African Violets - how much light?

I grow a variety of "bright indirect light" and "bright with a few hours of sunlight" plants, as well as a few moderate to low light plants a bit away from my southwest window.

How much light do av's need? I've never tried one, as I figured they wouldnt' do well. However, my indoor rose attempt is plagued by spider mites, and I don't think it's going to get better as long as it's inside.

I'd love to have a flowering plant inside other than my peace lily.

Help?!? :)

Thank you
Jennifer

ps Rubber Tree and Ficus B. both doing good.. Thanks for your help and suggestions!!

An unobstructed east window is a good place to grow african violets. They require some sun in order to keep them blooming. Turn them weekly to keep them symetrical and fertilize them with a general houseplant or african violet food according to the package directions. If your s.w. window is very hot and sunny, it would be wise to move them back a bit from the window. You'll know if they aren't getting enough light because they'll stop blooming and the leaves will reach upward looking for light. Ice cold water on the leaves will disfigure them. It is perfectly o.k. to water african violets from the top, (some believe they can only be watered from the bottom) as long as you are using tepid water. Do not let them sit in water. African violets grow to perfection under flourescent lights.

Your also might want to try streptocarpus (an a.v. relative), they can be treated the same as african violets.

Forget mini roses in the house. They are not houseplants and are better off planted outside in the garden where they are perfectly hardy.

since I know nothing about av's (just learning that I _do_ have enuf light..... very very interesting. :))

What sort of pot? Plastic? terra cotta? does it make a difference?

Wow! this is neat! I'm seriously considering getting one now....... :):)

Thanks Jerseyguy for the input. :)

Jennifer

I recommend plastic for a.v.'s. Clay pots dry out too fast and over time become encrusted with fertilizer salts which a.v.'s are very sensitive to. If you like the look of terracotta, just drop the plastic pot inside a slightly larger terracotta or other decorative pot. Generally, you can leave them in the pot they were purchased in without any need for repotting for several months at least.

I would agree with everything Jersey Guy said, except the "unobstructed east window" part, at least at the height of summer. I've had AV leaves burn to a crisp in such a window during June/July/Aug. Move them back from the window, or use a some kind of shading, like a sheer curtain, until fall.

I've also had success directly in a bright north window, but in that location, they take a break from flowering in mid-winter.

In growing AVs, having enough light is half the equation--the best kind is strong, indirect light. most will do very well in the office because they have constant temp. and constant bright indirect light.

I always water at the top too but I found that using a small water bottle or bottled water container with a quirt top works wonders because you can aim it at the soil and not have to worry about the leaves. Also, it keeps the water at room temperature (AVs hate cold water) and the chlorine (another enemy) has evaporated by then.

The best soil combo is 1/3 perlite, 1/3 vermiculte, and 1/3 peat moss--it's light enough for the soft roots and retains just the right amount of moisture. I grow mine in both clay and plastic pots, tho the clay pots need to be flushed occasionally but they do well in both.

It's also recommended that you not use fertilizer that contains urea nitrogen since it produces a gas over time that AVs are sensitive to. Schultz african violet food has urea nitrogen in it. I think osmocite and peter's doesn't use it (it's cheaper for companies to use urea)

it sounds like a lot to keep track of but these plants are really easy to take care of and they are very rewarding.

Personally I think streptocarpus make some of the showiest booming indoor plants. They don't hold up well in stores, so often don't look appealing, but at home where they can settle in, the flowers are breath-taking. The plants are easy to grow too. There are hundreds of new varieties--many very showy, with patterns of colors. The flowers are much larger than African Violets. Other relatives of AV's also make great blooming houseplants--but can be hard to find in general houseplant selections. All of these plants, known as gesneriads really make a show indoors. They can be found at specialist mail order nurseries or grown from seed. Between the Gesneriad Reference Web and the home page of the American Gloxinia and Gesneriad Society there are well over a thousand photos of these plants on the web. The second site can be found at www.aggs.org The first one can be reached through the links page on the AGGS site. There are also links to many other great gesneriad sites such as Mauro Pexioto's site of Brazilian Plants.

Welllllll....

In my experience, the less I fuss over african violets, the better. As soon as I threw out all the "rules" with AV's and just let them be, they did wonderfully!

