Violet home (Saintpaulia, indoor violet, Latin saber) (lat. Saintpaulia) is one of the most common flowering plants used in indoor floriculture. In English, Saintpaulia also has the name African violet. It belongs to the order of clear-flowered, Hesnerian family, genus Saintpaulia.

The first scientific description of the Saintpaulia was made by the botanist Hermann Wendland, who singled it out into a separate genus. He also gave her the international name Saintpaulia in honor of the President of the German Dendrology Society, Baron Saint-Paul, and his son, who handed him home-violet seeds. The name was entered into Russian as a free reading of the Latin term. Due to the fact that the flower of Saintpaulia resembles in appearance the flower of a real violet (Viola), it is called an African or Saint baroque violet by the locality in which it was first found.

Violet home (Saintpaulia, room violet): description and photos.

Saintpaulias are perennial herbaceous plants with an underdeveloped root system of the urchinate type. Depending on the species, the fleshy stems can be shortened with basal leaves forming a rosette, or elongated and branched with many hanging rosettes. Their diameter ranges from 6 cm to 60 cm.

The leaf plate may have a round, ovoid, oblong shape with a sharp or rounded tip and a heart-shaped or simple base. Its edges are devoid of relief, slightly rounded, as well as in the form of small or large teeth. The leaf of Saintpaulia can be flat, slightly wavy, strongly corrugated, or it can be in the form of a spoon or a back curved spoon.

Usually the leaves of Saintpaulia are colored in different shades of green, sometimes with the addition of ashen or golden shades. There are types of indoor violets, in which the leaf may have areas painted in cream, olive, salad, yellow or pink. Typically, such multi-colored areas are located at the base, along the edges of the leaf blade, or form various mosaic patterns on its surface. The seamy side of a violet leaf is homely in most cases of a silvery-green color, although in some varieties or species of violets there are often different shades of red in its color.

Vein leaf home violets in their form are of two types: resembling a herringbone or with a longitudinal parallel arrangement of the type of plantain. In addition, the surface may be glossy or matte, which is to varying degrees covered with hair. The sheet may have a bubble or “quilted” texture.

If the petals in a room violet flower are arranged only in one row, it corresponds to a simple type of structure. In the presence of two full rows - semi-double type, and three or more - terry.

Simple violets

Most often, violet Saintpaulia has petals, the surface of which is covered with a large number of the smallest shiny balls. However, there are types of home violets, in which the flowers are covered with a delicate edge that makes their surface matte. Such flowers are called velvet violets. In addition, the edges of the petals can be slightly wavy or highly corrugated.

The size of the flowers forming the lush raceme-shaped inflorescences vary in diameter from 2.5 cm to 8-9 cm. The color of the leaves of Saintpaulia, which grow in natural conditions, usually has all shades of blue, purple and purple. The species and varieties of violets bred by breeders have a variety of colors, including pure white color and the entire tone range of the rainbow spectrum.

The boll of the senpolia, containing many small seeds, has a rounded, ovate or spindle-shaped form. After maturation, it is destroyed by moisture.

Classification and types of violets, titles and photos.

There is no definite strict scientific classification of Saintpaulias. Under natural conditions, there are 20 species of Uzbara violet, the classification of which is only possible for a specialist. In addition, more than 32 thousand varieties of room violets were bred by the breeders, which differ in the size of the rosettes (miniature, semi-mini, standard and giants), in terms of the appearance of the lamina, in color, shape and structure of flowers.

Types of wild-growing Uznabor violets (Saintpaulias).

  •   with jagged rounded dark green leaves, 4-5 cm in size. The reverse side of the leaf has a red tint. Inflorescence is lush with small blue-violet flowers with dark center.

  •   - plant of ampelous type with rounded pubescent sheets of bright green or purple color up to 6 cm long and about 5 centimeters wide. The small blue-lilac flowers of a Saint-Petersburg violet with a dark eye and a rim do not exceed 2.5 cm in diameter.

  • with purple-blue flowers on short, succulent stems and heart-shaped dark green leaves. Their length does not exceed 8 cm, and the diameter of the outlet reaches 60 cm.

Varieties of violets with names, photos and descriptions.

Depending on the size and position of the petals, there are 5 types of indoor violets:

  • pansies;
  • star;
  • bell;
  • bowl;

Violet "Pansies" (ang.Pansy)   - its corolla consists of 5 petals, and the size of the two petals of the upper row is smaller than that of the three lower ones. In this form, the following varieties of home violets are distinguished:

  • Violet Lyon ‘ s Pirate ‘ s Treasure   (Lienz Pirates Trezhe)   (breeder S. Sorano) with bright pink flowers with a wide crimson border around the edge. Along the border of the main color and border the petals are strewn with a scattering of small dots of dark crimson color. The leaves of room violet, forming an outlet, have a bubbly texture.

  • Violet Melodie Kimi (Melodie Kimi)   (breeder Sunnyside / Levy) with a symmetrical rosette made of quilted corrugated sheet plates. White simple violet flower has two blue upper petals and the same color edging on the main background.

Violet "Star" (eng.Star) characterized by the same size of petals located in any row, and their uniform arrangement around the center. In this form, the following varieties of senpoly can be distinguished:

  • Violet EK-Goddess of Beauty (breeder Korshunova) with a large basal bush consisting of leaves of dark green color. Inflorescences are formed by bright pink terry stars with purple-violet tones.

  • Violet Austin’s Smile (Austins Smile)   (breeder LLG / P. Sorano) with a large rosette of dark green color and large single star flowers of coral-pink color with a dark pink eye and raspberry border.

Violet "Little Bell" (eng.ell)   has intergrown at the base of the petals. This feature does not allow the flower to open completely, with the result that it acquires a resemblance to a bell. This species includes the following varieties of room violets:

  • Violet EC-Admiral (breeder Korshunova) with large cornflower blue-semi-double flowers-bells with a wavy edge. Pointed dark green leaves of home violet have a creamy purple edging.

  • Violet Saintpaulia Rob’s Dandy Lion (Robs Dandy Lion)   (breeder R. Robinson) with large inflorescences-bells of greenish-cream color, reminiscent of snowdrops in shape. The rosette of violets consists of dark green leaves with a slight white variability.

Violet "Bowl" (eng.Bowl)   has petals not growing together at its base, but the flower never fully opens and retains its shape throughout the flowering. In this form, the following varieties of Umabar violets are distinguished:

  • Violet Boo Man   (Boo Man)   (breeder S. Sorano) is distinguished by double or semi-double cupped flowers. The violet flowers are pale blue in color, the upper petals are white, sometimes with a slight green leaf, 2.5-3 cm in diameter. The leaves are spoon-like, dark green.

