How to sow tender cyclamen seeds

BBC Gardeners' World Magazine

Published: Friday, 1 May 2020 at 1:10 pm

Learn how to grow pretty indoor cyclamens by sowing the seeds in pots, in our step by step guide.

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Sowing cyclamen from seed is surprisingly easy, but it's not a job for the impatient gardener – it can take a year or more before you're rewarded with beautiful blooms.

To produce indoor cyclamen plants you need to use seeds of tender large-flowered varieties, which are available in a wonderful range of colours.

Learn how to sow tender cyclamen seeds, below.

To produce indoor cyclamen plants you need to use seeds of tender large-flowered varieties.

You Will Need

Cyclamen seed
10cm pot
Seed compost
Vermiculite
Sheet of glass
Black polythene

Step 1

Sowing cyclamen seed

Before sowing, soak the cyclamen seeds in warm water for at least 12 hours, to soften the seed coat, then rinse. Sow seeds into pots of compost, spacing them evenly.

Step 2

Sprinkling vermiculite over the cyclamen seed

Sprinkle a layer of fine vermiculite or compost over the seeds until the surface is covered completely.

Step 3

Watering the pot after sowing cyclamen seed

Water, then cover with a sheet of glass and a layer of black polythene to shut out the light and encourage germination. Keep temperature no higher than 16° - 21°.

Step 4

Cyclamen seedlings

Check pot regularly. Germination can take 30 - 60 days, and once the seedlings appear, remove the covering and pop your pot into a bright position.

Step 5

Small cyclamen plant

Leaves develop from a tiny tuber, and once two or three leaves have formed the plants can be potted up separately.

Step 6

Potted cyclamen plant

Plant individually into 7.5cm pots of multi-purpose compost, keeping the tiny tuber level with the surface of the compost.

Step 7

Potting on cyclamen plants

Pot on into larger containers as your plants grow, watering them regularly and feeding them once a week. Most varieties should begin flowering about nine months after sowing. Keep them in a cool spot.

Remove faded flowers or yellowing leaves by twisting stems and giving them a firm tug.

Watering can

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