I have added a few photos of Cyclamen graecum in the wild to the wiki. See the entry for this species <http://pacificbulbsociety.org/pbswiki/files/…>http://www.pacificbulbsociety.org/pbswiki/<http://pacificbulbsociety.org/pbswiki/files/…>/Photos and Information/Cyclamen to access the pictures. One shows what must be a very large tuber blooming in an area that was burned earlier this year. The "terra rossa" soil was completely bare of brush and other organic material, so obviously it was a very hot fire; the trees had mostly survived, though, and many bulbs and herb seedlings were emerging in response to the fall rains. Californians will be familiar with such scenes. Cyclamen graecum is particularly well adapted to fire because its tubers tend to grow deeper in the soil than those of other cyclamens, and a long "floral trunk" develops on top of the tuber, from which the flowers emerge. This species also grows in more open, sunny areas than, e.g., C. hederifolium, C. cilicium, and C. creticum. I saw many C. graecum growing in pockets of humus in holes in limestone formations, sometimes in close association with crocuses and sternbergias. I've been experimenting growing C. graecum outdoors for a couple of years in Oregon, and I think John Lonsdale also is trying it in Pennsylvania. So far, so good -- mine has survived 17 degrees F without snow cover, in a very well drained site. Another of the photos shows one of the myriad unusual leaf forms to be seen in the Mani populations: a curled or "cochleate" (shell-like) form like some ornamental begonia leaves. I'd like to grow hundreds of these cyclamens for the foliage alone. It has a wonderful velvety appearance in the deep green parts, and the white is rather silvery. The patters are amazingly varied, and these southern Greek forms can have very large leaves and flowers; I believe some authorities think they may be polyploid. The C. graecum I saw in southwestern Turkey were much smaller, and the flowers had thinner substance and were pale pink. Jane McGary Northwestern Oregon, USA
