The Secret to Beautiful Violets, a Beginner’s Odyssey

By Cindy Brooks

I’ve been searching for this article. The one thing I can do to insure my plants are the very best. I’ve looked in the library, the internet, books and magazines and asked every seasoned grower I know. What is the secret to growing these amazing plants?

I was told to start with good plants. Well, that’s easy. There are always opportunities to buy nice plants and I certainly availed myself of this option. In fact, I very quickly had a decent collection. But they didn’t thrive or last long.

Join a club. I was amazed at the talent and wealth of knowledge I found. Also, it is no coincidence that my plant repotting dates are shortly after the day of the month our club meetings fall on. Motivation abounds after spending time with other people who are as interested in violets as I am. Still my plants weren’t the show plants I desired.

Well, I need a plant stand, of course. My husband balked at the cost. “You want to spend how much?” So I made do with window growing. My plants did pretty well, but I’m sure I’d do so much better with a lighted plant stand.

Soil improvements were another suggestion. Add more perlite I was told and you must sift your perlite. Try these self watering pots, that’ll help. One more improvement to my growing conditions and I am starting to see results. This is encouraging. But still I am having problems. Yellow tipped leaves, green soil, and uneven growth. More answers at the next club meeting.

Too much fertilizer I was told. OK, try alternating. Better. You must rotate your plants that will help with the uneven growth and you need to groom. Also, better. Physan 20? Yes, I found this product. It helps. Then an excellent grower gave me some alarming advice. Throw out your sad plants and don’t look back. This turns out to be really good advice. Now, I spend my time and effort on worthy plants.

Things are looking up. Then I was gifted with a used, lighted plant stand. What joy! A little bit of repair and I am up and growing. My plants are very happy. Healthy plants, vibrant green leaves. Alas, no flowers. I am looking forward to that next meeting where I will find advice, encouragement and answers.

I believe the secret to beautiful violets is to keep trying, keep learning and go to club meetings. I’ll get there eventually.

Organizing for Good Growing By Suzanne Ress

“Consistency is the most important ingredient for successfully growing African violets.” We hear this over and over, sometimes we hear it so much that we ‘can’t’ hear it any more.

The easiest way to bring consistency to your growing is to be organized.

Organize your time. This is probably the most important element. Make sure you take the time to care for your plants. Make it a ritual – a set amount of time each evening to help you set aside the stress of the day, or in the morning as a way to ease yourself from sleep to activity, or … You get the idea, pick a time and stick to it as closely as possible. Depending on the number of plants you have, you do not have to take care of them all in one sitting! If you can only manage a limited amount of time with a limited amount of plants, then the next day, start where you left off and keep going, day by day. And if the time you choose isn’t working, pick another time slot and keep trying.

Organize your plants. Make sure they are labeled with their correct name. Most people put the date they were last repotted on the label, also. This way you can set up a repotting schedule that allows you to keep track of which plant needs what sort of care. Make sure you have a list, on paper or on your computer, with all the identifying information on each plant; name, hybridizer, date of registration, and AVSA or hybridizer’s description.

Organize your supplies. Don’t make it difficult to get started on a task, like repotting, because your supplies are scattered – potting medium in the garage, pots in the basement, labeling supplies in a drawer somewhere. Plastic bins are your friends. Potting medium, vermiculite, perlite, and anything else that goes into the pot can be in one large bin. Cleaned pots should be kept together, in their own container or with the potting medium. Tools, including labeling supplies, can stay in their own container. Chemicals for disinfecting, treating insects, or feeding plants, should be safely and separately stored. These bins and containers should be kept together, as near to the plants as possible. Then, when you are ready to repot, groom, or feed, you don’t waste time assembling everything you need.

Join an organization. A local African violet club is a great way to keep motivated, share your successes, learn new things about violet culture, and make friends. Local club listings are in the back of this issue.

Did you know you can sign up for a free e-subscription to the monthly newsletter of the Gesneriad Society called GLEANINGS?  This newsletter features lots of pictures and  cultural info on the "kissing cousins" to our African violets - the Gesneriad family.  Many of our members already grow Episcias, Streps, etc. and this publication will help you learn more about growing these lovely plants to their fullest potential (and then you can enter them in our Spring show!!).  A link to the current and back issues of GLEANINGS in PDF form can be found here:  http://www.gesneriadsociety.org/current-gleanings/ 

African Violets! Did You Know? By Barbara Cook 

Did you know that there are many types of African violets other than the standard size ones you see in the chain stores? That's right, there are standard size violets, miniature violets, semi-miniature violets and trailing violets too!

