Vermont Public is independent, community-supported media, serving Vermont with trusted, relevant and essential information. We share stories that bring people together, from every corner of our region. New to Vermont Public? Start here.

© 2024 Vermont Public | 365 Troy Ave. Colchester, VT 05446

Public Files:
WVTI · WOXM · WVBA · WVNK · WVTQ · WVTX
WVPR · WRVT · WOXR · WNCH · WVPA
WVPS · WVXR · WETK · WVTB · WVER
WVER-FM · WVLR-FM · WBTN-FM

For assistance accessing our public files, please contact hello@vermontpublic.org or call 802-655-9451.
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

For information about listening to Vermont Public Radio, please go here.

Vermont Garden Journal: Caring For Cyclamen Plants

Paolo_Toffanin
/
iStock
The cyclamen makes both a good house and garden plant when properly cared for.

The cyclamen plant was also used medically to treat depression and the tubers were even fed to pigs, hence the common name, "pig bread." With the proper care, it now makes a terrific indoor or outdoor plant.

How to care for the plant indoors

Place your indoor cyclamen plants in a sunny window in a room where the temperatures are cool at night. Water only after the soil dries out and the pot is light weight. Deadhead the spent flowers all winter.

Then, by early summer, let the pot dry out and the leaves die. This is the natural resting time for cyclamens. Place it in cool, dark place all summer and start watering again in fall to stimulate growth and flowering.

If aphids or mites infect your plants, cut back the foliage to the tuber. The plant will re-grow.

This week's tip: Do a seed germination test now before ordering new seeds. If you're germination percentage is below 70%, buy new seeds. If you use the old seeds, plant more than normal to account for the lower germination.

Charlie Nardozzi is a nationally recognized garden writer, radio and TV show host, consultant, and speaker. Charlie is the host of All Things Gardening on Sunday mornings at 9:35 during Weekend Edition on Vermont Public. Charlie is a guest on Vermont Public's Vermont Edition during the growing season. He also offers garden tips on local television and is a frequent guest on national programs.
Latest Stories