Gardening with Gary

Gardening Advice from an Expert

Cyclamen

Q. I received a Cyclamen as a gift and need to know how to take care of it. Is it an indoor plant or outdoor, does it like sun or shade, lots of water, or kind of dry? It did not come with any instructions as some potted plants do. I will kill it within a week or less, as I am terribly inept with plants. But this is so beautiful I would really like for it to live. Please help!

A. Cyclamen are often forced for gifts and then grown as a house plant. But, they do not flourish inside, unless in a solarium. Outside, they need warm temperatures without any frost. Give it some sunlight, in the AM and no direct hot PM sun. Keep well-watered in well-drained soil, since the roots rot easily if kept overly moist. Feed them monthly with a flowering plant food, usually one tablespoon per gallon water. They bloom quite well all summer long if they do not get too hot.

Watch for any damage in the plant interior and new leaves. They are very susceptible to mites and must be treated promptly to avoid death.

They have a tuber, so you can allow them to die back and then revive them later. As the fall temps drop, you can bring inside and overwinter, allowing to grow vegetatively in the spring and then return outside after frost.