Standard size violets will grow anywhere from 10 inches across to a gigantic 2 feet across with the right light, fertilizer, soil and care. If you ever get a chance to go to an African Violet Show, you should attend one. You will see so many different varieties of African violets with full heads of bloom and some as large as 2 feet across. An African Violet Show is breath-taking and a treat to see.

Miniature African violets are just that. They are the miniature version of a regular or standard African violet. Miniature violets only grow up to 6 inches across but still have the full head of bloom that a larger violet does.

Semi-miniature violets grow up to 8 inches across. Miniature and semi-miniature violets are kept in a small pot, usually a 2 1/2 inch for miniatures and a 2 1/2 inch or 3 inch pot for the semi-miniatures. They take the same care as the larger version but might need watering a little more often because of being small and drying out quicker. They are very popular in violet shows because of their small size. Exhibitors can carry several miniature or semi-miniature violets in the same space it would take to carry 1 plant that is 2 feet across to the show.

There are also trailing African violets and these are just as the name implies, violets that trail or hang. They are very showy with blossoms on the trailing parts of the plant as well as on the top.

All of these different types of African Violets can be seen and usually purchased at an African Violet Show. To purchase the different types, you would probably have to go to someone that specializes in growing African violets.

You probably won't find the miniature, semi-miniature or trailing varieties in the chain stores or florists. Go to a violet show, join the club, buy some of the different violets and enjoy growing them and the following year you too can enter your violets in the show.

Why Grow African Violets? By Sharon Rosenzweig

African violets are grown by people of all ages and for many different reasons. Many remember the beautiful African violets grown by their grandmother on the windowsill and perhaps grow out of nostalgia. Many love the plant because AVs bloom all year and are a good way to brighten up the house on long winter days. Some grow because it is a stress reliever for them. Most people grow African violets because they are relatively easy and are just plain gorgeous.

 

It is always interesting to learn how fellow growers got into the hobby. Through the Internet, I have the opportunity to speak with growers of all types, all around the world – beginners, casual growers, serious growers and fanatics. Many folks received an African violet as a gift and had worked hard to keep it alive. If they were successful, they soon wanted to add more to their collection.

I want to relate three stories about the age of the grower and why they are growing AVs. The first is about Cassandra, a youth grower, age 11. She is a neighbor of Joan Russo and is a member of the Gateway African Violet Club. Joan was helping Cassandra with a terrarium. Cassandra said she loved plants so Joan gave her a plant of Rhapsodie Rosalie. She entered the plant in the 2009 Show and won a rosette for Best Youth Grower. So she grows for the love of plants and for competition.

Next, I spoke with a middle aged woman who lost her husband last year. She owns a Beauty Salon and bought some African violets to decorate her shop. She then learned how to propagate and started a collection in her house. She said she loves bringing joy to her customers. They love the plants. More importantly, she found this hobby brings her comfort and joy since losing her beloved husband. She made the decision to carry on with her life and what better way than to grow beautiful violets.

Lastly, a most inspiring storing. An elderly couple aged 86 and 91 recently started growing African violets again after many decades of not growing. They were concerned that the plants in Oyama Planters were remaining too wet. Together we determined that they were not using the correct soil mix. The gentleman then mentioned to me that he discovered that the plants he put under the “Fluorescent Counter Top Herb Grower” are doing better than the plants on his light stands. We then had a lengthy discussion about different types of fluorescent tubes. Our conversation ended with him saying that he and his wife are determined to grow show worthy plants and enter them in the Dallas, TX show in April. Growing keeps them mentally and physically active. Now doesn’t this inspire you youngins to get busy and grow for show.

No matter what the motivation, growing African violets is a most wonderful way to spend your free time.

Violets: Principle of Three or One-third By Marie Montague

It’s become apparent to me that the number three or one-third keeps coming up in the growing of African violets. It’s “spooky.”

Just Consider:

Three new leaves appear at the center of single-crowned plants and three baby leaves are removed from the bottom of a plant.

• When repotting it is recommended that the pot size be one-third the size of the plant.
  

12” Standards (12 divided by three)           =  4” pot

8” Semi-miniature (8 divided by three)     =  2 1/2” pot

• Trailers cannot be entered to show unless there are three crowns from one center.
  

• A good fertilizing program consists of using fertilizer three times and plain water the fourth time. The length of time between watering depends on your plants--water when dry.
  

All collection classes in the show schedule require three different registered plant varieties of a type of African violet, standards, semis, minis or trailers.

And, more personally,

• My light stands are usually on 8 hours per day or one-third of a day.
  

• One-third of my violet collection is large plants, one-third smaller plants of the same variety and one-third in set leaves.
  

• One-quarter tsp. fertilizer is usually recommended per gallon of water. Since I’ve never leveled the one-quarter tsp., I suspect I’ve been using one-third tsp.
  

