CYCLAMEN COUM for JANUARY

Cyclamen coum
Blooming on Shaw Island 
this day of
21 January'21 

     
"Cyclamen is a genus of some seventeen species, dispersed in southern Europe and countries bordering the Mediterranean, through Turkey and southern Russia to Iran. Most occur in deciduous or light coniferous woodland or in shaded sites on rocky hillsides, with a general altitude range from 1,000 to 7,000 feet, although some grow near sea level.
      Willam Turner, the "father of English botany," had not seen Cyclamen in Britain when, in his New Herbal of 1551, he proposed the common name sowesbread, "lest it should be nameless, if ether it should be brought into England, or be found in anye place in England." According to Philip Miller, "it is call'd Sowbread, because the root is like a loaf, and the Sows eat it." Know as pain de porceau in France, it is said to have provided food for wild boars in parts of southern Europe and Turkey. Mrs. Beeton, the famous Victorian cookery writer, claimed that the pigs' diet of Cyclamen bulbs imparted special flavour to the pork products of the Perigord.
      Cyclamen were valued by apothecaries long before they were cultivated but curiously, in view of their reputed medicinal properties, Cyclamen were not known in Britain until the late 16th C. when Gerard had in his garden two of the common species cultivated today, Cyclamen hederifolium and C. coum.
      Among gardeners, particularly rock garden and alpine enthusiasts, there has been a great demand for Cyclamen species in recent years.
      Propagation by the division of the tubers, formed in Cyclamen from the swollen hypocotyl, the tissue between root and shoot, is occasionally successful. However, the species are best raised from seed which, with few exceptions, is freely produced and will germinate readily if sown fresh, as will old seed soaked in water for a day or so. The young seedlings should be encouraged to continue growing as long as possible and not dried off. Even after the leaves have died down, the tubers should be kept slightly moist to avoid shriveling. Using a gritty, free-draining, leafy compost, with an annual top dressing as they come into growth each season, they will thrive in containers for several years.
      While measures to stop the over-collecting of Cyclamen in the wild must not be relaxed, the maintenance, increase, and distribution of almost all the species from material already in cultivation represents a success story. It is vital that this conservation model should be followed for other endangered plants in the future."

Christopher Brickell and Fay Sharman.
The Vanishing Garden, A Conservation Guide to Garden Plants. London.
John Murray Publisher; in association with the Royal Horticulture Society. 1986

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There was another Cyclamen that had been growing for many years near the Shaw Island ferry landing. It was rescued from the path of a bulldozer preparing for asphalt ferry traffic lanes. Here is a post about Cyclamen hederifolium happily, still with us. Click here

Some year there will be seeds available in little packages in the seed shed. 

SEED SOWING

Gatehouse Globe Thistle 
(Echinops bannaticus)
Island seeds being packed 
for winter-spring planting.
Gatehouse shed on 
Reefnet Bay Road, Shaw Island.

My idea of heaven is to spend the cold winter evenings going through the Chiltern's seed catalogue. Even if I don't order much, the knowledge gained from such a publication is time well spent. I try to order the seeds of at least five unfamiliar plants. Seed is relatively inexpensive and the surprise of success is fun.
          Most of our seeds are started on a heat table in an unheated greenhouse. Hardy perennials are started at the end of January but I wait until the end of March to sow my annual seeds. It does not help to start annuals too soon, most of them cannot be planted out until mid-May anyway.
          I make up a general seed starting mix by screening 2-parts potting soil and 1-part peat moss through a 3/4inch screen. I fill 4-inch plastic pots with the mixture. Since different seeds vary in their germination time it is better to have them in separate pots rather than several in one large tray. After filling the pots compress the soil a bit and then water until the soil is soaked through. This creates a smooth and even surface on which to sprinkle the seeds.
          The general rule of thumb for seed sowing is to cover the seed with a layer of soil the thickness of the seed. Big seeds like cardoon get a good 3/8-inch of soil cover. Fine seeds get about 1/8-inch. I water the seeds gently after sowing and put them in the greenhouse on the heat table. A good temperature for germinating most seeds is 70 degrees. Small propagating mats are available at Charley's Greenhouse.
          When the seedlings have developed their first set of true leaves they are transplanted into their own 4-inch pots. If they are to go into the garden within a couple of weeks they can go into six-pack pots.
          I always have a surplus of plants that I have grown from seed. How could something so huge come from such a little pack of seeds? Do I really need all those plants? It is the lure of all those plants in January that is so irresistible. I guess this is the point at which people end up starting their own nurseries. Well, Molbaks can rest easy, I am not planning on quitting my day job.

Jennifer Titus
Seed Sowing
Courtesy of The Social Gardner
The Journal of the Whatcom Horticultural Society
Vol. 10.No.1 Spring 1998. Verbatim.

And lots more protected in lidded jars 

in the seed shed,

while we enjoy the humid season.

Stop by the Gatehouse,

Reefnet Bay Road, Shaw Island.