HELP! Violets need a check up :(
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8 years ago
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8 years agolast modified: 8 years agoRelated Discussions
Help! Need African Violet Seed Starting Mix Recipe
Comments (5)I haven't seen Ron's starting mix, so I don't know what is in it. I use Jiffy peat pellets. Soak them until thoroughly expanded, squeeze as much water out as you can, cut off the mesh, and crumble it into a fine, fluffy peat. I put this in a lidded plastic deli container about 1 inch deep, and sow the seeds directly on top. Close the lid and you have a mini greenhouse. Put in bright light and wait. And wait. And wait. In 2-3 weeks you should start to see some tiny leaves. Keep the peat damp but not wet. Good luck. Barbara...See MoreNeed help with wick watered violets
Comments (7)Thanks for the ideas. And thanks for the kind offer of Oyama planters! I'm one that needs to have clear containers though, otherwise I may not notice for a while that the reservoir is empty. I did at one time put up mosquito netting to keep my one cat out of the shelf (the other one is too lazy to jump up there, ha). But I found that it also kept me out too. Maybe if I had actually rigged it up to be more like a door I could open and shut, it wouldn't have been a problem, but I used masking tape. I'll have to do some experimenting. I don't know if I can pull off cutting holes in the lids without making the lids unstable, but I can certainly give it a try!...See MoreA new Violet? Need help IDing and propagating
Comments (5)Tom's pretty much said it all. But I could add: It should be referred to as Viola sororia f. priceana - that is, it is a form not a variety (technically, the distinction between form and variety in general is minor, but in this case I'd go with Cooperrider's assignment of it to the rank of form (forma in Latin) in 1984. And, yes - use seedpods from the cleistogamous flowers to grow more of the same. No need to hand-pollinate, using a bee's probiscis or not (poor bee!). Looking for those seed pods will keep you watching for weeks in the summer. Look right down at soil level, where they will appear first. They will turn up (but still near the soil) shortly before the pods open and shed their seeds. There are also purple colour forms, and there is a purple equivalent of the f. priceana you have found (sold as a cultivar called 'Alice Witter'). White ones as well. And white speckled with blue (that's 'Freckles') and blue speckled with white (that's 'Speckles'). All these colour forms reproduce fairly reliably from cleistogamous seed. Enjoy - as you obviously are!...See MoreNeed help growing African violets.
Comments (3)How about you tell us what you are doing, and we can give you tips to improve? there are 1001 ways to grow these plants, all depend on your environment. I, myself, cannot keep a store bought plant alive if i keep it in their potting soil. probably, i just water too much, but knowing that, i (radically) chop off the plant at soil level and re-root it in my preferred medium (50% perlite, 50% AV mix). - the added benefit of this is that it lowers the risk of bringing bugs home, BUT it takes much longer for them to re-bloom.... there is no need to do that to keep plants happy though. Joanne successfully keeps hers intact and brings them to bloom again. maybe she'll chime in with less drastic advice :-) Karin...See MoreUser
8 years agolast modified: 8 years agoUser
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8 years agoirina_co
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8 years agolast modified: 8 years agoUser
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8 years agolast modified: 8 years agoirina_co
8 years ago
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