African Violets: The Doyen of Houseplants

Table of Contents and IntroductionAfrican Violets: the Doyen of House PlantsAgapanthusAlstroemeriasAmerican SagebrushesAmerican WildflowersAndean Nymph - a pink mimulusAquilegias (Columbines)AuriculasAustralian AnnualsBellis Perennis (Daisies)Black-Eyed SusanBlue African LiliesBreeding DelphiniumsBreeding Fuchsias: Part 1: From SeedBreeding Fuchsias: Part 2: HybridisationBromeliads from SeedButterflies in Soy SauceCacti RaisingCampanulasChilean Bell FlowerChilly Treatment for Peruvian LiliesCollecting SeedConserving Annuals and BiennialsCosmosCucumbersCycads: Living FossilsCyclamen for IndoorsDahlias from SeedDamping OffErythroniumsF1 Hybrid - What Is it?F2 and Open Pollinated VarietiesFrom Obscurity to the Height of FashionGentiansGeraniumsGermination to Pricking OutGolden Impatiens - The StoryGrowing Alpines From Seed: Part 1Growing Alpines From Seed: Part 2Growing Bananas From SeedGrowing Cyclamen From SeedGrowing Eucalyptus From SeedGrowing Ferns from SporesGrowing Foxgloves From SeedGrowing Fritillarias From SeedGrowing From Seed: From Packet to SoilGrowing Hardy Ferns from SporesGrowing Hardy Geraniums From SeedGrowing Lewisias From SeedGrowing Magnolias From SeedGrowing Meconopsis From SeedGrowing Proteas and Related Genera from SeedHandling Small SeedsHardy Annuals: Part 1Hardy Annuals: Part 2Hardy CyclamenHardy SpurgesHelleboresIncreasing your Violas and ViolettasKeeping Records of Seed SowingLettuce - the Vital Part of any SaladLord Anson's PeaMagnolias - the Root of the ProblemMimulus from Seed to Seed in Sixty DaysNew Guinea ImpatiensOld-fashioned Sweet PeasOnions with EverythingPansies are not Difficult to Grow from SeedParsleyPerennials for American GardensPetuniasPhygelius - their cultivation and propagationPinks: Evocation of the PastPlants That Flower OncePrickly but NicePropagatorsRadishesRaising PalmsRaising PrimulasSalad Leaves - a lot to be desiredShow Stoppers Twice OverSowing SeedsSowing in Open GroundSowing to Feed our FriendsSturt's Desert PeaSweet Peas - Autumn SownSweet Peas - Sowing and GerminatingTall and HandsomeTechniques with Tiny SeedTexas BluebellThe Effect of Light on Germination and SeedlingsThe Nervous PeaThe Scarlet Welsh PoppyThe Search for the Yellow Sweet PeaToad LiliesTomatoesTreasure Hunt for TasteUnderstanding Latin NamesUnique Poppy (Mother of Pearl)Viability of VegetablesWeaning SeedlingsWill the Real Mimosa Please Stand Up

Richard Gilbert considers the vast range of African violets.

Saintpaulias belong to the family Gesneriacea and are commonly called African violets. They are among the most popular of all indoor plants worldwide and millions are sold each year in Britain. In North America several large specialist societies exist which promote the popularity of the plant and in other countries smaller groups do the same. Named African violet cultivars are big business in the USA with many sizeable nurseries providing hundreds of different mature flowering plants, small plantlets for growing on and leaves for home rooting to an insatiable public. In Britain there is only one major commercial grower, but a number of smaller 'hobbyist' growers operate mail order businesses - often from small greenhouses in suburban gardens - dispatching leaves and small plantlets of named cultivars to eager customers. Most of the flowering-sized plants seen in the florists' shops are un-named and have been imported from Holland and Belgium.

Around twenty wild species exist, all native to a small area of tropical East Africa, mainly the Usambara mountains in Tanzania. They can be found growing from the foothills to altitudes of 7,000ft (2200m). These species are rarely seen I although seed of the odd species or two is occasionally found in catalogues and leaves of five are currently on offer.

After introduction in 1892/3 little happened to Saintpaulias until the mid-1920s. An American firm imported seed from England and Germany and from the resulting offspring eventually selected ten plants which were given varietal names. All were in the blue/violet/purple colour range and single flowered. Most were given names with a nautical connotation such as 'Mermaid', 'Neptune' and 'Sailor Boy'. Soon afterwards double-flowered forms and ones with pink or white flowers appeared. Growers, commercial and amateur, turned to vegetative propagation to ensure that new plants carried all the characteristics of the parent plants. Seed is still available, sometimes haphazardly mixed, sometimes selected to red and pink shades or blue and white etc, but not giving plants with the qualities of the named cultivars. Everywhere great strides have been made in the quality of plants being grown by amateurs - in part due to a better understanding of their growing needs. The enthusiastic specialist societies have passed on the essential growing techniques to the membership, members have created a demand for better and more varied plants and the hybridisers have responded to meet demand. Stronger growing plants with improved flower size, shape, colour and colour combination and different growth habits have evolved. And the improvement continues.

