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!

Each week, the African Violet Society of America sends out an email with a weekly growing tip.  These tips, which are written by Joyce Stork, contain all sorts of valuable information - whether you are a novice or experienced African violet grower.  To see past tips or to sign up using your email address, please visit AVSA here:  http://avsa.org/growing_tips 

And if you are not already an AVSA member, please consider joining!