In article ,
says...


"danny22" wrote in message
...

After spending four quid buying a cyclamen from b&q in the morning, a
colleague from work came in with a tray of six of them in the afternoon
and said b&q were throwing them out because they were starting to fade.
so she gave me another one to add to the one i had bought.

admittedly they did look pretty rough, but im a sucker for a plant in
distress, and i like to make them well again. i know their flowering
season is almost over, but i have read that once it ends, the tubers
stay dormant for a few months, then start to sprout again as the
weather turns cooler. is this true? i hope so, because despite the
fact they now look pretty shabby, i like them when in full bloom! does
anyone have any experience with them and how to care for them in
blooming and dormant seasons?

many thanks! I'm new to the site, and new to all manners of gardening,
but a lot of people have been really helpful and answered my questions
really well, so thanks if anyone can help me here too! i promise i'll
find my feet eventually

danny

My wife is the gardener, but she planted some in the bed and they have over
a period of time spread to the gravel bed and are 'almost' a weed now.

She explained to me that the method of self propagation is that the flower
bends over and drops the seed straight in the ground, therefore these plants
must have leaned over the edge of the garden to drop their seeds :-)

Care? None at all, they did it by themselves!!!!!

Someone will now correct me :-(

Mike



Would only add that it rather depends on the species, some are completely
hardy C. hederefolium (autumn) C. coum (spring) but C persica with large
flowers is more tricky and will only succeed outside if our winters
remain this mild. The seed is often dispersed by ants who like the sticky
goo surrounding them, as mike says they are an easy thing to grow, easier
outside than in in many ways!
--
Charlie Pridham, Gardening in Cornwall
www.roselandhouse.co.uk
Holders of national collections of Clematis viticella cultivars and
Lapageria rosea