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African Violets

first african violet leaf problem

11 years ago

I received this plant as a mothers day gift this year. it had 3 flowers when I first got it and by the end of the first week the flowers had tripled I contacted a friend who gave me tips on caring for it. I know it needs plenty of indirect sunlight and not to over water it or get water on the leaves. 2 weeks after I had it I got really sick and during that time all my flowers died off. I moved my plant around the house a few times to see if it needed more sunlight to blume again and end result was me dropping it in the kitchen sink. When that happen all but 3 leaves snapped off and I was so upset and thought I had killed it. I finally found a perfect location in my house and left it there. It started growing new leaves and I was so excited but the new leaves seem to be having issuses. Ive looked online to see if it might be infested or water damage. I seriously have no idea what I am looking at or looking for. The leaf in the center that is missing its sides was white along the edges that was dry and brittle the white completely snapped off when I poked at it. What could be wrong with my plant? Is there any saving it? Oh and the black specs are dirt stuck to the hairs of the plant from me dropping it.

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Comments (4)

PRO
Whitelacey
11 years ago
First- Take a deep breath and RELAX!!! Growing AV's is supposed to be fun! The first thing you should do is re-pot. Since you dropped your violet, (and we've all done that), the pot is too big. Use a pot that is 1/3 the size of your plant which will probably be tiny. Most of us use solo bathroom cups for our babies. I have also used medicine cups. Use a light soil; most AV's come in a soil that is too heavy because they ship better in a heavy soil. Good for shipping, not good for violets.
After you have re-potted, put your violet in a spot with good light and practice patience.
The flowers died off because that's what they do. Flowers bloom, hang around for a while hoping for a pollinator and then die off. The plant goes into resting mode and then will bloom again if grown properly.
And- the water on the leaves issue---I wish that would die a quick death because it is not true. Those who show plants or are avid, experienced growers routinely wash their violets. The trick is not to use cold water. Plants have pores (stomata) on their leaves with which they perform a gas exchange. If the leaves are dirty, the plant can't breathe. I washed my violets a few nights ago.
If you need more help, come back here and I can go into more detail when it's not so late in the day!
Happy growing,
Linda

P.S. Did you put the broken leaves down to root?

Here is a link that might be useful: Washing African Violets
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PRO
Whitelacey
11 years ago
Here's a very good site.

Linda

Here is a link that might be useful: Rachel's Reflections
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kushnerrr
Original Author
11 years ago
Thank you for your input! I wanna have fun with my plant im just totally clueless lol I am mainly concerned with the white around the leaves? I didnt know if its bugs, mildew, or tramua. My new leaves have them the part of the leaf that has turned white falls off to the touch. I dont know if I need to take it all off, cut the leaf or wash it or leave it alone? I dont want it to spread and damage new baby leaves whatever it is causing my new leaves to turn white. I did not know I could repot the leaves until after I threw all the leaves away!! If my plant is healthy I definitely would like to try it.
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PRO
Whitelacey
11 years ago
From your picture it looks like it might be damage from dropping it. Maybe a closer picture? Off the top of my head, I can't think of any pest or problem that would be white, (except mealybugs but that isn't mealybug damage). Usually bad things are brown and/or mushy. Is it spreading? Are they growing out okay and then turning white? It's not a variegated violet, is it?
Anyone else have any thoughts?

Linda

Here is a link that might be useful: Doctor Optimara
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