Purchasing your African violet seeds directly from a reliable online retailer is frequently the simplest option. When it comes to producing seeds, African violets can be difficult, and even when they do, the plants that emerge from the seeds hardly ever resemble the parent plant.
Despite this, you will still need to hand pollinate your African violets if you want to get seeds from them. Watch for the flowers to open, then record which bloom appears earliest. This is the “feminine flower” for you. Keep an eye out for another flower to open after it has been open for two or three days. Your male flower will be this.
The moment the male flower opens, gently swirl a little paintbrush around the center of the male flower to collect pollen. After that, twirl it around the female flower’s center to pollinate it.
In about 30 days, you will notice a pod forming in the middle of the flower if the female flower was fertilized successfully. The pollination was unsuccessful if no capsule develops, thus you will need to try again.
It takes the pod around two months to fully mature once it forms. After two months, take the pod from the plant, carefully open it up, and collect the seeds within.
Is it simple to grow African violets from seeds?
Because they are so simple to grow, African violets are one of the most widely used indoor plants. African violets are quite tolerant and flourish in the low-humidity, medium-temperature climate that most homes give, even if you can’t fully ignore them.
In fact, with just a little maintenance, African violets can live for years. You’ll start wanting more African violets once you start seeing success with one or two of them. The quantity of hours of light is the only thing that African violets are picky about.
My African violets, unlike my other indoor houseplants, never seem to notice when I mistakenly neglect them for a few days when life gets busy. African violets are an excellent alternative for anyone with an open place in a sunny room because they require little maintenance.
You’ll be relieved to learn that African violets are also rather simple to grow from seed if you intend to grow them from seed. African violets may be started from seed, and while they do require a bit more care during the germination process, it is not a tough or hard procedure.
What can you do with the seed pods of African violets?
The decision may simply be based on your two favorite plants and a curiosity about the kind of offspring they will generate, or it may be motivated by a desire to develop a certain bloom color or shape. For instance, you might wish to design a sizable single star-shaped flower in the colors red and white. In the latter scenario, some familiarity of the genetics of violets might be beneficial. Look at Appendix I.
The pollen donor flower should be slightly past its prime and starting to lose its color. With your finger, pry the pollen sack (anther) from the bloom. About one-fourth of the pollen sack should be cut open with a selecto hobby knife (razor edge) to reveal the pollen. The other plant’s seed pod will develop from a blossom that is relatively new to the plant and has been open for 2-4 days or less. The style, a solitary, slender tube in the center of the flower that often points away from the pollen sacks, is where the stigma is located. When the pollen is placed on the stigma, it will be at this time that the stigma becomes sticky, allowing the pollen to adhere to it. Apply the donor flower’s (male component) opened pollen sack carefully to the tip of the recipient flower’s (female component) stigma to ensure that the pollen sticks to it. To increase the likelihood of a successful cross, it is advised to repeat this process for multiple blossoms on one plant.
Crossed flower stalks should be loosely tied with a thread to ensure they stay on the plant to mature while the other flowers fade and are removed.
deleted. Finding out whether the cross “took” and whether a seed pod is growing will take about 3–4 weeks. After the petals have faded and dried up, a bulge at the base of the flower can be seen as a forming seed pod. The seed pod and stem that supports it should be left on the violet until they have become brown and are entirely dry.
From the moment of cross-pollination until the seed pod is ready to be harvested from the plant, it will take roughly 3 to 5 months. It is preferable to err on the side of caution before removing the pod from the plant because the seed within will remain viable for several months. The seed pod can be stored in a zip-top bag once it has dried out so that it can be planted in the next few weeks.
Ronn offers African violet seed for people who wish to cultivate violets from seed but don’t want to wait for the pods to sprout.
Before sowing the seed, the following materials are required:
- fine-textured seed starter mix of good grade. Because violet seeds are so tiny, it must be sterile, moisture-retentive, and of extremely fine particle size.
