Violets

Regular Violets:

True Violets have been known for centuries with the ancient Greeks cultivating them about 500 BC or earlier. Both the Greeks and the Romans used them for all sorts of things such as for herbal remedies, wine, to sweeten food and for festivals. Regular violets have up to 500 species and are come in all shapes and sizes.

African Violets:

These are somewhat new to cultivation. African Violets were discovered for commercial use in East Africa in the early 20th century. They have a very distinct look from the Regular wild violets and have become one of the most popular household flower plants in the world.

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Soil for Violets:

Most violets are grown in a non-soil, pasteurized mix. One of the main goals is to provide a soil that is very porous to allow high drainage. A rule of thumb is to make the mixture consist of:

• 50% matter
• 25% air
• 25% water

Example #1 Soil Mixture

• 2 parts fertile loam
• 1 part perlite (or sand)
• 1 part peat (or mold)

Example #2 Soil Mixture

• 3 parts sphagnum peat moss
• 1 part perlite
• 2 parts vermiculite
• A touch of lime to balance acidity of peat moss

Example #3 Soil Mixture

• 50% Compost & Quality garden soil
• 50% Vermiculite or Perlite

Potting of Violets:

One of the keys to potting African Violets is to make sure the crown is set above the soil surface. You also need to make sure the soil is pressed firmly around the crown.

Make sue the pots used are disinfected and that the soil used is sterilized (pasteurized). One method of sterilizing the soil is to heat in the oven for 30 minutes at around 200 degrees. To clean your pots wash them with 1 pat household bleach in 9 parts water and rinse well.

Violets do better if repotted once per year or whenever the leafless part of the stem is around 1-1/2 inches long. Be gentle when removing the violet from the soil and pot. Remove all the lateral violet crowns, break off the bottom half of the root, plant in new soil and water.

Watering of Violets:

The best condition for African Violets is to keep the soil moist at all times without being saturated. One good method is to use a wick method where the wick draws water as is needed to the plants soil area. If a watertight container is used you will only need to water every few days.

Temperatures for Violets:

African Violets can adjust to a homes warm and dry temperatures. They do still need a good amount of light but don’t have o have direct sunlight. Best temperatures for African Violets are 60 degrees F. at night and up to 85 degrees F. during the day. If too cold, they become stunted; if too hot they may rot.

Propagation of Violets:

In the spring, cut mature violets leaves with about an inch of the stalk. Plant the stalks into vermiculite or sand allowing most of the leaf blades to be exposed and thoroughly water. Keep the soil moist or if in a green house cover to keep the air moist.

It will take 2-6 months for young plants to start coming up from the base of the stalks. Once there are 2-3 violet leaves formed you can pot them in properly prepared soil.

Problems that can occur with Violets:

Over Watering:

Excessive watering can be a major problem for violets and can lead to root or crown rot. When violets have root or crown rot the plant turns dark and soft and the leaves usually wilt.

Over watering can be avoided with soil that has proper drainage. If you have violets that are affected by root or crown rot you should destroy those plants. A violet can be saved if the crown is not too badly decayed by removing the rotted portion and re-rooting in sterile soil.

Petiole Rot:

This is rot that begins as an orange-brown or rust colored lesion. It occurs where the petiole is touching the rim of the pot or where it is in contact with the soil. Petiole Rot can be controlled by putting an aluminum foil collar on the pots rim and occasionally flushing the soil with extra watering.

Ring Spot / Chlorosis:

If you water violets with liquid that is too cold you can damage the leaves. This can cause yellow or white rings and unsightly line patterns and can be avoided by warmer water and by watering below leaf levels.

Root-Knot Nematodes:

This is a nasty condition where the violets are infested with galls on the roots and the crowns and leaves become thickened and distorted. The overall violet becomes weakened and stunted and blister-like galls develop on the leaves. The only good solution to this is to destroy all infested plants.

Botrytis Blight:

This starts as small water soaked lesions on the underside of the leaf. As it develops the lesions enlarge until much of the leaf turns brown to black. Note: This may also affect the flowers of the violet in the same way.

This is seen lots of times in greenhouses where there is high humidity, poor air circulation, and low light levels. The pathogen is spread by direct contact of the leaves to each other so spacing your violets out will help slow down any disease spreading. A specific fungicide can be applied to control this.

Powdery Mildew:

This is a light grey, powdery substance on the stems and petioles. It is a mildew that grows in cool, moist and stagnant air. Powdery mildew shortens the life of blooms and makes the overall violet plant struggle. It can be controlled with good air circulation by using a fan, or by dusting sulfur onto the violets.

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Cyclamen Mites:

These insects feed in the plant crown and causes the younger leaves as well as new growth to be stunted, twisted, discolored and brittle. When theses mites have taken over the leaf hairs become matted and flower buds fail to open. Cyclamen mites can be controlled with a designated insecticide.

Mealybugs:

In summary, mealybugs cause stunting and very unattractive distortion of the leaves. These insects do their damage by sucking the violets juices on the surface of leaves, leaf petioles, and close to the bases of leaf stems.

Mealybugs are small soft bodied insects and will be found in clusters of white. They also excrete a sticky shiny substance called “honeydew” that is very attractive to ants and can contribute to unsightly growths of a dark mold. The worst case scenario is to have heavy infestation where the plants can whither and die.

You can control or eliminate mealybugs by spaying plants with a stream of lukewarm water. Another method is to remove them with a cotton swab dipped in alcohol. If many plants are involved or infestation is heavy, you’ll need to consider insecticides that are specific to mealybugs.

Aphids:

These insects will stunt a plant and cause distorted and curled leaves. Aphids have pear shaped soft bodies with long legs and antennae. They secret “honeydew" like mealybugs so unattractive mold and ants may be secondary results to deal with.

Aphids can be controlled much the same way as mealybugs by spraying off with lukewarm water or wiping with alcohol. In stubborn cases or heavy infestation you’ll need to look at a specified insecticide.

Thrips:

These insects damage your violets by feeding on its leaves and flowers. The results are injury to the leaves giving an irregular or streaked silver appearance with small black drops of excrement.

When thrips feed on the flowers the result is distortion of the blooms and discoloration and or streaking of the petals. In addition to this your violet flower life will be much shorter. Control thrips by using a specified insecticide.