  • Saintpaulia Ming Dynasty ( Ming Dynasty )   (breeder I. Fredette) is a variety with strongly corrugated cup-shaped flowers of snow-white color, the edges of whose petals have a pink or lilac shade. There are terry and semi-terry violets. The rosette leaves are wavy, distinguished by a pronounced variegation.

Violet "Wasp" (eng.Wasp)   has completely separated petals, two of which fold into a tube, and three elongated ones hang down. In this group, the following varieties of room violets are distinguished:

  • Violet Lunar Lily White (Lunar Lily White)   with a small sized basal bush and light green leaves of “quilted” texture. The violet inflorescence consists of 3-8 white simple and semi-double flowers about 4 cm in size.

  • Saintpaulia PL-Zemfira (breeder L. Beekeepers) with a medium rosette of green leaves with variegated in the center and simple or semi-double lilac tubular flowers with corrugated edges.

  • Saintpaulia Spootnik   (Satellite)   (J. Dates breeder) with a rosette about 15 cm in size and light green leaves up to 5 cm long. The flowers of violet have a red-violet color.

Grades of violets with names, photos and division by color.

By the color of the petals of Saintpaulia, or home violets, are divided into monochromatic and colored in two or more colors.

Typical varieties of single-color room violets:

  • (breeder J. Dates) - blue violet with bright colors- "wasps", with upper tubular and elongated lower petals. The fuzzy leaves of homemade violets, which comprise the rosette, are folded into “bunches”.

  • (breeder D. Ferguson) has white large terry flowers resembling in shape. The rosette of this variety of room violet consists of rounded "quilted" leaves of green color and can reach 40 cm in size.

Petals of violets can be in the form of ocelli located in the center, or fingers. These colors include the following varieties:

  • Violet Rob ‘ s Penny Ante (Robs Penny Ante) (breeder R. Robinson) is a beautiful sort of violet with semi-double white flowers resembling bells, with a dark blue eye in the center. The size of this sort of violets does not exceed 2.5 cm. A compact rosette of about 9 cm consists of even light-green leaves.

  • Violet Pink Sensation   (Pink Sensation)   (Lyndon Lyon Greenhouses / Sorano selection) is a semi-double white violet whose flowers resemble stars. In the center of the petals are visible large patches of pale pink color. The outlet consists of motley white-green leaves.

Petals of home violet may have a rim that runs along the edge. Its width and color can be different and even fancy:

  • Natalia’s Extravagante Violet (Natalis Estravagante)   (breeder N. Pineault) - a sort of homemade violet with white and pink lace flowers and a border, the tone of which can be green, chocolate or pink. The rosette is assembled from green leaf plates with a marginal variegation of pink-white color.

  • Saintpaulia AE Modern Talking   (Modern Talking)   (breeder EA Arkhipov) - a sort of violet with white semi-double ruffled flowers "pansies" and a border of pink-blue-violet hue. The bush of this room violet standard size with light green flat foliage.

Petals of room violet may have strips of different colors, diverging from the center of the petal to its edges. This is a chimera violet, the varieties of which are presented below:

  •   (breeder S. Sorano) is a variety of room violet, above the standard green rosette of which there are large pink flowers with a light lilac stripe running along the center of the petal. The entire surface of the petals of a flower is covered with splashes of lilac color.

  •   (breeder P. Sorano) has terry flowers of coral color and thin purple stripes on each petal. The socket is folded from small dark green leaves.

Petals of violet home are sprayed or painted in various colors and shades:

  • (Breeder EV Korshunova) is a variety of Uzambara violet with large cream flowers having the shape of a star with a range of rays up to 7 cm. The surface of the petals is abundantly covered with blue divorces and splashes and has a wide rim of pale lilac color.

  • Violet Chimpansy (Chimpansi) (breeder E. Fisher) - a very beautiful variety with a small rosette of green color, composed of slightly toothed leaves of green color. Bright pink semi-double star flowers on the edge have a wavy white rim. Violet petals strewn with strokes and twists of bright blue color.

Ampel violets of Saintpaulia - varieties, photos and description.

Today it is very fashionable on the balcony or window to plant ampelous senpoli, having a long (up to 50 cm) stem with several points of growth. The following varieties of ampelous violets are distinguished:

  • Violet Ramblin ’Dots (Ramblin Dots) (breeder S. Sorano) is a beautiful variety of violets, the rosette of which consists of light green leaves with golden-white variegation. Terry flowers-stars are painted in light lavender shades, on which is visible a fascinating light-purple fantasy pattern.

  • Violet Falling Snow (Folin Snow) (breeder P. Tracey) has numerous small snow-white wasp flowers and light green, slightly pointed leaves.

Where does saintpaulia grow?

The natural distribution range of the wild violet of Saintpaulia is limited to certain mountainous areas of Kenya and Tanzania. A lot of light is needed for comfortable growth of an izambar violet, but the plant quickly dies in direct sunlight. You can meet it on the banks of rivers flowing down from steep slopes, near waterfalls that irrigate the surrounding area with water dust, at the bottom of ravines, and also in partial shade under tall trees.

Violets: care and cultivation at home.

If properly care for the home violet, it will bloom all year round. To do this, you need to know only a few points: how to choose the soil (substrate) for violets, how to plant, water and cut the flower, how to fertilize violets for lush flowering and how to transplant the plant if necessary. If you follow the simple rules of care room violet will long please you with its bright colors.

Content temperature

The optimum temperature of the content should be in the limit of 20-24 ° C. To make the violets bloom and feel comfortable, they should be protected from drafts, scorching sunlight and sudden changes in temperature. To do this, you need to put the flower on the east or west window.

Soil for violets.

It should be remembered that the violet flower does not like large pots: for an adult plant there is enough capacity with a diameter of not more than 13 cm. retain moisture. As a substrate, you should use the soil for indoor violets, purchased in specialized stores, or you can prepare it yourself. The composition of the soil should be as follows: peat, coniferous, turfy and leafy land in a ratio of 1: 1: 2: 3, diluted with river sand.

How to water room violets?

Watering violets should be approached responsibly. Not everyone knows how to properly and how often you should water room violets. Be sure to observe the middle ground, avoiding excessive drying of the substrate, but not too wet the soil. Deviations in one direction or another adversely affect the health of the plant. Watering violets can be carried out with warm well-settled tap water, making sure that the liquid does not fall on the surface of the leaf plates. It is better to carry out watering through the pan.

Saintpaulias love increased humidity, but spraying is not possible with a spray bottle, as water that has fallen on the leaves can cause burns. To maintain the desired level of humidity, you can put a plant pot in a tray with wet gravel or pebbles.

With the onset of winter months, the duration of daylight hours is reduced, so home violets need additional artificial light for up to 13 hours. It can be equipped with fluorescent lamps up to 40 watts. In order not to overcool the root system, watering the violets in winter should be limited a little and put the pot on a foam or wooden stand not less than 30 mm thick.

