Evening star., 1949-01-30
African ViOletS
Easy ytoGrowby
Simple Rules
By Alice S. Younqmon

by Alice ,. 1oun9mon
In the last few years the African
violet has grown in popularity until
1t is now the most widely grown
house plant. Nearly every magazine
gives frequent space to some ones
idea of what varieties to grow and
how. 1t has been interesting to
watch the advice given recently In
the Readers Clearing House.
Having grown the lovely Saint
paulias for 10 or II years with rea-
sonably good success, I am ready
to tell how I do it, but not how
you must do it. For I am firmly
convinced that while certain funda-
mental rules seem generally to
bring success, some people have
good luck by following other ways.
First of all, the potting mixture
needs to be right. I find a mixture
of three-fourths well-decayed leaf
mold and one-fourth sand excellent
The leaf-mold I am able to scrape
up is already sandy enough. I add
no sand, The whole idea is to have
the soil so porous that water can
be taken up very quickly. The de-
cayed leaf-mold holds moisture to
the plant roots.
Water From the Bottom.
II drainage is perfect, plants may
be watered from the top. Lots of
folks follow this practice and are
very successful. I have best results
by watering from the bottom. 4
prefer to place the pots In a pan of
quite warm water and let them
stand until the soil on top is wet.
They seem to like the moist heat
which arises.
The amount of heat in a room,
the exposure and even the kind of
pot in which plant is growing
makes difference as to how often
plants need to be watered. II
They must be given a little water
every day. If they are in a very
warm room they will do best If
the pots are set in a pan of water
and the soil is allowed to become
thoroughly wet. I find that an all
night soaking twice a week keeps
mine in fine condition, but then
mine are kept near a radiator. Be
governed in all you do by the place
in which your plants must grow, ,.:he
size Of the pot, the kind of pot and
the moisture in the room
II leaves are wet they will become
spotted, but If you will spray the
leaves with fine spray of warm
water and leave them in a warm
room to dry. out Of the sun, the
foliage will be free from dust and
luxuriously green.
Best Exposures.
AS to choice of window, there
again are differences of opinion. I
have tried different exposures and
have found that east or northeast
windows give me the strongest
plants with the most blossoms.
Strange as 1t may seem, the diff
ferent degrees Of light have changed
the color of my blossoms Just a
shade or two.
Starting new plants from leaves
has become major pastime. 1t Is
fun to watch for signs of the new
plant. For some. greatest success
comes from starting a fine sturdy
leaf in water For me there is no
luck at all in that method. I prefer
a small pot full of vermiculite.
The vermiculite must never be al
lowed to dry out. That is one gen.
eral rule for success.
I think you will find that the
time Of starting new plants Is sig
nif1cant. It would seem that heat
Is vital element. So If you do
not have q greenhouse, either
during the heat OF the summer or
when the radiators are hot in mid
winter, are the best times. Do not
be in too much of a hurry. Some
times the new plant, Is rather slow
in putting in appearance
The size of the pot is another
important factor. The African vio-
let likes to be pot-oound, so start
them of in small pots and gradually
move them to the next larger size.
One Plant to a Pot.
Since so much of the beauty of
the Saintpaulia lies in its teauti-
full foliage and the symmetry of the
plant itself, it should never be grown
in clusters in a great oversize pot.
One plant to pot is the true way
to show the loveliness Of this beau
tiful flower.
II your plants throw out side
shoots the shoots should be re-
moved with q sharp knife. If left
on they will drain the vitality from
the main plant.
As to varieties to choose-well
that's O problem. There Is now
q committee working under the d.
rection Of the African Violet So
ciety Of America to properly classi-
fy and register the different varities.
At present there is great duplication
in names and varieties. There are a
great many blue varieties, for in
stance, that are almost indistin-
guiShable from one another.
One of the best new strains Is
the Dupont. The flowers are of
unusual size and the plants are
vigorous. In this strain we should
fnd some choice new violets to add
to our collection.