a link that might be useful: Cyclamen Growing Tips

I have them growing in my yard no problem.I ended up with them when my husband went to the landfill for mulch and it was full of cyclamen bulbs,they are up and going strong now.My yard smelled awful for months from that mulch, but i have cyclamen....free....I grow them with the Hellebore plants...

NCrescue, Thanks for the info. I would love to try winter sowing these. So, I'm going to buy some seed.

I just called Gethsemane Gardens. The lady I spoke with told me that they're closed for the Winter but that she has a couple of 3" pots left. I'm planning a field trip to purchase a pot this weekend.

In a year or two, I'm going to have more cyclamen than what I know to do with it. I'll bring them to the Plant Swaps.

Judy, I'm just in the early thinking stage so hadn't thought about where or how to get any - and I'm still concerned about my gazillions of squirrels viewing them as lunch. Will keep reading.

Meanwhile, I just dug up an old thread from nearly two years ago w/lots of info. (and despite the disclaimer top of page, the Search worked fine!)

Here is a link that might be useful: cyclamen from seed Feb. '08

ZigZag, Thanks for the info. I went back and read the link from February 2008. Alot of good info there. I'm planning on getting/purchasing the seeds, as well, and doing as a winter-sowing project. I did post on the exchange to see if anyone had cyclamen seeds for sharing.

Susie - What a prize you got in your mulch!! I usually get trash. But I love the city mulch. It's the best mulch you can get or atleast the mulch from Winston-Salem is very good. I recommend it to all of my gardening buddies.

Zigzag- no i've never had the squirrels bother mine. I'm starting to get nice clusters of them now. They've been in the ground years and it took a while before they started seeding in- the babies are incredibly tiny for a couple years, which is why those bulbs cost so much. The bulbs will just keep getting bigger and bigger though, and can bloom for an incredibly long time! I only have a few coum and hope they multiply and do as well as the hederifolium have done for me.

Keep your eye out for those small bagged bulbs that often show up at garden centers. Sometimes they will include cyclamen. The bulbs are the quickest way to get blooms, seeds can take a few years to get to blooming size. Bulbs aren't cheap and that is most likely due to how long it takes them to size up. Plant Delights used to have them and so did Pine Knot Farms up on the Virginia border. A lot of places that have hellebore festivals have cyclamen for sale since they bloom at the same time (some of them).

The are easy bulbs for those extra dry and harsh places like at the base of oak trees - but they are not big lush plants so they rarely fill in the whole area. They also like stone walls and gravel beds for cactus or succulents. Extremely hardy, don't worry about winter cold just keep them dry and they'll be fine.

John, Thanks for the info and also for the Garden Center tip. When you say Garden Center, are you talking about L. & H. D.? Anyhow, the next time I'm in L. & H.D. I'll check out their bulb center. Gethsemane Gardens sells a 3" pot for, I think she said, $12.00. Judy

Thanks, Tammy & John - think I'm going to have to read up more, but would definitely go the tuber route since I have the patience of a gnat, so trying from seed would drive me batty.

We sell them at BB's. I've got some naturalizing in a shady area under oaks, holly and pine. I noticed a couple of my favorite customers buying bunches of them and asked why and they said "dry shade". That was all I needed to hear. One tuber has spread into a nice little grove of tubers about a foot and a half wide in two years. I'm talking dry, dead, sandy soil. I have the coum and the hederifolium, the later being the most vigorous and spreading. Adele

Judy, J.L.Hudson Seeds has cyclamen seeds for sale (under their Supplement). Their shipping is very reasonable and I have been happy with their seeds in the past.

Here is a link that might be useful: J L Hudson

Adele, Just curious, How much do they cost at BB? Judy

Judy - no, I did not mean HD or Low's. Though they have the same sort of rackfull of bagged bulbs. It seems that the more unusual show up at real garden centers. If you haven't been to Sanford (where Adele works) then it will be worth the trip, plants are cheap and the selection is endless.

