Persian violet (though it's not a violet) is native to the eastern Mediterranean region, where it grows as a plant of shady forests. It has some stellar qualities which make it well-adored as a cultivated ornamental plant: early-blooming, relatively hardy, a delicate but cheery appearance and low maintenance. No wonder, perhaps, that it is both an RHS Award of Garden Merit recipient and a Great Plant Pick.
The Cyclamen Society has a page dedicated to Cyclamen coum that goes into detail about its subspecies and forms; photographs of a few of these variations can be seen via the Pacific Bulb Society's wikipage on Cyclamen.
A few more sources of photographs, if you're interested: 1) I posted a close-up of the flowers to the forums a couple years ago; and 2) the North American Rock Garden Society featured Cyclamen coum as its Plant of the Month in March 1999.
Happy Birthday to a couple of nature lovers, one a rail splitter, the other a hair splitter (no disrespect meant). Abraham Lincoln and Charles Darwin. Cheers.
Cyclamen coum - Z6 - RHS Index of Garden Plants, Griffiths
Cyclamen coum - Z5-9 - A-Z Encyclopedia of Garden Plants, Brickell, Cole, Zuk
Cyclamen coum - Z6 - Cyclamen Society
Cyclamen coum - Z5 - Heronswood Catalogue 2005, Hinkley
I am soo happy a friend of mine sent me a link to your site.I subscribe to the feed now.Your photos are beautiful.
Hallo, my name is Claudia Brossner Cremer.
>I am attending an education for gardeners at the
> university of Gothenburg in Sweden .
>I wonder if I may use our foto of Cyclamen coum in an essay at school?
>Best regards Claudia
Yes, Claudia, see this page for terms of use.