Meet the most famous types of cyclamen
Among indoor ornamental flowering plants, a special place is occupied by cyclamen - an incredibly beautiful plant with a spectacular flowering and a difficult character. Today there are more than 50 types of cyclamen, among them there are both deciduous representatives and flowers that winter with leaves. All of them are very beautiful, and sometimes it can be very difficult to choose one copy. We bring to your attention a short selection of the most common varieties of cyclamen. Perhaps, having familiarized yourself with them more closely, it will become easier to determine the desired flower.
Persistent Persian Cyclamen
The Persian cyclamen has romantic heart-shaped leaves up to 14 cm in diameter, on the green surface of which a light pattern appears, while the total height of the bush is 30 cm.The tuber of the plant is small (up to 15 cm in diameter), with one growth point. Butterfly flowers can have a wide variety of colors, from delicate whites and pinks to rich purples and reds, it all depends on the specific type of plant. 
Today, the Persian cyclamen has many hybrids.
Hybrid varieties bloom longer than the parent cyclamen and have larger inflorescences.
The Persian cyclamen is characterized by a short growing season - no more than 4 months, but all this time the bush blooms profusely. Then the cyclamen seems to freeze, that is, it does not grow, but it does not fade either, although some hybrids can throw off the leaves in the summer.
Fragrant European cyclamen
The types of cyclamens are very similar to each other and beginner growers often confuse them. Most of all "gets" the European and Persian varieties, moreover, many believe that this is one and the same plant. However, this opinion is fundamentally wrong, because the European cyclamen is a separate type of flower and it came to us from the Alps.
As an indoor flower, European cyclamen is grown quite rarely, but under natural conditions, in its homeland, it is very common. There, the flower is called alpine violet, as well as purple or blushing cyclamen, although white-pink tones prevail in the color of the inflorescences.
The European cyclamen has such characteristic features, thanks to which it is easy to distinguish it from the Persian cyclamen:
- the European and all its hybrids are not deciduous plants and during the dormant period they simply stop growing, but the leaves do not shed;
- while the Persian is resting (in summer), the European is blooming, and vice versa;
- has a more compact shape (leaves and inflorescences are smaller than those of the Persian cyclamen);
- the flowers have a pleasant aroma, while the lighter the inflorescences, the thinner and nobler it is;
- the reverse side of the rounded heart-shaped leaves has a pale purple tint;
- inflorescences consist of five elongated petals, slightly twisted in a spiral, and rise above the bush on long peduncles.
The roots of the European cyclamen grow throughout the corm, so it can be almost completely "buried" in the soil. In addition, the species reproduces easily due to its ability to form daughter bulbs.
Today there are several hybrid forms of this plant species. The most popular of them are considered to be:
- Purpurascens;
- Carmineolineatum;
- Lake garda;
- Album.
Heat-loving and fast-growing African cyclamen
Among the pink-colored cyclamens, the African cyclamen is a separate species. Its delicate and fragrant inflorescences appear in spring and adorn the bush until autumn. They can be either pale pink or deep pink. Quite large, up to 15 cm in diameter, green leaves with a silvery sheen grow directly from the corms.
The African cyclamen variety is characterized by the appearance of peduncles first, and already at the end of flowering (in September) it begins to release young leaves.
African cyclamen belongs to deciduous, and sheds foliage during the dormant period. He rests in a cool place (no more than 15 degrees Celsius), but due to his thermophilic character he is very afraid of low temperatures and, oddly enough, the sun. When grown outdoors, it needs shade and additional shelter for the winter. Of all the cyclamen species, the African has an accelerated growth rate and is developing rapidly.
Freedom-loving alpine cyclamen
Alpine cyclamen is one of the wild plant species. For a long time it was considered extinct, but even today the flower can still be found, most often in natural conditions. The variety is characterized by the arrangement of the inflorescence petals at right angles (upright), in addition, they twist slightly.
Alpine cyclamen blooms in spring, exuding a delicate honey smell, the main color of the flowers is various shades of pink. The leaf plate is oval and slightly tinted gray.
Endangered species - Colchis cyclamen
The Pontic cyclamen, as this species is also called, has recently become a plant that is protected from mass destruction. The flower is listed in the Red Book, although its plantings are still quite large. But as a result of the active use of cyclamen for medical purposes and for drawing up bouquets, its number decreases every year.
Colchis cyclamen is slow growing, and the seeds ripen throughout the year. The roots grow throughout the corm, the leaves grow simultaneously with the appearance of peduncles. Inflorescences are small, pink, with a more intensely colored edge, from which a strong aroma emanates. The pattern on the leaf plate is absent or weakly expressed. Pontic cyclamen prefers humid and shady places.
The flowering time of a plant depends on the growing conditions. In nature, flowering lasts no more than 1.5 months and falls at the beginning of autumn (from September to October). At home, the bush blooms in July and pleases the eye until mid-autumn.
The many-sided Greek cyclamen
Already from the name it becomes clear that the Greek cyclamen came to us from Greece, it also grows freely on the islands of Crete, Cyprus and on the warm coast of Turkey. Depending on the specific variety, cyclamen can have both heart-shaped and simply oval leaves. They are painted in different shades of green; lighter spots with a characteristic pattern clearly appear on the surface.
As for the color of the inflorescences, all shades of pink predominate here, and in some specimens, the base is painted purple and slightly curved. Peduncles appear both with leaves and before them.
There is also a white Greek cyclamen in nature, but it is not grown at home. The white-flowered variety is listed in the Red Book.
Early flowering Kosky cyclamen
A decorative type of cyclamen with the appropriate name came to us from the distant island of Koss. Its lush bushes with rounded heart-shaped leaves produce flower stalks even in winter or early spring. The color of inflorescences can be very diverse: from white to rich shades of pink and even red.Regardless of the main tone, the base of the petal is always darker than the rest of it. The leaves themselves appear only at the end of flowering, in the fall, and the cyclamen goes to winter with them.
In the Kosky cyclamen, roots grow only in the lower part of the corm. It is painted in a very beautiful, deep brown color and has a velvety surface.
Miniature Cypriot cyclamen
One of the most compact types of cyclamen, Cypriot, grows to a height of no more than 16 cm. Despite its modest size, it has a persistent character: in nature, the flower is able to live and develop even on stony soils, it is not for nothing that its most numerous "settlements" are found in the mountains.
Perennial "baby" and blooms very gently, white or light pink inflorescences with a darker spot at the base. The flowering period of the Cypriot cyclamen falls at the beginning of autumn and sometimes lasts until the very end of winter.
The most frost-resistant ivy cyclamen
One of the most common types of cyclamen, which is grown in the vastness of our homeland, including indoor floriculture.
The characteristic features of the plant include:
- pink color of petals (not counting white-flowered hybrids, which do not occur in natural conditions);
- superficial root system;
- winter-spring flowering period;
- delicate aroma;
- small horns at the inflorescences;
- the rounded shape of the leaves with grooves, due to which it resembles ivy foliage.
The ivy-leaved cyclamen (or Neapolitan) can bloom both before the leaves appear, and simultaneously with their blooming.
It is possible to list the varieties of this diverse plant for a very long time, and even its hybrids cannot be remembered at all. Sometimes it is simply unrealistic to distinguish them from each other, and is it really necessary? They are all very beautiful, no matter when the delicate flower butterflies bloom and what color they are painted. Let's just grow these amazing types of cyclamens on our plot or in pots and admire their beauty, because sometimes we lack a sense of unity with nature.