Cyclamen Mirabile

Description

This species has attractive leaves often marked in pink or silvery-grey, and bears in autumn, pale pink flowers with a small purple basal blotch. These are generally sub-orbicular with shallow dentations at the margins. The upper surface often has silvery markings, but very often there are carmine-pink zones which are especially pronounced when the leaves are immature, and often ages to a silvery grey. In some forms the red colouring covers the entire surface of the leaf, ageing to an allover silver wash. This form is available in cultivation under the name C. mirabile 'Tilebarn Ann'. An intermediate form with a dark Christmas Tree shape in the centre, surrounded by a wide pink/silver band is named C. mirabile 'Tilebarn Nicholas'.

Sowing Advice

Seeds should be sown at any time, and as soon as possible after you have received them. Sow the seeds thinly onto a gritty, loamy compost and cover about 6mm or 1/4 inch deep as light can inhibit germination. Keep at between 10 and 15 degrees C. Germination can take from one to twelve months and is generally erratic, a strategy that has evolved to protect the strain in the wild. Pot on into a low-organic content compost.

Key Facts