• When I repot large plants one-third of soil goes in the bottom of pot, one-third in the middle for roots, and one-third to fill in the top up to the rim.
  

This became really, really “spooky” when I read a comprehensive article in Ye Bay Stater (January 2003) on design. The author suggested that “once you have finished your design, go back and remove at least one-third of the material.” The kicker, which raised the hair on my neck, was when she suggested “violets be placed in the middle third of the niche, and that material extend into the top one-third of the area.”

Let There Be Light

By Sharon Corton

 

When I get interested in a subject I have a tendency to “study” it. I read a lot of books on the subject, listen to people talk, ask a lot of questions and try different plants within the species to see which ones I can successfully grow. I have raised orchids for about ten years. My first orchid was an unnamed phalaenopsis hybrid that I got from Home Depot. I put her under lights, made sure she had good humidity, fed her Peter’s African violet fertilizer (not mentioned in any of the orchid books as the fertilizer to use for orchids!), and named her “Freckles”. The second time she bloomed almost perfectly and I decided to put her on the “show table” at one of the monthly meetings of the Massachusetts Orchid Society, of which I was a member. Nationally known judges awarded my little “Freckles” a green ribbon for excellence! What a wonderful moment of triumph! I felt that I obviously knew how to grow low-light plants.

 

I had raised supermarket violets and I really loved their blossoms and their ease of growing. So, when my husband suggested that “we” get into raising African violets; I immediately jumped at the idea and figured it was something we could do together. A few months later we went to the Mass Horticultural Show, found the Bay State African Violet Society booth and got information about joining. I ended up with over 200 violets and my husband took care of his 6! I studied the subject of violets. I joined the local club, the state club and the African Violet Society of America, studied the wonderful AVSA magazine, talked to people, listened and watched at the club meetings. and learned from the masters.

 

The first year I showed in novice and won blue ribbons. The amount of bloom was just so-so, and the symmetry was fair. But nobody else had entered novice, so I won. I didn’t show the next year because I had symmetry and no bloom, I didn’t show the following year because my plants had bloom but no symmetry. I didn’t show this past year because my plants didn’t have good symmetry or bloom! I fertilized on schedule the way my mentors did, I watered correctly, and I groomed the violets lovingly; but I didn’t have plants worth showing. Even after blossom boost, the plants never bloomed. I could start a plantlet from a leaf, but some of those plantlets waited almost one year to be big enough to pot up! My beloved violets just sat there, waiting. What were they all waiting for? What was I missing?

 

 The one thing I knew I was doing differently than other club members was my lighting. Most members used one grow light and one cool white florescent light per shelf, with some members using just two florescent cool white lights per shelf. I was using one channel of grow lights per shelf. Although I gave my plants almost half the light of others, I figured that because it was enough light for low-light orchids, it was enough light for violets. I even had a photometer to check the available light for the plants!

 

This past year my plants were dying from mites and the count of my collection diminished. I had many single channel lights that weren’t in use, so I finally changed my lighting arrangement. Each shelf now had two lights, one being a grow light and the other one a cool white. Much to my amazement, within days and weeks my violet plants totally changed!  They created their own symmetry without me having to do major grooming; and even on a balanced fertilizer, they gleefully started to bloom! My little plantlets rapidly reached a size to pot up! My violets showed me that one species of plants requirements is not always another species requirement. My indoor garden went from thumping out “Chop Sticks” to a full chorus of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony! What a miracle! I need to stop trying to recreate the wheel--finally, LET THERE BE LIGHT!

 

 

I received an email from a woman looking for a couple of leaves of this variety, so if you are growing this older hybrid and have a leaf or two to spare, please get in touch with me (my contact info is in our directory) and I will put you in touch with the requestor, who is from out of state. Thanks!

PREPARING FOR SHOW by Pat Hancock (Courtesy of www.cincyavs.org )

Four months in advance of the show is the time to choose the plants that you wish to enter in the show.  Choose only the number that you feel you can give total attention. Give them a special place on your shelves so that you can easily monitor their growth and condition.  

Repot in fresh soil and remove any small leaves under large leaves unless it would leave a gap. Small leaves deduct up to 1 point each and a gap can be as much as 3 points deducted.  Measure the leaf span of your plants and plan that in the next four months it will grow approximately 2 more inches. Choose a pot that will be the correct size in 4 months.   Standard plants should be approximately 9” in diameter and pots should be at least 3 ½ “.  If you need to take off small leaves and it leaves a neck, you will need to cut off the same amount from the bottom and pot down. If there is no neck, use mold potting and do not disturb the plant. Top water for a week or 10 days before putting plants back on the wick.

