Red Rocket is a good red blooming variety.

It is a robust variety which blooms well.

Someone else will have to speak to the development of the red varieties.

Neineb, you may be able to get more information from the AVI Hybridisers Club. PM me and I'll give you an email address.

If you google it, you will find several dozen decent web sites where the discussion of red AV's (or rather, the lack thereof) is covered fairly well. I have chased reds for quite a while and still have high hopes that some of the hybridizers will figure it out in my lifetime.

I have read where there are a couple strong contenders in the very early stages right now. We'll see.

Beautiful violets Aegis & Irina!!! Rosie

Neineb, As Irina noted, Jeff Smith is the expert on explaining the extremely complex hybridization and ongoing development that goes into trying to get a good red. It can be a lot of fun to research and present a report. Especially in Valentine month.

A suggestion is to serach this forum using the word "red" to see if you can pull up some past discussions.

Irina, Your information is outstanding. Thank you! I first came to this forum many years ago when searching google for information on reds.

Jeff, Do you have a favorite or two?

Aegis gave me good advice on reds.

General comments, I learned from. Jeff Smith that the Lyon's company does a lot of hybridizing of reds. As Irina noted, reds look best under fluorescence. I recall reading from Jeff Smith, the color gene for red does not exist in AVs. To create the look of red is sort of optical llusion created by juggling other AV genetic colors. Also, the human eye does not distinguish among shades of red as much as between shades of blue.

It seemed for years Optimara developed only magenta or burgundy shades. It could be, as Irina said, they do not move off the shelves of BBS. Also, Optimaras can be grown in window light. The shades of magenta look ok in natural light.

After growing many reds, my two favorites are Christmas Dream by Lyon's and Tomahawk by Kent Stork.

I grew some of the Mac semi's, one was a pretty good red. Perhaps the most excellent red was one of the minis by Rob of Violet Barn. It was a clear, bright, no-nonsense red and bloomed well.

For selection, Lyon's carries a variety of reds in all sizes. Both their own and other hybridizers, including Russian. The company is always tinkering with genetics to come up with something new. Or if you like minis, just go with Rob's.

These days, it can be harder to find Stork's or Mac's.

When I grew reds, I found they took longer to mature and bloom. It took a few bloom cycles to reach full bloom capacity. They bloomed consistent to their color. The reds tend to be dark in color, so a medium tone or light tone leaf shows off the bloom better. Unless you want something unusual, such as a bloom that matches the underside of the leaf. Reds are slightly more disease prone. They all seemed to vary in their light preferences

None of this applies to Rob's. The red AV from VB red grew and bloomed as happily and well as any violet.

Every year we have a new crop of reds introduced... the season is almost here - lets post what new reds we get and how they perform.

I don't currently have ANY so called red AV's. I have gifted them all. So far, all of the varieties I have grown only had one true attribute going for them and that is that they were hopefully to be RED. Well,-- they weren't.

I think my Optimara Indiana which blooms in a very dark coral is the closest thing to a true red I have ever grown. (Which is why I still have it.) All of the others seemed sort of "washed out" versions of some distant shade of red.

I follow the forums and will periodically text some friends of mine who are very involved in hybridizing. They have assured me that more than one group of individuals is working very hard on the red AV issue. There have been quite a few folks over the years that tried, so far none have succeeded.

We'll see.

Hi, Jeff,

I ended up gifting most of my reds also except for the two I mentioned. I like their tidy, small standard size and they shape well.

I also had a few other Lyon's and other Stork's I was happy with. Stork's were most pleasing in color and easy care.

Of the Lhon's, those that were more on the coral side were more pleasing because of the color contrast than those on the blue side.

As Irina said, the genetics for red do not exist in the AV kingdom. So something from another plant species would need to be spliced in. I think Jeff Smith mentioned that a few years ago.

Thanks for the info! Do keep us posted.

Joanne

I grew Mac's Just Jeff. It was a good saturated red. Got it from Lyon's. It was reliable so it ended up being gifted to a club friend who craves red.

I grew Bob Serbin. Very reliable. The white edge helps the red look more red. Although not a true red, it was s strong plant that grew large.

I grew Tomahawk. I do not recall if it actually opened or closed, but as I recall, the bloom did seem to change shape, so I tended to watch it often to see what shape the bloom was. It was in a window with fluctuating natural light.

I read that Ma's Red Rover is supposed to be a good, clear red.

I think the VB red I had was Love Bite, a mini. It had a lot going for it. It was also gifted to a club friend who likes red minis.

If wanting to buy reds, Lyon's seems to offer a wide selection and are active hybridizers. Joanne

As far as reds go, there are certainly some that come closer than others. I have gifted PowWows, Mac's, Serbins and a few others. I will chase other aspects of AV's for a while. I have gotten amazingly close to a true blue in a couple of plants and I am still enjoying the complexities of variegation.

When I decide that I cannot live without a red on my shelf, Ill grow some roses!

Roses in FL??? Get yourself a barrel of fungicide to spray them weekly for all kinds of mold and mildew, black spot and rusts. Otherwise the roses will be defoliated in a month. That's WORK.

Well, ok. Some other red flower.

Nothing wrong with red AVs if strategically put them under grow spectrum tubes... to cover their tendency to look like a dead meat. X-Achimenantha "Inferno" is a great red.

Yes, I did not want to bring up ... roses! We had a discussion about this a few months' ago. Aegis is quite the rose grower and helped me i.d. what I had. I finally told myself, "Roses are red, violets are blue." I have red roses in my outdoor garden. I had crimson orchids (I gave to a friend who grows orchids.)

BTW, I saw a double or triple blue rose shaped AV on Ebay for $100. (The computer monitor might make it look more blue ... hard to know.) But $100 is hardly pocket change.

As you say, I am also exploring other aspects of AVs, notably, light blue that are stable. Or a few edge variegated.

After much commotion with experimentation, goaded by an expert grower in my club, I now want peace in the plant room.

For example, I am tired of purple and white that turn solid white in winter. Or pure whites that decide to be blue.... Or green splotches that are supposed to be edges. And don't even mention "yellow."

As for variegation, I was ridiculously happy with anything Apache for a very long time. The mosaic variation and semi double blooms in a rainbow of hues thrived in dappled window light. But then we moved, they did not like the new location, even though it is on the same street. The house is angled 90 degrees differently, making light requirements for blue AVs a more successful choice. They seem to do well in nearly any light. Simplicity.

Joanne

I looked up the "inferno". Certainly is a bright little bugger. The pics seem to render it a very bright orange. In real life, they tend toward a red? Either way, I really enjoy the brightness of it. I may pick one up just for grins!

My Bob Serbin does really look red, I love it. Kent Stork's Arapahoe is also a good one. I agree on EK Bullfight, its wonderful. Another really good one is Optimara Little Maya, a semi-mini that is one of the best reds I have grown.

Little Maya: looks big in the picture but its semi-mini. Even prettier than photo shows.

Inferno is red with a little taste of orange, No dead meat there and no pink. And since it is an xAchimenatha, not Achimenes - it is relatively upright, not trailing. Does well on the shelf.

Lovely Dark Red Maya.

Ok. Sold. Ill get one. Seems like the only way to get some red on the shelves.