Fertilizers for violets at home. How to fertilize violets Saintpaulia?

Many wonder how to feed the violets for abundant flowering at home, because some violets give numerous foliage, but do not bloom. To provide Saintpaulia with essential vitamins and microelements, it should be fed with complex mineral fertilizers at a frequency of 1 time per 2 weeks. The concentration of the solution should not exceed 2 grams of fertilizer per 1 liter of water. To prevent the occurrence of diseases of a fungal nature, it is recommended to treat the soil of a homemade violet with a solution of pale pink manganese.

Transplanting violets at home. How to transplant violet?

As the flower grows, it must be transplanted into a large container. Experimentally established that the optimal size of the pot for violets should not exceed the third part of the size of the outlet. If your home violet grows slowly and poorly, it means you need to transplant it. Since the root system of the plant is poorly developed, it is not necessary to free the roots from the old clod of earth so as not to destroy them. The flower is rolled over to a new container and just add a substrate. After transplanting it must be watered.

How to trim a violet home?

Cut the leaves of violet is not only possible but necessary. This is done in the following cases:

  • at dying off of the old lower leaves. As a result of this, a small bunch of leaves growing on a low stem is formed;
  • to rejuvenate the homemade violet, she cut off the top and after processing the cut-off point with preparations that stimulate root formation, root it in a fresh substrate. On the remaining hemp after some time babies germinate, which are used to propagate the violet;
  • for lush flowering. The leaves are cut to violet blossoms.

Reproduction violets at home: methods of reproduction.

There are 4 main ways of reproduction of Saintpaulia violets, through which lovers replenish and renew their collections:

  • Leaf (or cuttings)
  • Pasynkami
  • Children
  • Seeds

Reproduction violets leaf (cuttings).

In the spring, during active growing season, a leaf of violet of middle age is cut from the second row of the rosette with a stem of 2.5-5 cm in length. It is possible to root a cutting of violet in water or in the ground.

To root a violet leaf in water   cut the cuttings is immersed in water to a depth of not more than 1 centimeter. This level must be maintained throughout the entire period of rooting. To prevent the occurrence of pathogenic microflora in water, it is recommended to add half a tablet of activated carbon to it. When the roots appear, plant a violet stalk in a small container with good drainage and light soil. Sapling must be watered regularly, not allowing the substrate to dry out. After 20-35 days violet babies appear who are ready for planting in pots.

To root a violet leaf in the ground, the cut stalk is immediately planted in a prepared container, which is covered with a plastic bag with holes in it. This is done to remove condensate from the mini greenhouse. Pre violet sapling must be watered with a small amount of separated water.

Reproduction violets stepchildren.

Violet pasture (daughter outlet) is a small appendix that appears in the leaf shaft. Pasynki spoil the appearance of plants, so they need to be removed. In order to separate the stepchildren from the violet, you need to pin down the point of their growth and wait for 4-5 leaflets to appear. Next you need to carefully cut and root steps violets in a container covered with film. With the formation of several stepchildren, one of them is left on the plant, while the others are grown and deposited in a new container.

Reproduction violets kiddies.

Baby violets   - It is an independent small plant with its own root system. Babies violet violets begin to peek at the site of the rooted cutting in 2.5-3 weeks. There may be several of them at once - it depends on how strong the cutting was chosen for planting. The best option for a future transplant kids - wait until she gets two or three pairs of leaves and gain strength. After that, you can separate the babe violets from the parent sheet and plant in the ground.

Separate baby violets in two ways.

  • In the first variant, the leaf of Saintpaulia with offspring is carefully removed from the pot, the earth is carefully removed from it, and the children are separated from the cutting and from each other. Better to do it by hand.
  • The second method is “closed”: with this method, the cutting is not taken out of the pot, and the children of the violet are separated from the group as they grow. The biggest baby, on which the roots are already fully formed, is cut off with a blade or a sharp knife and deposited in a pot with a special substrate for saintpaulia. The last principle of seating is considered to be more convenient, since several generations of babies can be obtained on an untreated mother cutting.

For a beginner grower, violets are an excellent choice; planting and caring for them at home should not cause any difficulties. Violets (Saintpaulias) used to be grown as garden plants. In room conditions, they began to grow only in the last century. They look beautiful in a pot, do not need time-consuming care, and if you create suitable conditions for them, they will bloom magnificently and for a long time.

What should be the external environment for violets?

Often you can hear from beginners, they say, we grow flowers according to all the rules, but they do not want to bloom. This happens if you miss something in creating a suitable environment for violets. First, these flowers love good lighting. Light day for them should last at least 10 hours. But these flowers do not like direct sunlight, and therefore they pritenyut. Light is needed diffused. In winter, when the duration of daylight hours is less than that necessary to violet, use additional lighting - fluorescent lamps.

Violet sensitive to humidity. You must put a cup of water next to the flower pots.

Indoor violet - a thermophilic plant. From spring to the beginning of autumn it is necessary that the temperature in the room should be + 20 ... + 22 ° С. In winter, the temperature should be no lower than + 18 ... + 20 ° С. Drafts are contraindicated in this plant. At the same time, violets need fresh air, so you need to ventilate the room regularly, but the pots with flowers for this time will have to be moved to another room.

Watering: the choice of method

Violet care is also the right watering. If it is too abundant, then the plant can get sick, in addition, root decay can begin. The soil in the flower pot should not dry out and become a solidified clod, so on average you need to water 2-3 times a week. This is a general rule, and in each case the frequency of irrigation depends on the humidity of the room, the time of year and the material from which the pot is made.

There are 3 main irrigation options:

  • usual,
  • pallet
  • wick.

The latter method is convenient because with the right settings you can water the violet once a week or less.

The wick method involves the use of a cord that absorbs moisture from a container with water and ensures that it enters the pot with the substrate. This allows you to maintain an adequate level of humidity and at the same time prevents rotting of the roots. The wick method allows you to smooth out changes in conditions of detention, for example, in late spring, when sudden heat begins.

The wick method has many advantages. It provides good conditions for the growth and development of violets - the plants bloom early and bloom more abundantly. This method allows plants to provide not only water but also nutrients, while the dosage of fertilizer is calculated and the corresponding aqueous solution is made. The method ensures that violet gets all the nutrients and moisture.

This watering has its drawbacks. If the diameter of the cord and the material from which it is made are chosen incorrectly, and the wick will absorb more water than is needed, this will lead to overmoistening of the substrate and rotting of the roots. During the cold season, if the violet is simply left on the windowsill, the water through the wick will flow very cold, which can also negatively affect the condition of the roots of the plant, so you will have to rearrange the pots with violets where they will be warmer.