- a container for the planting mix that has drainage holes and can have the top covered with a transparent substance, such as plastic wrap, to produce humidity for seed germination. I advise using a salad greens packaging container made of clear plastic with a lid from the grocery store. Burn around 9 equally spaced holes for drainage in the bottom and holes in the lid for ventilation. The potting mix should about fill the container to the 3/4 mark. Pour in just enough water to moisten the mixture, allowing any extra to drain out the bottom. On a piece of notebook paper that has been folded to create a crease, place the seed pod. Carefully cut the seed pod open with the selecto knife, letting the seed fall into the crease of the notebook paper. In Appendix II, you can view images of the seed pod and the individual seed.
Spread the seeds from the paper onto the surface of the potting mix with care, ideally spacing them out about 1/8 inch apart. Make sure that any
The extra water has drained away. Put the container in a window or one foot beneath a fluorescent light with the lid on top. preferably fluorescent lighting
because germination is facilitated by heat. Despite being more expensive than natural light, fluorescent light stands are far superior for growing violets. I endorse Indoor Garden Supply since they have a huge selection of plant stands.
Open the lid every few days to check on the moisture level of the seed bed; do not rely solely on the presence of moisture on the lid’s interior top. If required, moisten the seed bed with water using the baster. During the germination process, be patient. The initial seed will start to sprout in around 3 weeks and will continue to do so for another 3 months. See the Appendix II shot of sprouting seedlings.
They should be big enough for their own pots three months after the first baby sprouts.
You’ll need enough pots and a high-quality African violet potting mix before you separate the babies. I use transparent Solo drinking glasses with a 3 inch diameter that have three drainage holes burned into them. Pro-Mix BX Potting Mix is what I advise. Fill the container with potting soil almost to the top. For the new plant to start growing in, make a small hole in the center of the dirt and fill it with some seed starter mixture. Use a tiny cocktail fork to pry up the tiny plants and remove them. Carefully remove the plant by gently tugging one of the leaves up once the clump of mix has been elevated. This will cause the plant, roots, and some of the mix connected to the roots to come out with it. Use the baster to add enough water to the mix in the center of the container, around the plant’s roots, to settle the soil. After that, apply enough water to completely drench the remaining soil in the pot.
Continue until every plant has been transferred to a separate container. They are incredibly resilient, and the majority, if not all, will make it through the transplant.
- Fertilizing When you water the plants, you should fertilize them at the suggested rate of 1/4 teaspoon per gallon, with the exception of every six weeks.
To remove accumulated fertilizer salts from the soil’s surface, use simple water. Throw away the water that drains. A mild fertilizer should be used when watering.
carried out every 4 to 7 days, or anytime the soil’s surface seems a bit dry. Use a saucer to water from the bottom if the top is just a little damp. The required amount of water should be drawn up within 15 minutes. To prevent root growth, never leave a pot submerged in water for more than 30 minutes at a time.
damage. Place the pot on a surface with an air gap for the drainage holes after watering. This could be a ridged plastic plant saucer.
allow air to touch the drainage holes’ openings. I maintain the drainage holes open to the atmosphere by using a 2 foot by 4 foot plastic ceiling tile grid.
- RepottingPot the plant into a 4.5 inch container when its diameter reaches about three times that of the container. Every 9 to 12 months or if you observe that there hasn’t been any new growth from the center for a few months, violets need to be repotted. The underlying cause is the breakdown of organic materials by soil microorganisms over time, which results in an acidic soil environment that hinders plants from properly absorbing nutrients. The second problem is that when the soil gets more compacted over time, air pockets that give the roots the oxygen they require are eliminated, which prevents the roots from growing. During the repotting, the plant’s “neck” between the soil’s surface and the bottom row of leaves can be fixed. The lowest row of leaves must first be cleared of any harmed, discolored, or extremely old leaves before continuing. By bending the leaf to one side or the other, the stem will split flush with the main stalk. Carefully scrape the neck’s thin, brown surface with a dull knife all the way around.
Then dig up enough of the bottom dirt to make it possible to bury the neck in fresh soil, and water the area well from above. A new root system
sprout from the neck, stabilizing the plant over time and encouraging new growth to start at the crown. Repotting requires removing soil that is
more than a year old, get rid of as much of the old soil as you can without damaging the roots. Fill the pot’s base with enough soil to
Put the plant in the pot and raise it to the appropriate height. The remainder of the fresh potting mix should then be added with a spoon, extending up to just below the first row of leaves and along the sides of the root ball. Moving the plant to a larger pot is not essential unless the diameter of the plant has increased by three times.
how big the pot it was in was. The seedlings from a single cross will have a broad variation in plant diameter; a few of mine actually do.
