Cyclamen coum blooming in the Witt Winter Garden in early February. (Photo by Niall Dunne)
BY REBECCA ALEXANDER & NIALL DUNNE
This regular column features Q&A selected and adapted from the Elisabeth C. Miller Library’s Plant Answer Line program. If you’d like to ask a plant or gardening question of your own, please call (206) 897-5268 (UW Plant), send it via the library website (www.millerlibrary.org), or email directly to hortlib@uw.edu.
QUESTION:
Cyclamen is officially named in Linnaeus’s “Species Plantarum” (1753), but I am guessing the name’s origin is earlier? Also, somewhere on the internet, there is a rumor that cave paintings of cyclamen exist, but I have yet to find proof of that. I am planning to do a botanical illustration that draws on historic depictions.
ANSWER:
We also could not find evidence for cave paintings of the plant, but the name Cyclamen goes back much farther than the time of the 18th-century Swedish botanist Carl Linnaeus. It is a Latinized version of the ancient Greek word kyklāmīnos, meaning “circle,” probably a reference to the plant’s round tuber. It could also be a reference to how the flower stalk of cyclamen typically spirals into a coil as the fruit develops (an adaptation that allows cyclamen to “plant” their own seeds at their feet).
There are pre-Linnaean descriptions of the plant from the time of Greek philosopher Theophrastus (3rd century B.C.E.), and it appears in various translations of the “Treatise of Plants,” by Greek physician Dioscorides (who lived in 1st century C.E.). The Roman naturalist Pliny the Elder (24–79 CE) also wrote about the medicinal qualities of cyclamen. Supposedly, there is a sculpted cyclamen in a house in Pompeii, but it is hard to recognize any of the plant’s distinctive characteristics.
Of course, cyclamen is not just one particular plant! A member of the primrose family, Primulaceae, the genus Cyclamen contains 25 species of low-growing, herbaceous perennials, mainly native to the Mediterranean Basin. Dormant during much of the hot Mediterranean summer, cyclamens emerge in autumn or winter and die back in spring.
Some of the species are popular garden or house plants, prized for their handsome, ground-hugging foliage and beautiful, butterfly-shaped flowers. Several are hardy in mild, temperate climates—such as our own in the Pacific Northwest—and can be grown outdoors.
Florist’s cyclamen, Cyclamen persicum, blooming in the wild in Israel. (Photo courtesy Hanay/Wikimedia)
Emergence, leaf shape and flowering time vary among species. For instance, at the Witt Winter Garden in the Arboretum, ivy-leaved cyclamen (Cyclamen hederifolium)—native from southern France to western Turkey—starts sending up its lovely, light-pink flowers in late August. However, Cyclamen coum—native to the Black Sea region—sends up its kidney-shaped, variegated leaves and magenta-to-pink flowers in late winter.
Two main species are traditionally used for medicine: the purple cyclamen, Cyclamen purpurascens (syn. C. europaeum), native to central Europe; and the florist’s cyclamen, C. persicum, native to Turkey and the Middle East. The tubers were used to treat a variety of maladies, including nervous emotional states, digestive issues and rhinosinusitis.
Though not native to England, cyclamen have been cultivated there for centuries. English herbalist John Gerard wrote about it in his 1597 “Generall Historie of Plantes,” saying that in shops it is sold as “Cyclamen, Panis porcinus, and Arthanita.” In England and other regions, the common name for the plant was “sowbread,” suggesting the tubers were also eaten by pigs.
According to “Genus Cyclamen in Science, Cultivation, Art and Culture,” edited by Brian Mathew, historical depictions of cyclamen date back to the 6th century. Included here (see below) is a beautiful representation by artist Antonio Guarnerino da Padova, dating to 1441.
Ivy-leaved cyclamen, Cyclamen hederifolium, blooming in the Winter Garden in August.
QUESTION:
I brought home a florist’s cyclamen at the beginning of November (a couple of weeks ago), and it is now the saddest thing ever. All of the leaves and flowers shriveled up and went mushy. I just cut it back to the bulb base. I bought it from a greenhouse and wanted to keep it as a house plant. It did receive filtered sunlight. Can it come back? What should I do for it to succeed and be healthy?
ANSWER:
Flowering from midwinter to spring, florist’s cyclamen (Cyclamen persicum) is generally considered a tender perennial in our area. In a protected outdoor area, it can tolerate temperatures as low as 25 degrees Fahrenheit—but not for long—and it doesn’t like frost. So, it’s really best grown as an indoor plant.
On his website, local gardening expert Ed Hume describes the ideal conditions for growing this plant in your home:
“Indoors, they must have ample humidity. One suitable way of providing the humidity is to simply place a glass or decorative vase full of water near the plant. Then, as the water evaporates it provides the humidity the cyclamen needs. The second most important requirement of indoor cyclamen is the need for cool temperatures. Keep them in a room where temperatures range between 55 and 65 degrees Fahrenheit. Keep the soil a little on the moist side, but never continually wet. Water with room temperature water. When given proper care, it is not unusual for this plant to continue to grow and flower for several years.”
Perhaps your plant is mushy because of too much water, or the indoor air is too hot and dry. Try Ed’s tips. Also, don’t place your cyclamen in direct sunlight in a south-facing window. The plant prefers bright, but indirect, sun. ❦
Rebecca Alexander is the former manager of Reference and Technical Services at the Miller Library, located in the UW Botanic Gardens’ Center for Urban Horticulture (3501 NE 41st Street, Seattle). Niall Dunne is the editor of the “Arboretum Bulletin” and the communications manager at the Arboretum Foundation.
References
- Gerard, John (1597). “The Herball” or “Generall Historie of Plantes” (1st ed.). London: John Norton.
- Hume, Ed. “Cyclamen: A Showy Flower for the Fall Garden.” Archived on web.archive.org.
- Mathew, Brian. “Genus Cyclamen: In Science, Cultivation, Art and Culture.” Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. 2013.
- Sharara, Aya et al. “Comprehensive Review of Cyclamen: Development, Bioactive Properties, and Therapeutic Applications.” “Pharmaceuticals.” 17(7), 848. 2024.
“Herbe Pincte,” by A.G. da Padova (Biblioteca Civica Angelo Mai).
Subscribe to Our Bulletin Magazine!
This article is reprinted from the winter 2026 issue of the Arboretum Bulletin, our quarterly botanical and horticultural magazine. Published since 1937, the Bulletin is a benefit of Arboretum Foundation membership and features in-depth articles on the Arboretum collections and history, as well as general information of interest to plant lovers in the Pacific Northwest and beyond. Join/subscribe today.