Cultivation of violets at home with wick irrigation can be associated with some difficulties. When using this method, the socket is enlarged. If the florist grows only a few outlets, it does not matter. But if he grows many varieties at once, the enlargement of the outlet reduces its possibilities - there is not enough room for all varieties. In addition, if the violets are not grown on window sills, but on racks, then difficulties may arise with the additional load that will create a container with water. For it, you need to find a place and pick it up so that there are gaps between the tank and the pots.

Due to the difficulties that arise with the wick during the cold season, many experienced growers in the winter go to another method of watering, most often under the ground one, since it is much simpler.

Underwater irrigation assumes that no water will fall on the aboveground part of the violet. Direct contact is generally excluded. Warm water is poured into the pan, which put the pots with violets. When it will be seen that the soil is soaked with moisture (but no later than 15 minutes from the start of the procedure), the water from the pan can be drained.

Care for violets at home also implies the choice of a method of watering after analyzing all the advantages and disadvantages of each method. Some growers choose sub-irrigation as the easiest way.

How to care for violets? This flower like other plants should be regularly cleaned from dust, literally on the leaf. This is done about 1 time per month. But after this procedure, the leaves need to be dried - for this paper napkins are used.

Violet is very sensitive to water temperature and water quality, therefore, it is better to use water for watering and for the shower, which you have previously defended for 2 days, then boiled and cooled to a temperature of + 18 ... 22 ° C.

Plant nutrition

To Saintpaulia beautifully bloomed, you need to feed it with mineral fertilizers. Do it only 2 times a year. In spring, violet is fed during the period of active growth. The second time they do it after it has flowered, that is, in the fall. In winter, when the plant is at rest, it is not necessary to feed it. Complex mineral fertilizers are used for this.

During transplanting plants use a small amount of humus or humus for feeding. It should also be noted that only adult plants need to be fed.

How to repot violet?

This flower should be replanted no more often than 1 time in 3 years. The plant periodically needs fresh soil. You can buy in the store a special substrate for violets, you can take garden soil, which has undergone special treatment from pests. At the bottom of the pot should be a layer of drainage. The pot itself is selected so that its diameter is 2-3 times smaller than the diameter of the plant. In too large a capacity, the violet simply will not bloom.

The land should be wet for transplanting, but it should not stick to hands. For transplantation, you can use only new pots, so that the plant does not become infected. Unlike popular opinion it is better to use plastic pots than glossy ceramic.

For transplanting, loose soil with sand or peat is needed. For the drainage layer is used claydite. When transplanting violet planted so that its lower leaves barely touched the surface of the earth. For some time after that, the plant should be covered with plastic wrap, creating greenhouse conditions for it. Watering is possible only on the next day after transplantation. But it is necessary to ventilate regularly so that condensate does not collect under the film.

Reproduction violets cuttings

The most popular option is the reproduction of violet cuttings. It is best to choose a leaf from the middle of the outlet, that is, neither too young nor old. It can be pinched off or neatly cut off with a small sharp knife so as not to damage the plant and leave a high stump after it. Cut the stalk as close as possible to the ground.

It is desirable that the black was not less than 47 cm in length. It should be cut obliquely, at an angle of 45 °. If the cut surface is 2-4 cm in length, this will be quite enough for the leaf to take root well and give more outlets.

Not all leaves take root, so it is advisable to take 2-3 leaves at once from the variety you like, if there is such an opportunity. It is not necessary to buy a pot for rooting such a leaflet. You can do with disposable plastic cups or yogurt containers. It is best to take shallow cups. If there is a shallow container of large diameter, then several leaves can be planted in one container at a time. The distance between them should be at least 5 cm, so that later it would be convenient to dig them up.

Not all violets reproduce equally well by cuttings. There are so-called chimerka - these are varietal flowers of unusual colors. Their leaves are well rooted, but they do not retain the features of colors or beautifully shaped leaves.

How to grow a violet from a leaf, in the ground or in water, interests many beginning gardeners. In fact, both methods are equivalent. And in fact, and in another case, this environment must be disinfected, for example, using activated carbon. If the cutting is put in water, you need to ensure that it does not rot. Water should be taken warm, but not hot. The roots of the leaf will appear in about 1-2 weeks, and then it will be possible to plant it in the ground. Some growers wait longer - until new shoots appear, and this happens after about 1-2 months in the water. Shoots appear from the point of cut. If the florist has decided to wait for their appearance, then you need to podgadat so that they are old enough so that when planting they are not sprinkled with soil. You can not drip the cutting too deep, otherwise the sprouts will not appear soon. The maximum depth is 1.5 cm.

Some believe that violets sprouted in water will bloom faster. In fact, this is a controversial issue. Experienced flower growers who know how to care for violets at all stages of development of this plant will surely say that when grown in water, there is always a risk that the cutting will start to rot. Water quality does not always meet the requirements of this plant.

Additionally

Rooting violets in the ground has its advantages. But here, too, there is a nuance: you need to choose a super-light substrate, looser than the one that is usually used for "adult" violets. The soil mixture will have to be prepared independently on the basis of a special soil for senpoly, to which is added pure river sand (previously calcined). You can also use sphagnum moss for this, it is also sold in flower shops. Moss, even if it is fresh, you need to slightly calcined in the oven for disinfection. So that it does not burn, it must be spread on food foil.

Substrate should be regularly watered with warm water so that it does not dry out. Rooting in the soil is slower than in water, but the risk of rotting of the roots is excluded. The seedling must be kept away from the draft. Direct sunlight is not recommended for him. It is recommended to make a greenhouse for it, covered for this with plastic wrap. Approximately 2 months after rooting, when the sprouted sprouts are already visible, the plant should be transplanted into a constant container, having previously treated both it and the plant itself with special means against pests and fungi.

In our climate, violets are home plants. Violet has another name Saintpaulia.

They attract lovers of flowering houseplants with their bright flowers and fluffy leaves. In addition, this home flower is not a source of allergy. But the violet is not easy to take care of, it is enough capricious for the conditions, and in order for it to bloom, the florist needs to try.

The most common question asked by novice growers, why does not bloom violet?

This can be for various reasons:

  • nutritional deficiencies or oversupply;
  • a pot too big for a plant;
  • unsuitable soil;
  • violation of watering;
  • unsuitable climate for the plant;
  • insufficient light level.

On a note! Some varieties of violets bloom for a long time, while others need rest after flowering, and the flowering period can be much shorter than the recovery period.

Cultivation and care

Planting Violets

Violets or Saintpaulias are very capricious and demanding of growing conditions.

First of all, you need to choose the right pot plant. The roots of violets grow on the surface of the soil, and not in depth, so the pots for violets are chosen quite compact. Sizes of pots range from 5 to 5 cm for small varieties or kids violets to 9 to 9 cm for overgrown plants. Moreover, if you decide to transplant the plant, you should not change the size of the pot in the direction of increasing.

