posted
Hi all! I just acquired an African violet for rescue purposes. The poor thing was knocked into a sink full of dishwater. I pulled the plant out, washed away all the old soil from the roots, then washed out its pot completely. I planted it back into its pot with soil specifically for African violets. So far, the plant has shown no signs of shock whatsoever, but it appears leggy. It has a trailing stem, but not too many leaves. None of the leaves look bad, in fact, they look quite healthy. Would it be safe to try propagating this plant right now? I've never had an African violet before, and I'm not familiar with the do's and don'ts, especially considering this one's accident. Any advice would be greatly appreciated! Thanks, and happy gardening to everyone!
bbbbbbbbb I used to have a handle on life, but it broke...
From: New Port Richey, Florida | Registered: Jun 2003
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Hmmm, I have 3 AV....A pink one, white, and purple.....I'm not sure about propogating, but do you have it in a bottom watering container and do you feed it with AV food mixed in the water??? Those two things will help it out.....
If you look at the flowers on them they have an irredescence to them....they kind of sparkle...I just noticed that a week or so ago and I love to check them out now....funny how you can discover something so small like that, but it can bring such a smile to your face....
I'm sure someone will be along to help you out!! Glad you could rescue it!
bbbbbbbbb
loz's blog
From: Beautiful Western Maryland...zone 6 | Registered: May 2003
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Hi, Loz! Everything is set up for the AF, but since I just put all new soil in the pot, I haven't fertilized it yet. It seems it was looking leggy before its accident, and I'm not sure if I should try fertilizing yet. I wanted to try propagating in case the plant dies from its overdose of dishsoap, lol. It was my mom's, and my little nephew got it for her for Mother's Day, so I want to keep it going for her. It's been a week since I did the change of the soil, and it's still doing fine. It just isn't bushy like all the other AV's I've seen. Thanks for the info, though, Loz. I need all the help I can get with these, lol.
bbbbbbbbb I used to have a handle on life, but it broke...
From: New Port Richey, Florida | Registered: Jun 2003
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I have 2 AV a pink& a purple.Grew outdoors in a perfect lil spot.the purple bloomed a long time but not seen much on the pink.it has perked up growing since I moved them into a terraruim for the winter,but purple has now stopped blooming.
I doubt the dishsoap dive harmed it.if it had any bug problems you solved it when it dived in.maybe it was telling you something.LOL you say you have one that trails.my friend pat grows bunchs and has a few of these and she had some thatwere in 3 inch pots& 5 inch pots.some are 8 inches across...but has been since june since i been by.I know she pinches something,she calls it the crown.and some have small leaves and some larger leaves.mine are minis.I have a file on propagation,but have not tried yet. The african violet society is good to look at for info and stuff and can find photos& it don't hurt to look in flower shows cause sometimes they have pics to die for& sometimes they sell some of twhat they have& can ID plants& may find a local chapter in your area or close Good luck I also brush mine with a toothbrush& for time being...cause of terraruim they are not fertilized.you can fertlilize it with AV fertilizer& water from bottom or when water run water in sink and set pot down in water to soak roots.if you go to root a leaf let it callous over first.water with tepid water.i use a gallon jug and it sets out all the time,but use it on a few plants not just them.I don't let them sit in water all the time.they do get a few dry spells.guess i grow them TX style.LOLleast summerwise.they grow shaded then under a porch swing cover http://www.rachelsreflections.com/ go here...is pics& all kinds of info
bbbbbbbbb I will age ungracefully until I become an old woman in a small garden..doing whatever the Hell I want!
posted
There are two ways to deal with a "long-necked" AV. Cut off the stem so you have a short neck that can be potted in its own pot. Scraping the bare stem gently before potting it will encourage root development.
The other method is to slice off the bottom inch or so of the rootball, the place the shortened rootball back into the pot and you will now have room to add an inch of soil on top of the rootball and cover up the neck.
Registered: Sep 2002
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