The Cyclamen

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXIV, Issue 22628, 16 January 1937, Page 10 (Supplement)

The Cyclamen

Renewal of Life Care in Repotting, RENEWED signs of life will soon be apparent in those pots of cyclamen corms that were put carefully in a shady place for tho resting period. Some no doubt, after the recent rains will be showing a leaf or two. The plants should not be treated as a. batch but rather as individuals, and some discretion should be used in the watering for a while.

It is not a good plan to immediately restore the. water lation. As a commencement cyclamen are quite satislied with overhead sprayings and damping down between the pots in the frame. As soon as fresh root action is evident' repotting can be taken in hand. The five or six inch pots in which tho majority were growing are again amply large enough for most of them, though an extra strong speciman may be better suited with a shift to a seven inch pot later.

A good compost can be made up of parts fibrous loam, one part welldecayed cow manure, so dry and powdery that it may be passed through

POTTING CYCLAMEN (a) Soil level, (b) Compost, (c) Drainage.

a half inch sieve, and a fair sprinkling of sharp sand. Fertilisers are minecessary at this stage, as the plants have an objection to over-rich or elaborate soil concoctions.

The important points are to s,ee that the compost is sweet and wholesome, and the pots and drainage crocks thoroughly clean. This latter .is an important item, as bad drainage or dirt in any form is absolutely foreign to tho naturo of the plants. Shake the roots quito free from the old soil when repotting, and .some care will need to be exercised to see that the tender tips of the roots are not broken off in tho process.

The corms should finally rest level with the pot rim, and on the surface of the soih < The -easiest method of procedure is to .hold tljem in position and work the soil round with the' fingers. It should of course be moderately Jinn.' but not rammed into a firm, impenetrable mass. During the summer months everything possible should be done to promote a healthy growth of foliage. A cold frame is the ideal home for the plants, and a system of ventilation which has for its object summer warmth, .without undue sunshine, with surroundings that are always more or less . moist, are the only means of attaining this end. Frequent dampings of the frame bed. and watering lightly overhead with a fine rose, will maintain a crowing atmosphere. The cyclamen will be ready for housing „ibout the end of March, and a position' close to the glass is best for them. There they will have the benefit of all tho light available to encourage sturdy growth. Watering will still require careful attention. especially during the cold weather when the roots are unable to absorb the same quantity as in warmer spells. An occasional dose of liquid manure made very weak will also he of benefit;

If those pests, preen flv or t-brins, make their appearance, do not dally with the fumigating. There is a leaf roller caterpillar which is sometimes very troublesome on cvclamen plants, disfiguring the leaves.With a few plants these may be searched for and destroyed by pinching the leaves between finger and thumb, Tn the case of large batches it may pay to give a light spraving over with arsenate of lead occasionally.