Planting violets in a pot larger than 9 by 9 cm leads to a negative effect, which is expressed in the following:

  • the flower may not bloom for two years due to the fact that all the power will go to the formation of leaves to the detriment of the formation of inflorescences.
  • in those places where the soil is not covered with plant roots, fungal diseases can develop and subsequently damage the plant.

The material from which the pot for violets is made also matters. If you choose a light plastic pot, it will not be superfluous to make holes on the sides of the pot so that air can penetrate the inside of the ground and ventilate the roots of the violet. It will also save the earth from souring. If the choice of gardener fell on a ceramic pot, you need to choose pots without glaze, because pots without glaze allow air to pass through and allow the roots of the plant to breathe.

Secondly,   you need to properly select the soil for violets.

Violets love slightly acidic soil. If the acidity of the soil strongly deviates from pH 6-6.5, the violet can stop growing normally: the buds will fall off even without blossoming. This may be due to the fact that the plant ceases to absorb nutrients from the soil and comes nitrogen-phosphorus starvation. As a plant, an experienced grower will find out what kind of soil is currently in the violet. If the young leaves curl, the soil is acidic, if the leaves turn pale and the tips turn brown, then the ground is alkaline.

Now many manufacturers produce a special soil for different types of plants. Violets are no exception. But even purchased soil is not always perfect - it happens that it is so light that when watering, water seeps into the gap between the soil mix and the walls of the pot, not soaking the soil. Therefore, it is better to prepare the soil independently, taking two pieces of garden soil and connecting it with one piece of sand. Next, you need to self-cooked soil to ignite in order to destroy pests and painful bacteria. Now you can pour the soil in the pot and plant violets. After planting, it is better to pour claydite onto the ground, which will retain moisture and protect the soil from drying out.

Home Violet Care

Violet to achieve maximum decoration you need a very bright place, but without direct sunlight. Therefore, most often flowering violets can be seen in the florist houses on windowsills on the north, north-west, north-east side. If the florist’s windows in the florist’s apartment only come out to the south side, then it will be necessary to shade the pots with violets with something to prevent sunburns from getting leaves and flowers of Saintpaulia. In order for the sunlight to become soft and diffuse, you can close the window with light curtains or sheets of white paper. During the day violets need 10-12 hours of light. In winter, when natural lighting is not enough, you can highlight the plant fitolampa.

On a note! So that the violet bush grows evenly and does not twist due to the fact that it is lit only on one side, from time to time, turn the pot with the plant to the window with different sides, so the Saintpauli sockets will be symmetrical and neat.

I must say that those violets, which have dark green leaves, need more lighting than plants with light green curly leaves.

Important! How to determine do you have enough light for your violet?   Observe the plant: if the leaves are down, then there is enough light, if it is stretched up, then the saintpaulia suffers from its lack.

High-quality care for home violets is provided by maintaining a comfortable temperature in the house. The ideal temperature for growing violets is 20-22 degrees, in this comfortable climate the violet blooms profusely and the green looks bright. If the plant blooms in the hot summer period, and in the house the air temperature rises above 28 degrees, then the violet flowers become small, pale, in varieties with a bright border around the edge of the flowers - this feature disappears. Such a temperature can destroy the plant, it can only be helped by lowering the temperature by installing an air conditioner, a split system, a fan, or with the help of airing.

Supercooling of senpoly is no less destructive, resulting in rotting of the roots. If this happens, the plant can be saved only by re-killing it. Draft is also contraindicated in violets, it is not only dangerous for the appearance of the plant (light spots on the leaves), but can also cause significant harm to their condition and even lead to death.

In winter, if the window sill in an apartment or house is cold, the violet should be protected from overcooling of the root system. There are two solutions to the problem:

  • can be put under the pot with a flower thick wooden or foam stand
  • you can rearrange the plant from the window sill to the table or stand next to the window, but then you need to remember to illuminate the plant with phytolamp, as usually in winter the plants suffer from a lack of light.

Capricious violet loves moderation and in watering. She does not like very abundant watering, but his long absence also negatively affects the plant. One of the conditions for the proper care of violets is watering the plant with separated water at room temperature. Once a month you can water the violet with xyloxy water. To do this, add water acetic acid (one teaspoon per liter of water) or citric acid (5 crystals per liter of water).

Attention! Violet is contraindicated spraying. Its shaggy leaves retain moisture, which is why the plant can develop a fungal disease.

You can moisten it by pouring water into a pan and placing a pot with a plant in it for thirty minutes. If the house is very warm (above 22 degrees) watering violets carried out on top, but you need to make sure that the water does not get into the outlet. Well, another solution to the problem is to install a humidifier in the room, which will be useful for both plants and humans.

Attention! If you water a violet by dipping a pot into a pan and you have a large pan, where you immediately place several pots of plants, be attentive to the condition of the plants. Since in this case it is very easy to infect a healthy plant from the patient through the water.

Fertilizer and feeding violets

During the growth period, young plants are fed with nitrogen supplements. On a note! Capricious violets will not bloom if you overdo it with nitrogen fertilizer. Violets and this time tell us that they need moderation in everything. Matured and flowering plants need to be fertilized with potassium and phosphorus, which are necessary for the formation of buds and flowering.

How to care for violets in winter

The basic rules for the maintenance of life and good condition of Saintpaulia in winter are in four main points:

  • Ensuring a long (10-12 hours) light day with additional lighting;
  • Providing a temperature in the room not lower than 20 degrees;
  • Watering three times a week with room temperature water;
  • Providing high humidity in a room with a flower.

Note! During flowering, you need to remove the bloomed buds from the violet, so the plant will have more strength to ensure the current flowering. After the flowering period is over, the lower leaflets are removed to replenish the violet and transplanted into fresh soil, or at the very least fertilize the soil.

Reproduction violets

Violet blooms only at a young age. If the plant is more than three years old, then most likely it will no longer bloom. Time to think about the reproduction of Saintpaulia.

The easiest and most effective way of breeding violets - cuttings or leaf propagation. To do this, from the plant you need to take a good piece of paper with the handle and put it in a glass of water. After some time, a spine is formed on the handle, then it is planted in a pot with soil.

Another way - the separation of children violets. In the process of growing adult plants they form babies. In order for the children and the mother plant not to interfere with each other, they need to be seated. It is better to do this in the summer, as an adult plant after the separation of children needs strength to recover for the winter.

For the reproduction of violets, children carry out the following manipulations:

  • Gently dig up the baby and detach it from the parent plant with a sharp knife. When this is very important not to damage the outlet.
  • If there are a lot of leaves on the child, and there are very few roots, some of the leaves should be removed so that the plant does not spend strength on maintaining the leaves, but allows them to develop the root system.
  • Next, the baby must be planted in a separate pot, watered and placed in a place where it is warm and light, but there are no direct sunlight.