- Plants that are capable of blooming should do so 6 to 9 months following germination. Expect that many will in some respects resemble their parents, but that no two will be exactly alike and that some will be extraordinary and may not resemble their parents at all. Look at Appendix II at the pale lavender pink star. A violet that is otherwise healthy-looking but not blooming is not getting enough light. This issue is resolved with fluorescent lighting, and a timer allows you to adjust the exposure period to acquire the ideal duration. You can see and appreciate your plants’ beauty more clearly thanks to fluorescent lighting.
- Suckers
- These resemble tiny plants that are emerging from the main stalk’s leaves. As soon as they are discovered, they should be eliminated because
extract energy from the main plant’s growth and dismantle the symmetry. Just be certain you understand the distinction between a sucker and a fresh flower bud.
When flower buds first emerge, they are often darker than suckers. A pencil’s rounded point can be used to remove suckers. By holding all of the leaves connected to the sucker in one hand and gently pulling, they can be gently taken off the main plant if they grow very large and have multiple sets of leaves.
moving it back and forth until it breaks off where it was joined to the main plant. To pry the sucker off, press a pencil point on the base of the sucker. The sucker can be planted in moist vermiculite like a leaf and will grow roots because it is a miniature plant without roots.
Diseases and Pests
the thrips Thrips are the most frequent pests I’ve come across. They are tiny, flier insects that can infiltrate through windows.
If you have been working in the flower garden outside, screens or clothing may show signs of it. They consume pollen and harm the aesthetics of
the blossoms. I cut off all the blossoms and buds and spray the plants with a pesticide like Conserve that contains spinosad.
the Powdery Mildew
This is a fungus, and the leaves have white patches on them. When temperatures are on the cool side, it most frequently occurs.
There is no airflow, and the side is in the 1960s. By raising the temperature to 70 degrees and installing a fan in the room, I was able to control this.
to create some air movement without directly creating a draft. Spray the leaves well with Spectracide Immunox fungicide.
the Crown Rot
This particular fungus targets the plant’s central growth. If water is present and falls on the plant’s crown, it most often happens if
not taken out. There is no treatment other than establishing a new plant from leaf cuttings and getting rid of the sick one.
In its bimonthly journal, the African Violet Society offers members articles on culture, hybridization, and supplies. For members who pay dues, it is free, and the annual fees are quite reasonable.
A pair of genes—one from each of the parent plants—determine characteristics of the African violet, including leaf shape, flower shape and color, etc. Genes can either be recessive or dominant. A plant will exhibit the dominant trait for which it has two dominant genes, one dominant gene, or one dominant gene and one recessive gene. However, the recessive trait will manifest itself if a plant possesses two recessive genes for the phenotype. Therefore, it is feasible to predict how the children will seem using the table below. There are two possible outcomes because it is impossible to tell if a plant has two dominant genes or one dominant gene and one recessive gene for a dominant trait when one of the parents displays it. The percentage of the offspring displaying each of the two features is the only method to determine this. To get the two recessive genes to join up and generate the desired recessive phenotype, it can require two crossings. Each characteristic is listed in the table below as either dominant or recessive as well as the offspring of parents who have both traits.
Featured Flowers:
Leaf Qualities
Plant Qualities
Motherly Characteristics: Lilian Jarrett Variegation, Tommie Lou and Crown Variegation (in part). Only if the seed parent possessed the trait will the offspring display it.
The outcomes anticipated from genetic crossings between characteristics that are dominant and recessive are listed below:
- Inbreeding Dominant X
- Resultant Dominant progeny
- for instance, 75% Dominant and 25% Recessive
- Possessive X Recessive
- implies a 50/50 mix of dominant and recessive behavior
- Inverse X Inverse
- Recessive descendants of Resultall
The percentages provided for the offspring are a rough estimate. The results you really get may be very different from these percentages.