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Cyclamen hederifolium
Also called Ivy Leaved Cyclamen, Hardy Cyclamen, Ivy Leaf Cyclamen
Sowbread is a hardy tuberous perennial that flowers and produces leaves in autumn, grows through winter, and rests in summer. It is best grown in shade under trees, where it self-seeds freely.
Cyclamen hederifolium, sowbread, or ivy-leaved cyclamen, is a species of flowering plant in the family Primulaceae, native to woodland, shrubland, and rocky areas at altitudes of up to 1,200 metres in the Mediterranean region from southern France to western Turkey and on Mediterranean islands. It is also naturalised farther north in Europe and in Oregon. This widespread cyclamen species is widely cultivated and among the most hardy and vigorous in oceanic climates.
Cyclamen hederifolium is usually listed as the hardiest species of cyclamen. In oceanic climates, it self-seeds abundantly and will crowd out less vigorous species such as Cyclamen coum if the two are planted together. In cold continental climates such as Calgary, Alberta, where Cyclamen purpurascens grows well, it may not survive. It is hardy to zone 6, tolerating temperatures down to -18°C, or lower (to -30°C) if protected by reliable snow cover.
This plant has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit (confirmed 2017).
Cyclamen cilicium · Eastern sowbread · Cyclamen mirabile · Florist's cyclamen · Cyclamen pseudibericum · European Cyclamen · Spring Sowbread · Sowbread
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Cyclamen hederifolium by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
Pet safety from the ASPCA toxic and non-toxic plant lists.