Diseases and pests of violets

  • Violets are struck by late blight. Brown spots appear on the violet. It does not make sense to fight against this fungal disease in the case of violets, therefore, in order to avoid infection of other plants, the diseased Saintpaulia is disposed of, as well as the soil from under it. For the prevention of this disease, it is better to buy the primer for violets in stores, or it is good to burn the primer in the oven yourself.
  • Powdery mildew. In this disease, the trunks of Saintpaulia are covered with white bloom. This disease appears in the following conditions: dusty room, air temperature below 18 degrees Celsius, lack of light. To treat a plant, wipe the stems with a damp, clean cloth, ventilate the room, and treat the flower with the Benlat.
  • Gray rot   manifests itself as a gray fluffy plaque on the leaves and leaf stalks of violet. The reason is that the plant is watered with not separated water at room temperature, as expected, but with cold water and very often. To combat this ailment should be treated with drugs 2tiram, phytosparin, agate and others, as well as the establishment of a normal mode of irrigation.
  • Fungus Fusarium   affects the roots of violets - they begin to rot. This is due to frequent irrigation with cold water and produces this disease gray falling foliage and lack of flowering. For treatment, the plant is treated with a solution of fundozol and benomyl.

On a note! No more than once a month, you can water the violet with phytosporin or a pale solution of potassium permanganate. This is a good prevention of fungal diseases.

Violet is a very capricious plant, but if the florist pleases her and provides her with quality care, she will delight him with beautiful flowers on the windowsill for most of the year.

Violet or Saintpaulia is found exclusively in the Uzambarskih mountains located in Kenya and Tanzania. It is an evergreen short-growing plant with a shortened shoot and a dense rosette of succulent pubescent leaves on long petioles.

Flowers of natural species are small, pyatilepestkovye, painted only in blue or purple. They are rarely found in collections, as they are very decorative in cultural forms.

Varietal or hybrid violets are stunning beauty, a variety of colors and outlines of flowers. Their popularity is facilitated by the small size and ease of care.

Varietal variety of violets

The massive passion for violets as indoor plants began in the mid-20s of the last century.

Due to the fact that Saintpaulia is unusually plastic, and to bring out a new flower in a couple of years under the force of anyone, thousands of varieties are now created.

Their exact number is unknown, a single international classification does not exist.   Most often, violets are divided according to the following characteristics:

  • outlet size;
  • bud form;
  • color buds;
  • number of petals;
  • leaf color;
  • leaf shape.

In the catalogs published by different countries, one and the same flower can be found under different names. This is due to the fact that varieties are created extremely quickly and simply. Breeders independently produce very similar violets, and each gives them their own name.

Care after purchase

At the exhibition or in the store you purchased Saintpaulia and brought it home. What to do next?

  1. Look at the violet with the help of a magnifying glass - if there are no thrips or a mealy worm on it. If necessary, treat the plant with insecticide, so as not to infect the entire collection.
  2. Remove any dried or broken leaves and flower stalks.
  3. Immediately after buying a violet, it is better not to repot, but if it was grown in peat, it is impossible to delay.
  4. Watering a bush only if it is dry.

Correctly isolate the violet for 2 monthsso that diseases or pests that are not identified in time will not migrate to other plants. In practice, quarantine is rarely tolerated.

Important!   Place Saintpaulia separately from other flowers and watch it for at least two weeks. There were cases when even a shield was brought home with a purchase.

Growing conditions

Violet easily adapts to growing conditions and is easy to clean. With regular watering and minimum dressing she produces buds 2-3 times a year. But in order to get an exhibition copy with continuous flowering, you will have to pay more attention to it.

Temperature

Violet is an exceptionally heat-loving plant. It does not have a pronounced rest period and requires an even temperature throughout the year.

The most comfortable conditions - 20-25 degrees. It is absolutely unacceptable to lower the temperature to 15, and at 30 and above, the saintpaulia becomes sluggish, stops flowering, stops growing.

If you have an extreme temperature regime for violets - it is cold or too hot, there is a way out. Choose the best leaves and grow your own plants from them. Saintpaulia is very plastic, and already the next generation will be better adapted to your conditions.

Important! What the violet does not tolerate at all is the temperature difference. No efforts will make it bloom and look attractive, if in the room where it grows, it will be cold and hot.

A flower cannot be carried out in the summer on a street or a balcony; even the slightest draft will harm it.

Air humidity

In the homeland of Saintpaulia, in the Uzambarskih mountains, it rains daily, hence the requirements of the plant.

Of course, you will not be able to create conditions for it with 95% humidity, as in nature, but it is simply obligated to provide 50-70%.

Soft pubescent leaves can not be sprayed - they simply rot, you need to raise the percentage of water in the air in other ways.

If you have a large collection of violets, it is wise to buy a humidifier. Put a single plant on a pallet with wet expanded clay or sphagnum moss, just do not forget to pour water there. You can place cups of liquid between the pots or spray air next to flowers several times a day.

Flower lighting

At home, Saintpaulia grows close to the equator, where the whole year round a day is equal to night, to her you need lighting 11-13 hours a day.

On the other hand, it is not located in an open area, but under the protection of trees and shrubs. So the lighting of violets should be long, but not too intense.

Saintpaulia is one of the cultures that feel great in artificial light. If there is little space on the eastern and western window-sills, or you have collected a large collection, flowers can be grown on racks using fluorescent or phytolamps.

In order to illuminate a shelf of 50x130 cm, 2-3 lamps with a power of 40 W, located at a height of 20 to 35 cm from the tops of the plants, are sufficient. Incandescent bulbs to highlight violets unsuitable.

Signs of a lack of light are raised up leaves, with its excess rosette, on the contrary, becomes flat.

Important!   You can not highlight the plant around the clock or in pieces. In the dark, the leaves accumulate hormones responsible for the creation and development of buds. If you do not create violet rest at a time more than 6 hours a day, flowering will be incomplete.

In order for the violet standing on the windowsill to be evenly illuminated, the bush 2-3 times a week should be rotated 30-40 degrees.

Home Accommodation

So, violet is best placed on the eastern, western window-sills or racks with artificial lighting.

South windows require easy use, and north windows - lights. The flowers should have access to fresh air, but they cannot be placed under the window, as in other places where the plant will suffer from drafts. The temperature should be flat throughout the day.

You can not put violets close to each other - this will lead to the deformation of the bush. In addition, if one plant is sick, in the cramped there is a high probability that it will infect a nearby flower.

Photos of different indoor violets


Grade LE "Mistress of the Copper Mountain"


Sort “Yan Sultan”


Grade RS “Grafigna de Monsoreau”

How to care to bloom?

