I just learned, from a trusted source, that Streps only have a life span of 2 - 5 years!!!
See Lin, they don't hate you----they are just dying of old age!!!!
To cheer up plantladylin
ROFLMBO!!! Allright Threegardeners! I LOVE that way of thinking!
That just made my day!
Just try and enjoy their lives during the winter months as I know they enjoy being cooler than our other gessie friends, plandladylin. Mine do much better when the air is cooler.
But when they're divided, doesn't that make it a new plant again? Please say, relax, everythings going to be ok.
Cindy
You don't exactly divide them. (smiling) You can grow a new strep from a whole leaf, a wedge of a leaf, 4" of a leaf with the stem or you can take out the main vein in the long leaf and plant either side in perlite and vermiculite.
Every single thing about gessies I have learned on this forum since January. Hang around and people will post pictures. Plus, if you wish, when you have time, you can highlight anyone's name and their profile will appear and you can read old threads that they have started. People join in those threads with discussions about propagation, etc.
I think I remember someone showing a step by step with photo's on how they cut and plant the leaf. Or, maybe that was on Rachel's Reflection website. I will try and find it.
Cindy, it's really pretty easy to plant African Violet Leaves or other Gesneriad leaves and have little baby plantlets grow from that one leaf! You will be hooked once you plant one and have those little babies popping up!
Here's a link to a site that shows step by step with pictures of how to plant the leaf to get babies!
http://www.rachelsreflections.com/violets3.htm#basket
Ok, I recently read somewhere that when a strep gets big, it should be divided rather than planted into a 6" pot, as they stop blooming well and just aren't as healthy. I have one that big that I had just potted into a 6" pot before I read that on the web somewehre. I might have printed it out. Will check my folder.
Cindy
I wish SnowRose were back with us. She is on vacation. She has exhibited streps in 6 and 7 inch pots that range in size up to 18 and 24" across. But I have to remember my name is not Snowrose and I don't have her expertise (LOL)
Just starting to poke around DG a bit this morning....I have cut several of my bigger streps in half, or where ever I see that there is a second crown. They go a little shocky but then they have recovered nicely and I've had nice sized plants to share with friends and relatives and still have my original mother plant. I don't know if it will make them live any longer but it is another way to "propagate" them!
I read about cutting them in half to keep them in the size pot that you want them in on the Dibley's site I believe. I'll have to go find it...
~Brenda
And here I thought I was the only one who divided my streps to start new plants..LOL..makes me feel good I am not the only one...It does work really well for me too : )
I noticed on a strep I sent to a non AV Dger that there were 3 crowns in the pot. Glad to know that they can be divided as I had no idea i could have done that plant thereby getting 3 plants out of one.
If you all find the site or the article, I am hoping you will share with us. This is exciting stuff to find out.
I am anxious to read the article too Gail.Hope Brenda can find it for us...I just divided a few of my really huge older streps on a whim this spring and really had no idea what I was doing or if I was even doing it right..lol..but it works great .I agree It would be nice though to be able to have proper directions.
I should be in bed but just hopped over here for a minute. LOL I found where Dibleys mentioned the cutting apart of the streps but it was at Robs Violet Bran that I found the instructions I followed...they do have the best instructions with pictures!!
http://www.robsviolet.com/repotting_streps.htm
This has worked well for me several times!
~Brenda
Yup, that's where I saw it too. Thanks Brenda.
Cindy
Great news, Brenda.
Can't wait to read this one
gail
*******fantastic article and I noticed that I shouldn't be totally rewatering the whole pot when I change pots until the root system can play 'catch up' a tad bit.
This message was edited Oct 31, 2007 7:03 AM
Hi everybody!
I haven't been on-line since Saturday, and now I am out and about again, trying to catch up. Just saw this thread and wanted to share a "find" I made over the weekend.
We went to a local nursery on Saturday, to look around and see what all they had. For the first time EVER, I found myself looking at streps in a nursery! She had several blooming streps scattered about the place, all in 6" pots, and looking very healthy. I couldn't believe it! I have never seen streps for sale in a nursery, or anywhere that I shop locally! These were beautiful plants... so... I couldn't resist! They were listed as $9.95 each, for a 6" pot, so I looked and looked at them until I made my mind up on this one... a dark purple with white bac and white picotee. No, there were no names on them, but one other pot I looked at had a label that said Oglevee's. As I was looking and making up my mind, I noticed that most of them had two or three crowns. The one I got has three. And guess what??? It was on sale too! So... I got a three-crowned strep in a 6" pot for $8.95! I am pleased with myself. Would love to have bought more... but had to remain as practical as possible! LOL!
Here is the entire plant on my shelf at home... (I brought my laptop computer out to get a wireless signal, just so I could share a couple photos)
And here is a close-up of the bloom...
Karen
Thanks Brenda for the article..now I really know how to do it.
Hi there Karen! Good to see you!! Oh my.. I Love those blooms! What a Great Find! Such a huge plant at a great price..can't beat that!No nurseries around here have ever carried streps....probably a good thing too or I would be in deep trouble..lol..
Wow! Karen, That is Beautiful! I have never seen Strep's at any Garden Center or Nursery here in my area either!
I went googling and found the Oglevee website! Check it out ... click on products over on the left side and then Streptocarpus. Maybe you will see yours here and have a name for it!
http://www.oglevee.com/Articles/Product/StreptocarpusInfo/galaxy/culture_info.html
Karen, Absolutely STUNNING!
I love the white on the back of the flowers with the deep purple & white speckling!
I looked up Oglevee's site for you and I THINK you may have Jason :)
Here is his link:
http://www.oglevee.com/Articles/Product/StreptocarpusInfo/galaxy/jason_info.html
SO SO PRETTY!
Nice to see you posting, missing you much!
Kim
I have always heard that the Oglevee streps get so big and healthy.......you picked a great one! Now, to their site. Thanks
What a great find Karen!! It's a beautiful plant and what a bargain!
Thanks for the web site Kim! Looks like Oglevee has some awesome streps. After checking them out I now see that I have two leaves down from a trade that originated with them!! Can't wait to see if I get babies from Cassandra and Midas, they are so pretty!
~Brenda
Thanks guys! Jason it is!