African violets not flowering

maisie_2009

13 years ago

Hello,

I had 2 african violets under 15Watt fluorescent, 6 inches from the bulb, and they never flowered.

A month ago, I bought a Sunblaster T5 fluo. full spectrum light, and they are still 6 inches from the light, but still no flowers.

I feed them 15-30-15 fertilizer around every 2 weeks. What I do is I wait till they are bone dry, then give them some dechlorinated water first,(nothing special, just water that's been standing in a pot overnight) so that they don't get burnt when I fertilize them about 1/2 an hour later.

Anyone have any ideas?

Thanks!

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Comments (6)

Christine
13 years ago
Since I don't know how long you've had your plants or their growing conditions, I put a link below for an article on the African Violet Society of America's website. It is loaded with great tips on getting African Violets to bloom. You can compare the recommendations (size of pot, type of mix, etc.) with your growing practices and make adjustments. For example, AVs like for the soil to be kept consistently moist, so you could adjust your care to no longer let them become bone dry every other week. If you follow the tips you should see buds soon. Good luck!

Here is a link that might be useful: Why Won't My Violets Bloom?
zwaantje
13 years ago
I read everything on the webpage of the above link. I was particularly interested in the light issue. My AV's are about 8-10 inches from an insulated double glass window (consistent temperature) on the East. This is the lightest place in the house. Aside from the sun in the morning there is lots of good light during the rest of the day but I have noticed that a few av's leaves reach straight up. Is that because of too little light??

Right now almost all are in buds (exciting!!! many for the first time since I have them) and I don't want to move them or make any other changes. I am so anxious to see the flowers!

I find it hard to believe they don't get enough light but am getting a little worried.
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maisie_2009
Original Author
13 years ago
Well, they are in the same soil that they were originally bought in, and of course they were both flowering when I bought them. So I am assuming that there is nothing wrong with the soil....

How long should it take for these plants to set buds? I've had them under the full spectrum fluos for a month now, with 12 hours of light per day.
m3rma1d
13 years ago
Time to change the soil!

Most of us use a mix that is 1 part peat, 1 part vermiculite, and 1 part perlite. Standards should be repotted about every 6 months, and minis every 3-4.
Christine
13 years ago
Zwaantje, congratulations on all of the buds! The east windowsill should be fine for most of your plants. After I received a baby AV with leaves going straight up I found three possible causes: not enough light (the most common cause - the plant is reaching up to be closer to it), too much light (the plant is trying to shield its tender crown), and extremely crowded initial growing conditions (which blocks leaves from growing flat and forces them upwards. Then even when the plant has space, new leaves can't grow flat since they hit the ones standing up!). You will need to experiment to find the cause/cure. Try placing the plants in a lower light area or cover the crowns with tissue paper and see if the leaves go down. If the leaves don't change, move the plant into more intense/longer light than it originally had.

Maisie, M3rmald is right. The heavy original mix meets the growers' care practices and needs (for example, the mostly peat mix has to hold water long enough for packing, shipping and retail display) but isn't ideal for the home growers (for example, the mix is very unforgiving of overwatering, one of the biggest causes of AV houseplant death). Plus, over time the mix breaks down, compacts, and the pH changes - none of which are good for the plant. If new leaves are growing in you could see buds at any time.
irina_co
13 years ago
East widow double pane - I wonder if the glass has low UV coating. It reduces the amount of light plus who knows what part of the spectrum this coating affects - may be it takes out the part your plant uses to grow.

I have an office looking SW and the glass is dark - the type that looks black and not transparent from outside. I brought the light meter - and it has 1500 foot candles near the glass when sun hits the windoow - whis is twice more than the violets need. Guess what - they do not bloom. I put a shop light hanging 12" above the file cabinet - and I didn't change the tubes... for 2 years - and at the edges of the growing area the leaves definitey stretch. But - they bloom!

Irina