Sometimes campbell road carries the plants, and when they do they are around $4. Often they are blooming so you can pick colors- both coum and hederifolium come in range from deep cerise through white. The bare bulbs are typically in the $4-6 range so i wouldn't pay 12 bucks (logan's carries them- that's where i got mine years ago). I've heard that brent & becky's carries huge bulbs but i'm not sure of the price. I don't know that i've ever seen them in the big boxes, but it sure wouldn't hurt to look.

John & tamelask, Thanks for the info. I called BB. Their price, I think he said, 3.50 a pot. That's more like what I would like to pay. Anyhow, I let you guys know what I find this weekend.

I've got a bunch of C. coum from BB -- they've done very well and for a very good price. I've also bought cyclamen at the Duke Gardens plant sale, Montrose, and Pine Knot. Over the past few years I've branched out into many different species, with C. coum, hederifolium, and intaminatum seeding around in the garden at this point. This winter I'm going to try starting from seed from a European source. The cyclamen.org site mentioned above is a good source of info, and I also like this link for info.

Here is a link that might be useful: cyclamen

I started some seed 3-4 years ago. It's not easy. Between wet paper towels in the dark in a ziploc for a certain number of days. I can't remember all the details, but it's on the web. I had two sprout and get transfered to wet sand. They are now really big plants in a bed outside - two enormous bulbs with leaves spreading a foot diameter around bulb. It would sure be quicker to start with bulbs. For me the flowers are way small. I love the leaves though. Much prettier and more beautifully marked than the tender houseplants you can buy.

Found the instructions:
Hardy Cyclamen have been found to germinate best in total darkness at around 55-60'F. We have had good results with the following method. Place the seeds between two pieces of damp filter paper, Kleenex tissue, etc., then put into a polythene bag and place this into an opaque container in order to exclude all light. Inspect the seeds after a month and remove and prick out as the seedlings appear, returning the ungerminated seeds to total darkness.

Here is a link that might be useful: out of print Thompson & Morgan Successful Seed Raising Guide

Thanks Brenda, I'm getting a bunch of cyclamen seed from Europe so your instructions are timely. I have a friend whose husband is a pilot on an International route so it made getting them easy (for me anyway). I'm growing a lot of different species now, but I'm breaking new ground here with the seed.

It always seems weird to have trouble starting plants from seed when they seed around without apparent trouble in the ground, but it's not like I haven't experienced that before.

Hi All,

I got my potted cyclamens from BB today. I bought 2 different varieties - coum & hederifolium. Not to mention all the other great plants I got there as well. BB is definitely worth the trip!!!

Adele - Thanks for all of your help at BB. My friends and I will be back.

Squirrelspur - Thanks for telling me about J. L. Hudson Seed. I've contacted them and have a catalog on the way. I'm getting my cyclamen seed from them.

And Brenda - Thanks for the instruction on How to Plant Cyclamen seed. I'm going to need all the help I can get on growing seeds. Not an expert in that area.

Just found some seeds in a lot that came too late last year for WS. Email me directly if you want some of the C. hederifoliums. I have two pks. I can share. I hope to get more with my NARGS order again this year. And, I don't use the paper towel method; I just soaked, planted, covered the container and put outside. I left them in darkness for about six weeks.

Some of the seeds did not germinate until late this summer, but all six containers from last year germinated, finally. I have left them outside for another winter (covered in their milkjugs) and will plant out this coming season. As I said earlier, I think they are easy but SLOW. I had blooms this fall from the first batch I tried three seasons ago.

Hi ncrescue,

I would love some of your seeds. I have sent you an e-mail with my mailing address. If you don't get it, let me know.

When I get the seeds, I'm going to stop what I'm doing and winter sow them. I'll let you know how they come out this Spring. Thanks for sharing.

Read to mail ASAP, when the snow clears. About six inches here, and there are still a few flurries.

I was at New garden Landscaping on Old Oak Ridge Rd. yesterday. They have several packages of the C. coum tubers , two per pack, at 75% off while they last. Brings it down to about $2 per package. Lots of other nice bulbs discounted as well (in fact, all the plant material except houseplants is 75% off).

Thanks so much for the info. I just may have to go. I've always heard good things about New Garden. It's only 30 minutes away. Thank you again for the info.

Just got the latest catalog from Brent and Becky and they have both the coum and hederifolium tubers for sale.