Species · genus Cyclamen · Primulaceae

Sowbread

Cyclamen hederifolium Aiton

Also known as: Ivy-leaved Cyclamen · Hardy Cyclamen · Ivy-leaf Cyclamen

Growth habit

tuberous geophyte

Native range

Albania, Bulgaria, East Aegean Is., France, Greece, Italy, NW. Balkan Pen., Switzerland, Türkiye

Reference · C. hederifolium

Cultivars of C. hederifolium

The named forms growers keep — each with its own page, each honest about how much we know.

No named cultivars catalogued under C. hederifolium yet. When growers document a stable, named form, it earns its own page here.

Guide

The species-level account. Cultivar pages build on this and say where they differ.

Cyclamen hederifolium is a tuberous geophyte from the woodlands and rocky slopes of the Mediterranean and Balkans, where it grows in cool, leafy soil and stores water in its tuber. Water only when the top inch of mix has dried, keeping the tuber's crown dry to avoid rot, and expect it to die back and rest dormant through the warm months. It favours cool conditions and bright, indirect light rather than direct sun.

Care recipe

The species record — the baseline every cultivar inherits unless it says otherwise.

Care notes are early — not yet verified

Light: ai:claude-opus-4-8
Water: ai:claude-opus-4-8 (range 7-14d)
Humidity: ai:claude-opus-4-8
Soil: ai:claude-fable-5
Care: ai:claude-fable-5

Light

Bright, indirect

Water

≈ every 14 days

Humidity

Medium

Temperature

5–18 °C

Soil mix

Well-draining mix, gritty with organic matter

Propagation

Seed; tubers rest dormant through summer dormancy

Fertilizing

Dilute balanced feed monthly while in active leaf and bloom

Growth rate

Slow

Flowering

Pink autumn blooms that appear before the ivy-shaped leaves

ToxicityAuthoritative · species

Toxic to cats & dogs & humans

Primulaceae; Cyclamen tubers contain saponins (triterpenoid glycosides) that are toxic if ingested. This is where toxicity lives: every cultivar of this species inherits it and none can override it.

Reference images

Every image credited. Licenses link to their deeds.

No reference gallery yet

A few clear photos — habit, a mature leaf, a flower if it blooms — would give this page its eyes.

Add images

Sources: ai:claude-opus-4-8 · ai:claude-opus-4-8 (range 7-14d) · ai:claude-fable-5 · ai:claude-opus-4-8 (family inference)

Kept true by its growers

Every fact here carries its source. Grow Sowbread yourself? What you’ve observed — how it drinks, how it holds its color, a name that’s off — is exactly what keeps this page honest. Contributions are reviewed before anything changes.