I have mine all in plastic margarine containers, in soil from my yard, in a south-west window, watered from the top, and fertilize when I remember with liquid AV food, or reg. liquid plant food, whichever happens to be in the watering can at the time.

I am currently growing 4 varieties and they bloom proficiently pertty much year-round!

Good luck, and don't worry...I think they are really hearty plants!

-plant girl :)

I have had luck growing AV's in the bathroom. They get plenty of light from an east facing glass block window and the humidty in the air seems to agree with them. I water once a week and always use AV fertilizer in the water. I have constant blooms.
I have a friend who keeps hers on an enclosed front porch which is also on the east side of her house. Her plants are hugh! She bottom feeds them all individually using large butter spread containers filled with fertilized water and a long shoe string running up through the plant pot (which sits on top of the butter container)into the root system. She only has to refill the butter containers about once a month. They are beautiful!

Hi AngelSong,

Good advise here from everyone; my only caution is I only grow them in plastic, as I've discovered the hard way when the leaves touch the edge of a clay pot, they get damaged & sometimes rot. I have not found this a problem w/ plastic pots. Also, I grow mine on wicks, letting them dry out entirely maybe 2-3 days a week.

The advise abt back away from SW strong & bright window light works well for me. That's exactly where I have mine positioned.

Try 'em, don't be timid of them, they're cheap enough too. I probably killed at least 5 of them before I got the hang of it. With all this excellent advise, I'm certain you'll do much better. And besides (am in NYC), they flowered for me beautifully in the dead of cold, snowy January which was just great. Good luck & enjoy!!!

I have numerous AV's on a light stand, lights on 12-14 hrs./day...and no flowers. I am just about ready to give up, toss the plants and store the (expensive!) light stand. Two things hold me back: 1) I keep thinking *maybe* someday (we are talking years now) they will bloom and 2) the lights are great in the winter. I guess I just need to stop wanting them to bloom!

AnnieRose,

Have you tried any fertilizer? If not, pls. try either a bloom boosting fertilizer, or, as I use, there are AV specific fertilizers, commonly put out by Shults, Peters, etc. Try that, it may help; also have you read about removing the outer ring of leaves? And/or keeping them potbbund -- have heard various of these tricks may help. Best of luck - pls. don't give up (also, if you like, I think there's an AV Forum on the Garden Web as well).

HTH = Hope this helps.

Pirate_Girl - Thanks for the tips and encouragement. I do fertilize, groom, etc. but to no avail. I am going to try different lights this fall, once it gets a little cooler, repot all the plants and give them one more chance.

How far away from the lights are they? Are the lights incandescent or florescent?

Jerseyguy - The tubes are 24" 20 watt fluorescent tubes (Sylvannia) some cool white, some warm. They are 6-8" from the tops of the plants. (most of my plants are semi-miniatures) Any advice or
suggestions greatly appreciated.

Two 20 watt tubes should be o.k if they are side by side.If you just have one, I don't think it's enough light. Are they "Grow" lights or regular cool white bulbs. The grow lights have a wider light spectrum (reds and blues) which sometimes are helpful when trying to get a plant to bloom. If you're fertilizing and they're still not blooming it sounds like a light issue to me.

It might also be that the plants are in a growing phase. I know violets are "supposed" to bloom all the time. But, your conditions sound good. Sometimes when conditions improve the plant grows for a while before setting buds and blooming. Have you looked close lately for buds--they may be in there. How warm are the plants? I know that some people have better bloom at the end of summer when the inside temperatures drop down. Don't give up--once you succeed, and you will, your plants will bloom very well.

Check the analysis on your fertilizer for excess nitrogen. That could inspire a spurt of growth to the detriment of bloom.

Each fixture has 2 bulbs 9" apart. Have been using "regular" light tubes, bought 2 "Plant & Aquarium" tubes today to try. Checked the fertilizer I have been using -- it has urea nitrogen, so I need to make a change. Central New York temps are quite warm in summer, maybe if I get the lights and fertilizer changed when cooler temps come in another month or so I'll get flowers. 60 plants and no flowers is not working for me! Thanks for all the suggestions.