A few evenings ago, I was at dinner sitting alongside a young lady who happens to be my daughter, who said to me apropos nothing in particular:
“I can’t see why people get so excited about African violets. They’re all right, but I don’t think they’re too beautiful.”
Such heresy demanded rebuttal, so I tried to do this by telling my erring daughter why they excite hundreds of thousands of admiration.
No other house plant is as easy to grow as the African violet. Moreover, its light requirements are modest so that it can, if need be, be grown in a north window.
Wide varieties, too, are so free-blooming that they are seldom without dowers—I have a plant of PINK CHEER that has been blooming for three years without cessation, and their best display is in late winter when flowers are most keenly appreciated.
Propagating Africam Violets
African violets are also easily propagated; they bloom when young and do not need large pots – quite large plants can be grown in 3” or 4-inch pots.
They are adaptable to spatial limitations and can be kept 6” or 8” inches across or if you want a big luster, some varieties can be grown 24” inches or more.
And finally, they are now obtainable in an infinite variety of sizes, shapes, and coloring of flowers and leaves.
African Violet Society Of America
This last impressed me when I visited my friend Ed Wintink of Rose Acres Nurseries to see what he had to offer regarding a refresher course on recent varieties.
I had with me a list of varieties of african violets seen at the convention (African Violet Society of America) last April that appealed to me.
I had no difficulty picking out a dozen varieties that, growing in 3-inch squally pots, were placed in a flat and photographed.
These, it seems to me, are as meritorious as those on my list, which he will mention later.
Flatted Varieties
Here are the flatted ones (shown at the top of the page) reading from top to bottom, left to right:
- SIR LANCELOT, top left, has the color associated with cattleya orchids; the two upper corolla lobes are a velvety purple, and the three lower ones are tipped with the same.
- WHITE MADONNA (Granger), which has double white flowers with a few yellow stamens occasionally showing; they have held upright well above the leaves, which are dark green and scalloped.
- PAINTED GIRL is not so new, but this form, with its white blooms and a thin purple margin, was irresistible.
- PANSY was included chiefly for its free-blooming habit; the flowers are pale to medium “blue,” often marked with white on the margin.
In the middle row:
- ROMANY, left, is a light purple with ruffled corolla lobes.
- GIRT AT DAWN is noteworthy for the compactness with which the flower clusters are displayed above the “girl” type foliage; the individual flowers are comparatively large, red-purple in color.
- PRINCESS MARGARET has ruffled flowers with incurving lobes. lavenderish in color; “girl” type, coarsely scalloped leaves.
- QUEEN ROYAL has Oxford-blue, double flowers of a rather good form.
Along the bottom row at left are:
- PINK ATTRACTION. It has perky, rounded flowers that are pink with a deeper purplish eye.
- STAR GILA is almost the opposite of the preceding so far as flower shape is concerned with narrow lobes margined with blue.
- EDITH CAVELL has slightly cupped white flowers, the two upper lobes tipped with a faint suffusion of red-purple; the main flower stalks are held horizontally, but nevertheless, the flowers are well displayed in a charming variety.
- RUFFLED BEAUTY is noteworthy chiefly for her leaves, deeply cut and ruffled with rosy tones on the blade where it joins the petiole.
Varieties Of African Violets
Now for some notes on varieties seen at the African Violet Society Convention in St. Louis last April. I cannot do more than cover the highlights as they appeared to me.
The “Show” series of Henry Ten Hagen contains several worthy African violet varieties, including:
- SHOW ARISTOCRAT, which has due and white double flowers, some of which must have been 2″ inches across.
- SHOW EMPRESS, light purple double flowers, has spooned leaves.
- SHOWMAN is a single Mill with large white flowers.
- SHOW STOPPER has its flowers variegated lavender and white; “girl” foliage; said to be a heavy bloomer.
- ROCHESTER is a deep red-purple with dark green foliage.
- SHOW DARLING is one that did not appeal to me; its flower color is reminiscent of that of the rose Grey Pearl.
Large Blooms of African Violet
My notes on this series say: “nicely-formed, small African violet plants with large blooms.”
Fischer had the Double Genevas of which:
- SILVER LINING, light blue-edged white; and
- MOON RIPPLES, dark blue, frilled, and white edge, looked good.
- BLUE BUTTERCUP, a variety with light blue flowers having incurved lobes, and
- STARGLOW, a frilled single white, also was outstanding.
- PINK WONDER makes a symmetrical plant with numerous large, bright pink flowers.
- WINTERGREEN is a white variety with mottled green and white leaves;
- WINTRY NIGHT is its blue counterpart.
Some admire these variegated forms; others, including me, detest them.
- BRUSSELS SPROUTS belongs in the same category – but they make good conversation pieces!
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