Pronounciation: SIGH-cla-men PURR-si-cum

Hardiness zones
Sunset All
USDA All

Landscape Use: Persian cyclamen is a coolest of the cool season annuals in Phoenix used mostly as a bedding plant, mesic landscape design themes, floral accent, edging plant, raised planters, containers, indoor atriums. Otherwise, extensively used as a pot plant, gift plant.

Form & Character: Miniature, rosetting, floral spikes stiffly erect, delicate, bright and colorful, innocent.

Growth Habit: Evergreen, tuberous, herbaceous, seasonally dormant perennial treated as a cool season annual in Phoenix, rossette of leaves to 4-inches tall with spikes of flowers to 10-inches tall. Produces a dark-brown tuberous root that is semi-poisonous.

Foliage/Texture: Rosetting foliage, individual leaves cordate with a strong central vein, semi-succulent, sometimes faint patterns of adaxial leaf surface chimera; medium coarse texture.

Flowers & Fruits: Flowers born on stiff stalks consist of five, small sepals and five, upswept petals, usually white, pink to rose red, sometimes bi-color; fruits are unattractive capsules, sunk into the ground with increasing maturity by waxing and curling of the stem. Fruit capsules only open when they are in the ground.

Seasonal Color: Winter floral accent.

Temperature: Cardinal temperature range is 30^oF to 80^oF; thus, thrives during Phoenix winter cold, but is completely incapable of growing outdoors in Phoenix from late March through November.

Light: Full sun during winter only.

Soil: Soils must be well drained and heavily amended with organic matter. Persian cyclamen is salt sentive, intolerant of soil alkalinity.

Watering: Regular supplemental water applied to create an evenly-moist soil environment is absolutely required in Phoenix, drought intolerant.

Pruning: None

Propagation: For seed propagation, sow seeds fresh, cover with soil substrate and germinate in the dark at 65^oF. Germination typically occurs within 20 to 30 days. Asexual propagation by leaf cutting and tissue culture also.

Disease and Pests: Sensitive to soil and foliar pathogens including pythium, fusarium wilt, botrytis, powdery mildew, and mosaic and ringspot virus.

Additional comments: In Phoenix, Persian cyclamen has a well-defined outdoor landscape role as a colorful, cool-season edging plant. Otherwise, it is beloved worldwide for its intricate flowers. Native Cyclamen flowers have a distinct fragrance, but cultivated selections have no floral fragrance. Love cyclamen? Then why not consider joining the Cyclamen Society?

Taxonomic factoid: There are six recognized varieties or forms and several other popular Cyclamen species. Additionally, there are many popular cultivated selections.