Keep plants totally disbudded and watch for suckers that might appear due to the fresh soil. Take them out immediately when they appear.  If you accidently break a leaf while  trying to remove a sucker – don’t dismay!  Remove the other two leaves that are in the same set of three and the plant will fill in before show time.

At three months before the show- pour bloom booster fertilizer through from the top (1/4 tsp. per gallon of water). The middle number of the fertilizer should be very high. If you want to wick the plant on bloom booster, add one or two fish sticks on two sides of the pot.  Plants totally on bloom booster may lose their crown. Add one new light bulb to your stand or if you hang two fixtures with 1 light each - add 1 extra new light to one of the fixtures.  Add 1 hr. to your light time if you burn 12 hours or less.

Pour bloom booster through once each week for the next three weeks or, if you are wicking, leave plant on the bloom booster for three weeks (watch the crown and add a fish stick or two if needed).  Continue to disbud. Increase lights 1 hour each week up to 14-15 hours. 

Stopping disbudding – Most doubles will be in full bloom 7-8 weeks after you stop disbudding. Count backwards from the date of the show.   Semi-doubles will be in full bloom 6-7 weeks after you stop disbudding. Singles will be in full bloom 5-6 weeks after you stop disbudding.  If you grow in cool temperatures, it will take a bit longer. If you grow at 75 degrees, it will take less time.

At 8 weeks before the show, cut back to 2 lights if you added a third light at 3 months, and go back to your regular fertilizer (balanced 20-20-20 or 15-16-17).

Watch your plants closely from now until the show. Move center leaves carefully in the right direction – gently move bloom stems over between new leaves so they may come up between leaves, not under them. Keep watching for and removing any suckers that may appear due to the extra things (light and fertilizer) that you have done.

At one week before the show, give the plant a warm water bath. Add 1 capful of Neem oil and 1 tsp. of vinegar to 1 gallon of very warm water.  Stir thoroughly and use a natural sponge to wash each leaf, starting at the second row from the crown and working outward.  Let dry completely before putting back under the lights.

If you have done all of  these things, the only thing you should have to do on the day of the show is use  a soft complexion brush to brush from the center to the outside to remove any  small particles of soil and put a shine on the leaves.   GOOD LUCK!!

Why Doesn’t My Violet Bloom? By Nancy Manozzi

There are several reasons why an African violet won’t bloom. This time of year, the answer may be simple, especially if you grow in a window. The days are short and the light is scarce, therefore too little light. Also, if the plants are too close to the window, it’s COLD! Feel the leaves and if they’re cold to the touch, it’s too cold. Either put a sheer curtain in the window, place newspaper or a towel on the sill, or move the plants a few feet back from the window. However, moving the violets further from the light source may hinder bloom even more. You can supplement light by using a table lamp, but remember, violets do need at least 8 hours of darkness daily.

How long have your violets been in the same pot in the same potting mix? If it’s over a year, they need to be repotted in fresh soil. Use a light and airy soilless potting mix which will provide good drainage. The ingredients should consist of peat moss, perlite and vermiculite. Repot annually or better yet, every 6 months, as the mix breaks down over time and may become too acidic.

Do you fertilize often enough or do you fertilize at all? Try a fertilizer recommended for African violets and use the constant feed method. Rather than try to remember when you fertilized last, feed every time you water at one quarter the recommended strength. Fill a gallon container with ¼ tsp of fertilizer and water with that every time. Once a month, use plain water to flush any build up of fertilizer salts.

Proper watering is one of the most important factors in a healthy, blooming violet. Use room temperature or tepid water and only water when the top of the soil feels slightly dry. Violets like to be slightly moist, never wet. You can water from the top or the bottom but only when needed. They do not like “wet feet” so should never sit in water for longer than it takes to drink up what’s needed. Once the top of the soil feels moist, empty any remaining water in the saucer. You may be able to tell when watering is needed by lifting the entire pot—when the pot seems light, it is probably time to water.

The air quality is also an important factor. African violets like good air circulation, 40%-50% humidity and no drafts. Fresh circulating air may be created with a fan, but shouldn’t blow directly on the plants. Keep your plants away from open windows to avoid drafts. You might open a window, very slightly, in an adjoining room for a short while, when it’s not too cold outside.

How many crowns or suckers do your single-crowned violets have? Suckers, or small leaves growing from the stem, rather than the crown, should be continually removed. Suckers will compete for space, food and moisture, and will affect the overall performance of your violet. So, keep your single-crowned plants to one crown.

African violets need constant, consistent care. Turn them every few days (or when you dust), water when dry, feed them regularly, give them enough light, pick off the old blossoms, keep the leaves clean and repot every 6-12 months. Give them the attention they deserve. If after doing all these things, your violet still doesn’t bloom, try another variety. Some plants may just not be for you!