Tough-as-Nails Hardy Cyclamen
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| Photo Credit: Sarah E. Smith |
| A cluster of pale pink hardy cyclamen (center) thrives in the dry shade of a dogwood tree. |
I have a confession to make: There’s a secret plant cemetery in my yard…a place where only Stephen King could find inspiration. Everything I’ve planted there, including many promising perennials passed over the fence from my favorite neighbor, have inexorably withered and vanished.
The perp? A Norway maple whose dark canopy and mega-roots create a subtle but relentless desert of bone-dry shade. Never mind the repeated additions of rich compost and manure. Never mind the soaker hose. Never mind all the futile ministrations of gardening’s version of a helicopter parent. Impatiens, dead. Japanese iris, dead. Hardy geranium, dead. Rhododendron, dead. Hellebore, ready for the ICU – stat! | Add Photo to Journal |  | | Photo Credit: Sarah E. Smith | | Hardy cyclamen corms, like this one found growing under Douglas firs and red alders in a state park in Portland, OR, can get as large as a dinner plate! |
But one day, my generous, optimistic neighbor – the embodiment of a never-say-die attitude – offered me a clump of hardy cyclamen: Cyclamen hederifolium (also known as C. neopolitanum). Cyclamen is a paradox: While it likes shade, it won’t tolerate soil wetness and bad drainage. Instead, it flourishes in competitive, dry summer settings under shrubs and trees where few blooming plants will grow. It’s especially pleased with little or no summer rain, which means the plant’s ideal for the Pacific Northwest.
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| Warnings |
- Cyclamen is considered a toxic plant, so be careful where you plant it if you’ve got pets (or curious kids) who like to forage through your garden.
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| Facts |
- Cyclamen hederifolium is native to Turkey, Italy and the upper Mediterranean region.
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| Definitions |
- Corm: A swollen, bulb-like underground stem that serves as a propagative structure in cyclamen, as well as crocus, gladiolus and other plants.
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