inpiring your green thumb
The cooler fall weather seems to have perked up my miniature sinningias. So I threw a bunch together and took this photo. As you can see there is quite a variety of shapes and sizes , though any of these would sit easily in the palm of your hand! Despite their delicate appearance, the flowers are quite sturdy and last a while!
Perhaps not as exciting as the mythological chimera (a mishmash of snake, lion, and goat) chimeras in the plant kingdom refer to distinct types of plant cells within the same plant that have different characteristics. So in the case of African violets, you can end up with the beautiful pinwheel effect displayed here by the miniature variety ‘Petunia.’
These are no harder to grow than other African violets, though you may have to go to a specialty grower to find them. They also will not reproduce by leaf cuttings so you’re out of luck there unless you can get hold of a sucker(young plantlet that forms at the base of the mother plant. Petunia happens to form multiple crowns so could be easily propagated. It also has an attractive semi trailing habit. This plant is growing on a tiny plastic two inch pot that we dropped into this decorative cache pot for display.
African violets make delightful house plants. Even a small plant
purchased for a few dollars at the grocery store, can be shaped into a large specimen with masses of flowers that will be the envy of your gardening friends! That is, if you know how to grow them . African violets hail from Kenya and like warm temperatures, so are well suited to most homes. Here are tips to keep your African violets in tip-top shape:
1. Bright light means blooms. Your violets must have bright indirect light for most of the day to flower. Not getting enough light is the reason most violets don’t flower. Try moving them to a brighter spot or closer to the glass. In the northern hemisphere, southern, eastern or shaded west light is best. If you grow plants under light, African violets are an excellent candidate.
2. Feed your plants often. If you aren’t getting enough flowers despite getting good healthy growth with medium-dark green leaves, you probably need to feed you plants. There are plenty of good cheap African violet foods that will help. It is most convenient to make up a gallon jug of plant food mixed with water and use this intermittently to water your plants.
3. Water from the bottom up. African violets like to be kept moist but not wet. The bet way to water them is from the bottom up. When the potting mix begins to feel dry to the touch, fill the saucer your plant is sitting in with about 1/2 to 1″ of water depending on the pot size(i.e. more water for larger plants) and let it drink up what it needs. This also prevents getting water on the leaves which will damage them or leave unsightly marks
3. Small pots, big plants. African violets like to be under-potted. You can grow large plants in nothing bigger than a 4″ pot. Of course the pot size will depend on how big the root ball is. The amount of foliage or spread of the leaves is irrelevant! But these plants do a lot better when pot-bound.
4. Pot often. Most African violets purchased off the shelf are in cheap peat mixes. As soon as possible, report your plant into a quality houseplant mix, or make your own blend with 1 cup of peat/soil, 14 cup perlite and an optional 1/4 cup vermiculite or charcoal. Re pot your plan every 12-18 months or whenever the mix appears to be stale and compacted.
5. Remove dead flowers. As flowers fade, begin to remove them at the base. Sometimes flowers will be produced on branching stalks, with one branch coming into bloom while the other is fading so be careful not to break off a stalk that is still blooming. This is a good time to mention that African violets tend to produces blooms in flushes, often taking a rest between bloomings.
Kohleria Manchu is in the same family as African violets, the Gesneriads. These plants produce brilliantly spotted flowers above fuzzy green foliage. While plants can get quite leggy and large, this miniature vase of ‘living’ Kohleria flowers has been blooming in this tiny vase(about 5″ high) for months! It can be placed and enjoyed anyone there is good light and takes up very little room. Here’s how we did it.
When our larger plant comes into bloom, we simply snipped off a few flowering stems with both buds and flowered. Placed in the vase with water, we found that the plants will root and keep blooming as if nothing has happened.
The stems will keep producing flowers over several months, with only the occasional few drops of liquid flowering plant fertilizer to keep them happy. And of course a bright spot by the window or under lights will keep the flowers coming.
In another post, I’ll share some photos of the mother plant from which these cuttings were taken, and some tips on growing Kohlerias which are not as difficult to grow as they might look!
Sinningia Doll Baby is a delightful miniature Sinningia that will never need anything bigger than a 2.5″ pot to thrive. It produce several rounds of flowers with each blooming cycle, and often has two flowers open at the same time. The flowers are similar in shape and form to a miniature pusilla.
I find that these miniature Sinningias thrive in the warmer humid conditions of summer. They grow easily in a bright window with indirect light or under artifical lights. After flowering, the original growth dies down but newer growths are always developing and blooming as long as growing conditions are ideal. I grow it an an African violet mix, and keep it moist, but not wet, while actively growing.
This plant was planted in a miniature bonsai pot! The bottom two thirds of the pot were filled with perlite to facilitate drainage since these plants do not seem to grow very deep roots. You can see the penny near the base of the plant to give you an idea of the small size of the plant and pot.
The National Capital Area Chapter of The Gesneriad Society recently held its annual show at U.S. National Arboretum. The most popular gesneriads are, of course African violets, one of the most popular houseplants in the world, probably followed by the florist Gloxinia, and the Cape Primrose(Streptocarpus). But there are many more unusual and beautiful genera and this show is a great opportunity to see some of these. They range in size from plants more than one foot across to miniatures that can fit in the palm of your hand. Many of them make great houseplants, while others require special conditions to thrive. Here are a few photos from the 2010 show.
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For more information visit The National Capital Chapter of The Gesneriad Society. Meetings are held several time a year at the National Arboretum and new members are always welcome to learn how to grow gesneriads as house plants, trade plants and cuttings, and enjoy the gesneriad plants on display by members.
Smithianthas also known as temple bells, are related to african violets. The giveaway, is their fuzzy velvety leaves, but that’s where the resemblance ends. People often confuse the intricately patterned and mottled leaves for begonias. In some species, such as the Smithiantha zebrina pictured here, the leaves can be up to 6 inches wide and equally long! Most houseplants will probably be on the smaller side but still be equally dramatic as the one photographed.
We found that growing ours in moderately bright light resulted in larger, more luxuriant, foliage. These plants also appreciate warm humid conditions and adequate moisture, but allow them to dry just a little bit in between waterings. The root systems quite shallow and mine seems to be doing very well in a hal-pot. A standard African violet mix suits these plants fine.
While for many, the beautiful foliage would be enough, Smithianthas is also produce spikes of brightly colored flowers, that dangle like temple bells, in the winter months. If ours blooms, which it should, we’ll post a photograph!
Source: Orchid Enterprise
Sinningia Cherry Sprite is putting a great show on for us this summer! Obviously, the warm humid summer temperatures in Washington D.C. suit it well. This plant is actually growing in a ceramic self-watering pot often used for miniature African violets. The inner pot in which the sinningia tuber is growing, is about 3″ across.The whole plants is no more than 5″ across.
While this self-watering method seems to keep the plant adequately watered during the warmer months, I’ll probably let it dry out a little before refilling the reservoir, once growth slows down in the fall. Usually, the plant goes dormant during the colder months. I keep it on the drier side and when growth resumes, start watering again. With these types of pots its important to have good drainage so some additional perlite in the potting mix helps.
Even in between blooms, the dark green glossy leaves of this miniature sinningia are especially attractive.
