I inherited three African Violets from my mother in law. She had cancer, and my brother in law had been watering the plants whenever he stopped by her house. Two of the plants look okay, but the third was standing in water up to the edge of the pot. It looks pretty sad - all the leaves are drooping.
My question is: will the droopy leaves eventually spring back to normal, or should I just clip them?
When I first got all three plants, I took the inner pots out of the decorative pots, and placed all three on paper towels to draw the excess water out. After about three days of frequent paper towel changes, the soil in all three is now just barely damp.
Thanks for your help!
Jeannie
Newbie Question
Hi Jeannie,
Welcome to the group ^_^.
It sounds like you are doing the right thing.The plants were waterlogged.Remove the soft leaves as close to the base of the leaf as possible.Hopefully the crowns are still firm.Check around the base of the plants to make sure they are not rotting.If they are,you may have to take a healthy leaf off and restart it.If there is nothing firm left on the plant that looks bad,it may be too late.I hope not!! All you can do is let it dry out and water very carefully for awhile or put it in fresh barely damp
If they look okay after they dry out it might help to repot them.Let the top of the soil dry between waterings and water with lukewarm or room temp water.
Hope this helps,
Lynn
Lynn - funny you are from Omaha! That is where we were for the past week. My mother in law lived in Council Bluffs, and my brother in law lives in Omaha (along with two nieces and a nephew).
I did buy some african violet pots (the double / insert type), some african violet potting soil, and some liquid food. I plan to repot all three after I let them rest a few days.
I am pretty sure some of the smaller, inner leaves still look fairly good on the third plant, so I will trim off all the leaves that are still wilted and go from there.
Thanks!
Jeannie,
I doubt if I know your family,but you never know.It's a small world.I am originally from Council Bluffs.
If you are using double insert pots that are self watering,be sure to add a lot of perlite to the soil to keep them from staying too wet.Be sure not to use large pots.When you repot,they won't need food for a while.
Keep us informed.Good luck,
Lynn
Lynn, my niece teaches high school history at one of the public schools (she lives near I-80, half way between 480 and 680, and works not far from home). Don't know if that means anything to you or not.
So, from what I am reading above, I clip only the leaf and leave the leaf's stem, or do I cut the leaf and its stem as close to the main body of the plant as possible?
Thanks so much for your help. I know these are just your garden variety african violets (they were purchased at the local grocery store), but it would mean a lot to me if I can keep them alive :)
Sorry Jeanie,
That doesn't ring an bells with me.
Remove the whole stem at the base.I generally just use my fingers.
A lot of violets sold in grocery stores are beautiful and the important thing is the sentiment.They belonged to someone you loved.
Lynn
I agree with Lynn.. the best thing to do is allow the poor AVs a chance to dry out some and definitely get rid of the wilted limp noodle leaves with the wet noodle stems as close to the main body of the plant as possible. You may not be able to get too close but as long as you get a good portion then it should be fine as the rest of the stem will shrivel up and fall off. I too just use my fingers to take off unwanted or unhealthy leaves (with stems).
Anyway, if you follow the advice Lynn has given then you should be just fine. However, I think I'd wait until you are sure the plants are recovering nicely from their waterlogged ordeal before repotting them.
Sorry to hear about your Mother-in-law and I wish you the best of luck with the AVs. Also, if you happen to get the itch of an African VIolet addict be sure to stop by more often and let us know how they are doing :)
Katie
Me?? Addict??
I went to an AV show in Oshkosh this past Saturday. I bought four plants: Lemon Whip, Witch Doctor, Magnolia, and one other I can't remember!
I have not yet re-potted the two better looking AVs I got. The soil is still moist (haven't been watered in over 10 days!), and they look pretty good.
The third one I did re-pot, removed most of the leaves, and it is looking better. I think it might survive!
None of the AVs are flowering. Should I start giving them some AV plant food soon? Or just continue to let them rest for awhile yet?
Thanks!
LOL.. I know what you mean.. I'm addicted to them myself. However, I tend to end up with new plants because my Mom loves them but for some reason she has not been able to keep one alive. So, she buys them and then gives them to me to care for and grow so that she can then enjoy them later.