Most growers are interested in the cultivars, of which there are thousands, many of which look much like some others to the uninitiated. A list has been prepared showing 1,600 cultivars known to be growing in Britain and supplementary lists are issued to bring the main list up-to-date.

Once people start to specialise they need to distinguish one plant from another and jargon is introduced. On size, Saintpaulias can be a standard variety - the rosette of leaves grow to over 8in (20cm) diameter, a semi-miniature - between 6in and 8in (15-10cm) diameter when fully grown, a miniature - no more than 6in (15cm). Exhibition plants in the standard category can be 15in (38cm) or more in diameter. Then there are trailers which trail and have a much looser appearance and variegated-leaved forms of all sizes and types.

There are three basic types of leaf variegation. Green leaves with variegated leaf edges; green leaves streaked or flecked with other colours and what are called 'crown' types. The latter produce new leaves (at the centre of the rosette) that are wholly or mainly cream and or pink, and as these leaves mature they gradually become more green. The outer rings of leaves can be completely green with the variegation increasing towards the centre. Temperatures affect the amount of green leaf colour in this section. Totally cream or pink leaves cannot be used in propagation (without chlorophyll they cannot survive) but interestingly, totally green leaves taken from a variegated-leaved cultivar will give offspring that are variegated.

Leaf shape can be virtually round or oval, flat-surfaced or cupped, quilted, ruffled or puckered. Leaf size is scaled down with the semi-miniatures and miniatures and often with trailers. Petioles can be long giving plants an open spreading look or they may be very short giving a tightly packed appearance.

Flower shape has also changed to include 'stars' with five equal-sized evenly-spaced petals, petal edges can be frilled or fringed and there is a 'wasp' shape. Describing colour with just a single word is very difficult; 'blue' can portray so many different shades to so many people. A recent list includes blue, purple, lavender, orchid, red, fuchsia, burgundy, pink, coral, white, green, multicolour and (again jargon) 'Geneva' implying a wafer-thin white line around the petal edging.

Cultivar names can be romantic-sounding, far from romantic like'Hot Lips', like ‘Wow', 'Fancy Pants' and 'Socket Toomey' or very apt 'Wild Lemon' and 'Kennit' -the colour of the last two is new and somewhere between green and yellow.

Few realise what a wide range of shape, leaf and flower colour can be had. Only a few years ago many single-flowered kinds had the distressing habit of dropping their flowers just as they reached their best -double-flowered sorts held on to their blooms. This was obviously a great worry and disappointment and the problem was made worse when plants were sent to market and then had to endure the florist's shop. Plants that could hold on to their flowers would be more saleable. Breeders overcame this problem. A good commercial plant is one which is robust, quick to mature and flower which then packs easily and travels well. Some of the easiest plants have been issued under a series name. The Rhapsodie series appeared in the 1960s from the German nursery of Hermann Holtkamp and with a few exceptions were given girls' names such as 'Birgit', 'Gigi', and 'Marie' - all officially preceded by Rhapsodie. Soon after the Ballet series appeared (hybridised by Arnold Fischer of Hannover) and again they were given girls' names including 'Anna', 'Erica' and 'Eva' and this time preceded by Ballet.

In the early 1980s there was a different development. The much-lamented firm of Rochfords Houseplants at Broxbourne, Hertfordshire, sponsored some research undertaken by Dr. Peter Bilkey (an American using the University of Nottingham as a base) into a cross between a cultivar of the species S. ionantha (found at coastal levels) and S. shumensis (growing at much higher altitudes where temperatures can fall to 7C). The outcome was the Endurance series, with individuals named, very appropriately, after famous explorers. Twelve were named including 'Larsen', 'Shackleton' and 'Scott' and were said to perform significantly better at temperatures of around 13C. A few are still around but most growers provide warmer temperatures, perhaps mainly because their collections generally need it.

Most hybridisers concentrate on improving flower size and shape and extending flower colour. Mrs. Joan Hill, an amateur with very limited space and only a spare room and fluorescent lights to aid her, produced the Chiffon series. She not only bred for flower but also looked for attractive leaves. A number of her plants have become international successes (within and outside of the series). 'Delft', a strong-growing plant with huge, semi-double cornflower-blue flowers will take some beating.

A lot of commercially-produced plants are now raised by micro-propagation. This means that a lot of plants of a new sort are available in quantity quite quickly, but it does seem to have resulted in a great deal of unstable flower colour. Blooms on some plants can be, say, equally striped blue and white while other blooms (perhaps on the same truss) may be all or virtually all blue or all white. Real enthusiasts do not regard this variable and unreliable flower colouring to be an advantage.

Often it is the case that the fancier the cultivar the greater the need to understand its particular wants and provide a degree of cossetting. Amateurs, with their dedicated interest and acquired expertise can provide these particular needs.

The African Violet Society of America Inc. is the registered body for new cultivars but a great number of very worthwhile cultivars are not registered.

Culture

Saintpaulias take up relatively little space and provided that humidity levels are raised, enjoy the sort of conditions found in the average home. More plants are grown in the home than elsewhere. Now that British homes are warmer and usually better lit, these plants can be brought into bloom during all but the worst winter months. Used as houseplants, growers can view them at close quarters, appreciate their finer points and give them the sort of special care they thrive under.