With proper care, Saintpaulia can bloom without interruption for a year, but in order for it not to be exhausted, we need a two-month break. In all its glory, violet will show itself if you provide it with:

  • sufficient, but not excessive lighting;
  • correct watering;
  • regular feeding;
  • draft protection;
  • timely removal of faded peduncles and leaves of daughter rosettes that appeared in the axils;
  • transplant 2 times a year;
  • a cramped pot, as in a spacious one it will not bloom at all or will give few weak peduncles.

Do not forget that Saintpaulia is a short-lived plant and is considered old at the age of three.

Seasonal care on the windowsill

As such, seasonal violet care does not exist. You decide when the plant will rest.

At this time, feeding is stopped, lighting and watering are slightly reduced. With a large collection it is convenient to allocate a separate shelf for plants “on a well-deserved rest” plants.

If your flowers are on racks, they are looked after equally the whole year round. For violets grown on window sills during the heating season, you must follow these rules:

  • be sure to provide light - at this time the sun is not enough plant;
  • place the pots so that the leaves do not touch the cold glass, otherwise they will freeze and disappear;
  • do not place heating devices in close proximity to plants;
  • if the batteries are located under the window sill with flowers, they should be shielded using foil or other means;
  • increase the humidity in the room - in winter, when the heating is on, the air is very dry, which negatively affects the state of violets.

Transfer

Adult violets are transplanted 1-2 times a year, young ones - as the roots take over the planting capacity.

Healthy plants roll over, trying not to disturb the fragile roots. The soil should be loose, slightly acidic.

Experienced lovers of violets make up planting mixes on their own; beginners buy special soil in stores. Drainage must be present at the bottom of a cramped pot; its absence is a sure way to destroy the plant.

It is possible to replant Saintpaulia at any time of the year, but during flowering it is better not to touch it. If there is an urgent need to move the plant to a new pot, be sure to tear off the flower stalks.

Landing

The diameter of the pot for planting violets of ordinary varieties should not exceed 9 cm. The plant should be cramped in it.

Flowering will not occur until the root system has completely mastered the ground.

Only the largest specimens are planted in containers with a diameter of 10-11 cm, for trailers and miniature varieties using 3-4 centimeter flowerpots.

Reference!   The outlet diameter must be three times the size of the pot.

Breeding

Seed propagation of violets is difficult and is used only by breeders when creating new varieties.

Plants are bred vegetatively, rooting leaf cuttings or daughter rosettes. To do this, they put in the water, planted in a light soil, perlite or peat tablet.

The same leaf can be rooted several times. In especially valuable varieties, they even cut a leaf plate and plant it in a peat-sand mixture using phytohormones. Trailers propagated by stem cuttings.

The resulting kids are seated in a separate container only when they grow to 3-5 cm.

Correct pruning and rejuvenation

In Saintpaulia, it is necessary to remove all faded flower stalks and yellowed lower leaves, not waiting for them to wither.

You can rejuvenate violet. To do this, cut the stem at ground level, clean it with a sharp sterile knife, sprinkle it with a mixture of crushed activated carbon and heteroauxin, allow to dry from 6 to 12 hours. Then it is placed in water or planted in light ground for rooting.

How to water?

Saintpaulias watered only with warm settled water. The surface of the soil should be slightly wet, it is unacceptable to overfill or overdry earthen coma.

But if you are in doubt whether it is worth wetting the violet, it is better to refrain - a short-term lack of water is less dangerous than its excess.

Experienced growers even wait until the top layer of the substrate dries out a bit, and the leaves start losing their turgor.

Caution!   Never pour liquid into the center of the outlet - the violet will rot and die.

It is difficult to care for a large collection of hundreds of copies, it is better to arrange drip irrigation.

Top dressing

Violets need large doses of potassium and phosphorus, but it is better not to get carried away with nitrogen (this does not mean at all that nitrates should be excluded from the diet of saintpaulia).

Every 2 weeks they are fertilized with special dressings for violets dissolved in water according to the instructions. For kids and starters take half the recommended dose.

Violets planted in the purchase of the soil, do not feed 2 months - the soil mixture already contains fertilizers.   Sometimes half doses of nutrients are applied with each irrigation. In the period of forced dormancy violets do not feed.

Diseases and pests

Almost all diseases of violets are caused by improper care.

Most often they suffer from late blight, powdery mildew, and gray rot, the pathogens of which fall on plants with poor ventilation, along with dust or overflows.

To save senpolias from diseases, they are treated with fungicides.

Of the pests the most dangerous are aphid, nematode, springtail, mites, thrips, whitefly. Suparids (mushroom mosquitoes) appear at elevated soil moisture or fertilizing with organic matter. They are not dangerous for the plant. To get rid of pests, violets are treated with insecticides, plants that are affected by a nematode are thrown away.

Frequent mistakes

When growing violets, growers most often encounter such problems:

  • development slows down, and stalks are drawn out and grow vertically due to lack of light;
  • development slows down, the leaves turn yellow, and the socket becomes flat with excessive light;
  • spots on the leaves appear due to watering with cold water, sunburn, drafts, or because in winter the leaves were pressed against the cold window glass;
  • edges of sheet plate are bent at low temperature;
  • stems rot from overflows.

Properly care for violets - this will eliminate problems or minimize them.

Answers to popular questions

From time to time all flower growers face problems. We will answer the most frequently asked questions when growing violets.

Why is it growing poorly or slowly?

Saintpaulia can grow poorly for the following reasons:

  • too low or high temperature - bring it back to normal;
  • lack of nutrients - feed the plant;
  • depleted soil - transplant violet;
  • plant over 3 years old - root a leaf or rejuvenate a bush.

Why does not bloom?

Flowering may be absent:

  • if there is a shortage of potassium and phosphorus or an excess of nitrogen - use only specialized feedings intended for saintpaulia;
  • in the wrong light - insufficient or without a 6-hour break;
  • the flower is hot or cold, the difference between day and night temperatures;
  • if the violet grows in too loose a pot, transplant it into a tight container until the roots have mastered the whole earthen room, there will be no flowering;
  • if buds appear, but then fall off or dry - perhaps low humidity;
  • flower over 3 years old - root a leaf or rejuvenate a bush.

Violet will not bloom if you decide to get the seeds or simply do not tear off the old flower stalks.

Why only leaves grow?

If the leaves grow well and the flowering does not occur, then there may be several reasons:

  • excess nitrogen fertilizers;
  • the absence of a mandatory daily 6-hour dark period;
  • lack of light.

Useful video

Learn more about caring for violets from the video below:

Conclusion

As you can see, there is nothing difficult in the care of violet - you just need to know some simple rules and strictly follow them.

Violet or Saintpaulia is a genus belonging to the family of the Gesnerievs. In the wild form grows in the mountainous regions of East Africa. It was discovered by the scientist Saint-Paul, after whom it was named. To date, many varieties have been developed from this plant, which are widely distributed in indoor gardening.