As for your African Violet, I'd let them rest, especially the one, and then fertilize them once the soil starts to get dry. When you do fertilize them only do a half strength feeding the first time so that you don't over feed them. That way, you can come back in a couple of weeks and give them another feeding when the soil starts to get dry again. The main thing is to make sure to not allow the pots the AVs are in to sit in water, as I'm sure you know :)
As for their blooming, your AVs may not bloom for a little bit do to having their systems "shocked" and also due to needing to produce new leaves. Eventually your AVs will bloom again and in the mean time as long as the leaves are a nice healthy green, are not spongy or limp then they should be fine. Also, I don't know if it's true or not but I've read online that AVs cannot grow leaves and produce flowers at the same time So, don't get alarmed if you don't have any bloom stems developing on your AVs right now. They will bloom once they've gotten themselves established in their new pots and have had proper care. ;)
I have an AV that has not Bloomed since I bought it thanks to being left out in the winter cold. She lost a lot of leaves due to the cold temps and I thought for a little while that I might not be able to save her, but I did and now she's growing really well and is getting to the size she was last fall. I know she'll bloom sooner or later, but the main thing for me is that there are plenty of big healthy leaves on her before she blooms again. I was lucky that she made it to where she is today as she only had maybe 4 rows leaves by the time I got done pinching the damaged leaves off the plant. Needless to say my poor little AV looked like a baby instead of a fully developed plant.
Other people on the forum may have better suggestions on what to do, but I tend to be a more cautious person when it comes to my AVs and it works for me. As Lynn mentioned above, what works for one person may not be the best way for another person. At the same time you should be able to get a pretty good idea of what will work best for you from others who may post or have posted on other threads. :)
I fertilizer my plants every time I water with a very diluted amount like 1/8 t per gallon of water or 1/16 t. If you use more then it builds up in the soil and the salts start showing on the top of the soil and you have to rinse them really well.
I've never not fertilized when I get a new plant but I wouldn't fertilize until I needed to water and it sounds like you don't need to water yet!
I don't think it's true that they can't make flowers and leaves at the same time. I just looked at one that is blooming and it is still making leaves too. It may be that they tend to spend more time on roots when young then leaves then flowers but it's a living system and it makes sense that when it's doing well it can walk, talk and chew bubblegum, lol. When stressed or trying to survive initially it probably doesn't.
I agree annacanna and was only mentioning what I had seen on other websites. I definitely think that your explanation is much more accurate than the other. If for anything what you just said is more than likely what they were trying to say only their words are a really, really poor version of saying exactly the same thing. :)
This message was edited May 6, 2010 6:36 AM
Jeannie,
I just want to add that a plant that doesn't need water after 10 days is unusual.Be very careful not to overwater.It could need a lighter soil mix or if it is not showing new growth the roots may be rotting and are unable to suck up the water.
IMHO violets can and do grow and flower at the same time.Disbudding them makes leaves grow faster,because of course a plant uses a lot of energy to produce flowers.
Lynn
Maybe it is time to re-pot the two that are doing well. I felt the soil this morning, and it is not dry, but it certainly is not very fluffy either! I think I would have to work a bit to dig my finger into the soil.
If they are doing well there is probably no hurry,but it should be pretty easy to stick your finger down in the soil.They may be rootbound or the soil may be compacted.
I think the soil is pretty compacted. Maybe I'll re-pot one of them tonight and see how it does. Unless my DH changes his mind *again* and we will be going camping this weekend - then I'll have to work on meal prep for the camping trip :)
I am so excited!!!
One of the plants I got from my mother-in-law has bloomed!!
This is the plant that was near death. I think it is looking pretty good!
Good for you, Jeannie!!! They look very happy in their new home :)
Connie
I am just so thrilled to see a flower! This is fun!
Great job Jeannie!! ^_^
I named the pink one Optimara 'Donna Pink' in honor of my MIL. I am sure it has a real name, but since I don't know what it is, I'll stick with 'Donna Pink' lol.
Thanks for all the encouragement!
That is precious, Jeannie. I have very special plants named after loved ones also :) By the way, Lynn, Marjorie IS the TRUE name on that mum...FYI LOL!! I did not rename that one...just in case you were wondering :)
Connie
I was kinda' curious LOL.
good job, they look great.great b=name too.
mrsbonnie
Those plants look so healthy. Good job in reviving it. Helene
Thanks mrsbonnie and helene!
I think I need more AVs!!
Watch out Jeannie. First thing you know, you will turn around and have a wall of the little buggers looking back at you!! LOL!!
Melanie