What are your favorite African Violets

I am relatively new to African Violets and the selection is overwhelming! I am having great luck with them and would love to know what everyone's favorites are. Thank you. Sally

Hi Sally,
I have just been learning about AVs this last year myself. I really love the "fat and fluffy" flowers, mostly white, green, blue, purple and red. This is a picture of Rainbow's Limelight, which is not fat and fluffy, but a very pretty green.

Diane

Gosh I love them all ! I have been Blessed to grow thousand different varieties.
I feel its important to keep the Vintage and Species growing and progating and sharing them so their not lost.'
But the most beauty for your money are the Optimara Plants ! they have the EverFloris series Space babies where seeds were taken to spcae and the plants have large growing stunning wavy foliage and they bloom all the time !
Rhapsodie andother of Optimars series are all Stunning.
They have variegated , Large, and dainty Miniatures with lots of big blooming African violets !
I also like Bell flowers and you don't see them often but Optimara has the new Southern Bells Series Annabells and Isabelle ! Blue and Pink bell flowers that keep blooming and blooming !
You can't go wrong with Optimara African violets !
Happy Growing !
Well trying to find an Annabelle picture no luck but heres a pretty !
Annabelle will come later :))

I forgot to say that I don't care for the variegated foliage, unless you are growing the plant just for the foliage. Some of them are so variegated that you can hardly notice the lovely flowers.

Hi Sally..I have so many to love... but my favorite is Spring Song...Im running out of spaceso have to be really choosey..Faye

Optimara Annabelle Optimara Southern Bells Series

Here she Annabelle ! Love her bells !
Oh me I buy any variegated foliage plants I can get my hands on. Though I enjoy Mosaic best it is most stable of variegated plants !

Faye pretty Spring Song !! FC has a few Spring Song's who is the Hybridizer of yours !

Perhaps because I am knew to AVs I am in love with the variegated foliage.....I just received in a trade the Annabelle and she is my first named one....trying to propagate her right now.....

I can't pick just one. I love all of the AVs that are ruffled w/ green edges.

Before i order any, I have to learn the names of some......I just love those with ruffled edges or ruffled flowers.....especially the flowers that have some light pink and green in the flower itself.....

I've never seen an African Violet I didn't like! My favorite (which I don't have one of these beauty's yet) HAS to be Wrangler's Pink Patches! I LOVE the variegated foliage! Seems like every day there are photo's posted on this forum and I have ten more favorites to add to my wish list!

Allison: You know I love the Annabelle too ... and I want an Isabelle to go with her! Maybe I will find one before long. I'm wondering if there will be more coming in that Southern Belle Series? I bet there will, and I can't wait!

Here's a photo of the Annabelle's I found at Wal-Mart a couple of months ago for $1.98 each .... they've since raised the prices on all their AV's ... some are $2.49 and some are $2.98!

Gosh, ladies! Those are gorgeous Annabelle AVs, especially for the price at W-M. My precious grandmother's name was Annabelle, so now I have to get one of those, don't I? I'd been hearing about them, but hadn't seen any pictures.

I think what I said about variegated foliage needs to be modified. The ones I don't care for are SO variegated that you can't see the flowers to best advantage. It's kind of a fine line. Frosted Whisper is variegated with the white flowers and I like that one, but Rose Bouquet and Laser Celebration are too variegated for me. Maybe it has to do with the color of the flowers against the variegation. I dunno!

I love them all.
Gail and Lin you two must join AVSA and get the magazines and also get First Class where there is 15 thousand plus named Av's with all their info and thousands of photos and more entered each month ! A must have I use mine each day sense I got it 3-4 years ago !
I just love Annabelles blue bells though don't you !!

you grow sooooo beautifully and I will start subscribing to the AVSA.....

I like The magenta colored ones and the ones with fantasy in the flowers like Rebel's Splatter Kake.

Oh my sounds like some one likes my spring song..lol(named Betty Gail)..lol..so glad I have 3 leafs that have babies already
Allison ..there was a lady that came in to my shop that gave me this one ..she said she got it from a lady that lives down the street that use to raise AV's ..

oh my i can,t pick a favorite, there all beautifull
but heres a new one that just bloomed
its called rolling pink cloudbust belive its a trail

This message was edited Feb 21, 2007 9:07 AM

How long does it take to propagate by leaves......I put some in this past week and look every day.....thanks
gail

bettygail
i,m new at this, but i have grew quite a few now,
some puts on new babys quick some takes a little longer
i have one down that been down far over 2 months, its got plenty of roots but no babies yet.it seems like the more you watch the longer it takes
just relax you will have babys before you no it good luck

thanks, starfly!!!

I like variegated foliage myself, but I agree some of them can get a little crazy. I like the ones that are just edged, like this one I bought at a recent AV show. It's called "Rita Hilton".

Another good one is "Pow Wow". Last time I posted this picture the forum went a little crazy. Mom already put down some leaves to share with everyone (but Kenton gets one first). Leaves really can be tricky. Kenton sent me some in trade and while some just go right at it, I have one that just started putting out leaves - and it's been about two months! It's cute to watch as it has about eight little baby leaves. And one has a baby leaf coming up a good inch away from "Mommy" leaf which I thought was odd. Here's some Pow Wow for you!

Nice plants et pics mellielong! The edges are pretty.
Laura

those leaves and flowers are magnificent.....the more I see, the more I know that i don't know anything!!!!!! I am just a newbie to african violets.....Today I found the deepest red one at a nursery....too tired to take pics tonight but will be back with the color....thanks for sharing

Your plants are beautiful, Mellie. I'm glad you are getting babies.

Thanks everyone! Part of the joy in growing AVs is propagating them to share with friends!