In the pink..

Cyclamen hederifolium are in late summer/early autumn flower throughout the woodland garden and birch border.

They’re white, or a pink through to deep cherry in colour and its our aim to further spread the plants to achieve the late season impact of the snowdrops that fill these areas in the early spring.

They thrive in our conditions but are not native. They are native to Europe and the Mediterranean Basin east to the Caucasus and Iran.

They love our woodland floor, rich with accumulated humus sending up simple flowers enjoyed by a range of late season pollinators. Today common carder bees and flies were visiting the flowers.

Their sticky seeds are snaffled by ants who disperse them for us.

After the main flush of flower their hardy, prettily-patterned, triangular, glossy green-veined-with-cream leaves form attractive, dense clumps.

Each clump conceals a large underground tuber; apparently loved by pigs giving the range of cyclamen species the collective name of ‘swinebread’. It’s poisonous to humans, so don’t help yourself to a slice.