Jan. 1 - Salt Spring Island Archives

Wednesday, January 1, 1986 GULF ISLANDS DRIFTWOODCyclamen flowers flourishwith proper attention, careIn the twinkling of an eye,Christmas is past and all of thehustle and rush of makingpreparations has faded intohistory. Hopefully, all of thepresents found their way under thetree, and all of the lights anddecorations adorn your home.Many homes will also be gracedwith some colourful indoor plantsthat add to the festive mood, andmany of you may have received aplant as a gift and wonder how tocare for it properly. Three weeksago 1 covered the topic ofpoinsettias and this time around,cyclamens are a deserving topic.One of the less traditionalflowers at Christmas time is theindoor cyclamen, Cyclamenpersica, also known as florists'cyclamen.This plant, native to the easternMediterranean, has a few closerelatives that are hardy out-ofdoors.In our climate, however, theindoor cyclamen will not survivefreezing conditions.The hybrids grown today lackthe fragrance of blossom that theparent species has, however theymore than compensate by givingan almost continuous productionof large beautiful blossoms on aplant that grows to 12 to 14 inchesin height. They are available in awide range of colours, includingYourgardenBY CHRIS SCHMAHwhite, pink, violet, magenta, red,and two-toned or edged blossomsalso.Cyclamens like to have brightlight and between late Septemberand April they can take as muchsun as you can give them. BetweenApril and September, keep themout of direct sun. Give them goodventilation, because they needclean, fresh air and, for the longestblooming period, try to keep thetemperature cool. Temperatures aslow as 50 degrees fahrenheit aretolerable and are helpful inkeeping the plant compact andbloom-laden.The cyclamen grows new leavesand flowers from the top of itscorm, which is a fleshy tuber thatrests on the soil surface and is verysensitive to water. Water the plantsfrom below by setting it in a saucerof tepid water or by immersing thepot in a bucket of tepid water, upto the level of, but not onto, thecorm. Above all, keep the corm dryNature club lists schedulefor January excursionsThe January program for theSalt Spring Trail and Nature Clubis as follows:January 14: Easy Walk: PipelineTrail. Leader Ernie Jenkins. Meet10 am. Centennial Park.Walk: South end of Island. Sealevelwalk. Leader: Jack Foster.Meet 10 am. Centennial Park;10.15, Drummond Park.Hike: Wright Road. Leader:Nora Ray. Meet 10 am. CentennialPark.Illness cancelsschool concertThe Pender Island school concent,scheduled to be held December19, was cancelled after 50per cent of school students wereaway from classes because ofillness.The affair, an annual event,will be rescheduled for sometimein January, when the studentbody has recovered.Annual General Meeting andpot luck supper at Central Hall, 6pm. Members are asked to bring acasserole, salad or dessert and theirown plates, cups and cutlery.Guest speaker at the meetingwill be Bruce Whittington, whowill give a talk on pattern ofvagarancy of birds on the WestCoast, with slides. Also slide showby Bob Ball.January 21: Easy Walk: BelcherHeights. Leader FraukePrystawik. Meet 10 am.Centennial Park.Regular Walk: Leaders ChoiceNina Wichmann. Meet 10 am.,Centennial Park.Hike: Mount Maxwell. LeaderErnie Jenkins. Meet 10 am.Centennial Park.January 28: Easy Walk: Leaderschoice with Margaret Pragnell.Meet 10 am., Centennial Park.Walk: Beaver Point area.Leader Dennis Seward. Meet 10am. Centennial Park. 10.15,Drummond Park.Hike: Mount Belcher. Leader:Bob Ball. Meet 10 am., CentennialPark.Pacific Shore Realty Ltd.C. 25. Wood Dale Dr.. Mayne Island' 539-2317"A house is made ofwalls & beams;a home is made oflove & dreams."W.A.WardWe wish youlove & dreams-HAPPY '86!and keep one-third to one-half of itexposed above the soil level,because if it gets wet, rot can set inand destroy your plant.The soil should be moist, notwet, and the pot should not be leftstanding in water or with water inthe saucer. Use a water-soluble,balanced plant food (20-20-20 isgood) every other week while theplant is in bloom.When the blossoms are spent,detach them from the surface ofthe corm by pulling the whole stemout with a twist of your wrist and agentle tug. Always try to get it alloff, because residual stem materialsometime serves as the entry sitefor fungi and rots that can kill yourplant. Also, detach yellowed ordead leaves in the same manner.Wip off any dusty leaves with asoft, moist cloth.Cyclamen, in ideal conditions,can produce blooms for 10 monthsor more and live for years, but theydo need a periodic rest. When theplant stops flowering, graduallyreduce the watering to allow thesoil to dry off a bit before wateringagain. Keep the plant in partialshade and don't let it go completelydry. In early May repot the plant,increasing pot size by one inch indiameter, up to a seven or eightmaximum. Use a potting mixconsisting of two parts sterilizedpotting soil to one part sand andone part peat moss or sterilized leafmold if you have some. When youposition the corm in the soil, becertain to leave the top one-third toone-half of the corm exposedabove the soil level and avoidgetting any water on it at any time.Set the plant outside in the shadeand keep the plant from drying outbut don't keep quite keep it moist;somewhere in between is ideal.Toward the end of summer theleaves will have been completelyreplaced and flower buds willbegin to form. At this time, resumefertilizing every two weeks with 20-20-20 or Schultz's, move it indoorsto a cool, very bright situation, andenjoy.The cyclamen is a strikinglybeautiful plant that puts on a longlastingshow with blooms that areoften banded or variegated withpale shades of green or white.We at Pemberton, Holmes wishgood health and prosperity to allin 1986. 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