General information

Violet is a low perennial, with a very short stem and a large number of fleshy leaves. Flowers are small, simple, collected in a brush. Modern selection was able to bring varieties with the most diverse color and shape of the petals.

In fact, indoor saintpaulia is not a violet at all, it is so called because of its similarity with forest violet and tricolor - pansies, but in reality they are from different families.

The classification of Saintpaulia is quite complicated, so we will give only the general characteristics. The traits shared by violets are: the type of rosette, its size, the color of the foliage, the type of flower and its color, as well as the number of petals.

Most modern varieties are very different from the usual room violets, they have a different shape of leaves, and the petals are similar to corrugated or terry.

Among the varieties with high decorativeness are popular duchess , amadeus , frosty cherry , cinderella's sleep , isadora , angelica , lituanica   other.

But also a representative of violets, and not Saintpaulus. And alpine violet is actually cyclamen.

Violet care at home

Proper care of the violet will help to enjoy its flowering for almost the entire year.

Saintpaulias are very fond of light, but they should not be placed in direct sunlight. It's not scary if the light falls on them in the morning or in the evening, but if the sun is turned towards them at noon, the leaves will burn.

In order for the violet to fully blossom, it needs a light day at about 13 hours. If you follow this rule, you can achieve flowering, even in winter.

When a column falls on a thermometer below 15 ° С, the saintpaulia stops growing. In summer, the best temperature for a flower will be 24 ° C. In winter, the temperature may drop slightly, but not below this point.

Also it is impossible to allow sharp temperature jumps and drafts. Because of this feature, it is better not to take a saintpaulia outside in the summer.

Violet needs a high humidity, but it is impossible to get water on the foliage and inflorescence.

Capacity for landing need to pick a small. If there is too much space in the pot, the violet will not bloom until it is filled with roots. For this plant, small plastic pots are quite suitable, the size of which should be 2-3 times smaller than the outlet.

Soil for violets

Regular room violets are not particularly whimsical to the ground, but for varietal, you should choose the right substrate. You can buy it in the store, and you can make it yourself by mixing half a share of sod ground, two leaves, and one each of humus and sand. You should also add a spoonful of superphosphate and some bone meal.

But the most important thing is that the soil is loose and slightly acid. At the bottom of the pot should be placed drainage layer.

Watering violets

When planting, the flower is placed in the center of the tank and gradually fill it with earth, so that there are no voids left. After planting, water the plant.

Water violets do not need often, about once every 7-10 days. It is best to use bottom watering. At the same time use defended, warm water.

Violets can be, and when the leaves are contaminated, it is necessary to spray and wash them. But before carrying out these procedures, the flower must be removed from the window sill. After spraying or douche, you should also not rush to put the violet in place - wait until it dries, otherwise spots will form on the foliage.

Fertilizer for violets

Also saintpaulia need to fertilize. To do this, take complex feeding, which begin to make in the period of increasing green mass. Fertilizer continues until the dormant period, the frequency - once every 10 days with irrigation.

It is advised to use a lower concentration of fertilizers than stated in the instructions.

Transplanting violets at home

Potted violets need annual transplants, because they deplete the soil in a year. In this case, it is necessary to replace the pot only if you observe signs that the flower does not have enough space (shallow foliage, weak flowering).

It is best to transplant plants in early spring by transshipment, so that the roots do not particularly suffer.

Pinching Violets

Violets do well in the bush, but in order to increase the decorativeness, you need to pinch them. This is especially true of the lower leaves. They can be torn off with petioles, because they quickly fade and only take power from the flower. You should also get rid of sluggish inflorescences and ugly and yellowed foliage.

Sometimes turn the plant in a circle so that the bush grows evenly.

Gradually, after the removal of the lower leaves, the trunk of the Saintpaulia will become visible and over time it will only become more noticeable. To keep the flower beautiful, as before, it can be transplanted by deepening the trunk into the soil or cutting off all the leaves, leaving only a couple of centimeters of the stem.

After this, the stump remaining after pruning is placed in the water before the root is formed and planted in the soil, thus another plant is obtained.

Propagation of violets by division

Propagated Saintpaulia can be seeds, rosettes and leaves. Seed method is practically not used due to its complexity, and also due to the fact that as a result, the flower will lose its varietal characteristics and you will get the usual violet.

If your plant has grown heavily and new sockets have started to form on it, then they need to be separated and planted in other containers. You can divide even during flowering.

Violets leaf breeding

The most common and easy way is to grow a violet from a leaf. To do this, take a strong leaf together with the stem and put it in water to form roots. But you can try to immediately plant a leaf in the substrate of sand, leaf soil and peat (4: 2: 1). This container is covered with glass and kept warm and with good lighting, but so that the direct rays do not fall on the container.

Sometimes the soil needs to be watered, but only so that they are slightly moist. It happens that the sheet begins to wither or does not change at all. If this happens, you do not need to hurry and throw away the material - sometimes it takes a long time to form a new plant.

If with the advent of young foliage, the old leaf is in good condition, then it needs to be cut off. After that, you can even try to use it for breeding again.

If you root a leaf in the ground, then you cannot observe the formation of roots, but the speed of their appearance and the chance to get a new violet increases.

Diseases of violets

Ordinary saintpaulias are fairly resistant to diseases, but varietal species are not so strong at all in this regard.

  • One of the most common diseases affecting violets is powdery mildew. She is manifested by white bloom on the leaves   plants. When a disease is detected, we recommend using Fundazole or bentlan.
  • Late blight leads to rotting of the roots and the formation of brown spots on the foliage . If the plant is sick, it must be destroyed and sterilized capacity in which it was grown.
  • Gray rot forms gray spots on the body of the plant . If they are found, they should be immediately cut off and processed with a fungicide. The soil in which the diseased plants grew can no longer be used.
  • Furazioz appears with an excess of moisture. is he leads to rotting of the stem and leaf stalks . If you notice these symptoms, treat the violet with a fungicide.
  • Rust appears as small orange spots on the leaves. . To cure a flower, use a 1% solution of copper sulfate.

Possible difficulties

The most frequent questions about indoor violets related to the lack of flowering, yellowing of foliage and leaf spot.

  • If your violet does not bloom , then, in addition to pests, this can be a number of reasons: lack of light, short light day, excess nitrogen supplements, excessive moisture in the soil, or lack of such in the air. Also, this problem is caused by a large growing capacity and an excessively dense substrate.
  • Yellowing of the leaves may indicate flower aging. . This also happens when placed in direct sunlight. This can be observed with a deviation of soil acidity from the norm, as well as with an excess of phosphorus dressings.
  • The most common spots on the leaves   are the result of pests and diseases, but sometimes they appear due to drafts.
  • Stains from the edges of the sheet   indicate a lack of potassium in the soil - it means that the substrate is exhausted and it is time to transplant the flower.
  • Dry spots   formed if the violet is in direct sunlight.