Evening star., 1953-03-01
African Violet
Poll Shows
Is Fuvorites
By Mrs. Fred n. Rosebroek

By Mrs. Fred n. Rosebroek
President. Metropolitan African Violet Club
Amateur and commercial AZ.
rican violet growers. fascinated
by the surprising results Of
ross-pollination within the past
few years. have produced some,
truly remarkable varieties to
add to collections. These new
developments are so superior. in
both bloom and foliage. that
many Of the older favorites are
gradually disappearing from all
but the largest collections.
A new variety. before being
registered. should have bloomed
true through three successive
generations Of leaf cuttings. It
Ii supposedly safe to assume
then that no mutation win occur.
However. this does not always
hold true. as plants have been
known to alter radically when
subjected to different lighting
or growing conditions. Several
interesting mutations have oc-
Cured in my collection and I
am sure that most growers have
had similar experiences. In my
estimation, this occasional un-
predictability only adds to the
fascination Of African violet cul-
ture.
To those who are not familiar
with all Of the varieties. 1t must
be most confusing when trying
to make selections because the
names are not always descriptive.
Lists have been published from
time to time to help beginners
in selecting a representative col,
lection Of the better plants. So
rapid has been the introduction
Of new types. particularly the
doubles. that it is now difncult
to narrow such q list down to
even q dozen varieties.
At a recent meeting Of the
Metropolitan African Violet Club
a poll was taken to determine
the current favorites. with the
following result. In order Of pref.
erence: ~".s 1
Azure Beauty-Free-fiow
double, blue and white varie-.
gated
Snow Prince - Large white
blooms.
Pink Cheer-Deep pink.
Pink Delight-Medium pink.
foliage is red underneath.
Rose Beauty-Double orchid,
and white variegated. :
Sunrise-Dark red.
Fantasy Splotched lavender
and blue blooms. A novelty. .
Painted Girl - Orchid tipped,
single white. Girl foliage.
Blue Ffd Girl - Light blue.
Girl foliage.
Velvet Girl - PanSy shaped,
deep red blooms. Girl foliage.
Double Neptune-Double, dark
blue blooms. Shiny, quilted foli.'
age.
Sailors Delight-Double medi.
um blue. Girl foliage.
Emperor WilheIm-Very large
dark blue blooms. Outstanding
girl foliage
Blue Moon-Very large dark
blue blooms. 10
West Coast Amethyst - An
older variety, profuse bloomer,
light orchid.
Orchid Wonder - Very large
orchid blooms. similar to DUPONT
Lavender Pink. Good bloomer.,
Purity-Double white. /.
Inn0cence-White, with dark
foliage which is red underneath.
A collection containing most Of
these varieties would Afford q
good range of color and foliage.
Other varieties, such as Lacy
Girl, Ruffled Queen, Star
Sapphire Apple Blossom, ETC..
produce gorgeous blooms. Most
Of these grow very slowly and.
as a rule they are not profuse
bloomers. However. If one has
adequate space and the neces-
Sary patience. the blooms are
well worth waiting for.
A good way to keep UP with
the new developments in the AZ
rican violet field is to attend the
annual shows held by the Metro
politan African Violet Club. The
next spring show will be held
April II and 18 in the auditorium
Of the Hecht Co.'s Parkington
store.