You can make it snow indoors, you know, with pots of white cyclamen.
There are quite a few kinds of cyclamen—nearly two dozen species—and no, we are not supposed to venerate the common, large-flowered potted versions for sale in supermarkets. And yet. The so-called florists' cyclamen (say it with a slight disdain) can be a care-free, ruffly petaled thing of beauty when you set pots of it about on the mantel or beneath the Christmas tree.
Photographs by Michelle Slatalla. Photography shot with the Canon EOS 70D digital SLR camera, with Dual Pixel AF technology and built-in Wi-Fi.
Above: Cyclamen persicum, native to Mediterranean climates, can do well in the garden too, if you live in a growing zone where temperatures don't drop below freezing. If you bought a plant or two for the holidays, paint the plastic nursery pots gold for now and decide later, after New Year's, if you want to commit.
Above: Cyclamen spreads from tubers, and if you like the look of its velvety, upright petals—they remind me of the ears on a certain little dog I know—you can also experiment in the garden with more delicately shaped woodland varieties. Cyclamen cilicium, for instance, is a pale purple example, 3 inches tall and native to Turkey, with mottled green and white leaves. In the garden, it will tolerate light shade; $13 per plant from Plant Delights.
Above: If it's a holiday look you're after, head to the supermarket; potted cyclamen are inexpensive and will bloom through the season so long as you give them well-drained soil. I paid $4.99 per pot for mine.
Softening on poinsettias? We witnessed a Christmas Miracle: 5 Poinsettias That Aren't Tacky.