I LOVE AFRICAN VIOLETS (Saintpaulia ionantha) and can never have enough of them. They sex up my windows. They provide dazzling decoration for my tabletops and mantels. They even provide gift-plants, because a single leaf will produce multiple babies. To keep the plants in constant bloom, I give them everything they want:
Light. Make no mistake — African violets need plentiful light to bloom. As a rule, give them full sun in winter, and bright light in summer. From October through April, I grow them in the sunny east window of my upstairs bath (above). Then, from May through September, I let the plants dwell in a north exposure or under fluorescents. Otherwise, the harsh summer sun would surely fry their leaves.
To keep the plants shapely, give the pots a quarter-turn every other day.
For sensational bloom, place them under fluorescent lights. As you can see, I grow dozens of African violets beneath 48-inch fixtures that I attached to shelves in my Writing Room. These are not special “grow-lights”, but common, inexpensive “cool white” fluorescents. The plants are set 7-10 inches from the light (5 inches for miniatures and trailers), distances measured from the top of the plants. I leave the lights on for 16 hours each day, followed by 8 hours of darkness. Plants under lights need more food and water, but they always bloom to perfection there.
Temperature & Humidity. You may have heard that African violets need indoor temperatures above 70 degrees in order to flower. Actually, this is not true. My own plants bloom and bloom in temperatures that range from 55-65 degrees. On bitter nights, I pull the plants away from windows, and return them only when the morning sun has warmed the glass.
Saintpaulias revel in about 50% humidity, which is fairly high for the average home in winter. For when the house heat comes on, humidity plummets. If you suffer from dry skin and a scratchy throat when the furnace is roaring, just imagine how miserable your African violets must be.
To increase humidity, group plants together. Even better, set them on pebble-filled trays. Galvanized “boot trays” work well, and they can be painted to match your window trim. Keep the trays filled with water, but make sure the plants are resting on the pebbles, above the water-level. When plants are watered from the top, excess drains down into the pebbles, and produces humid air as it evaporates. Pebble-filled bowls or oversize saucers (as above) are a suitable alternative to the trays.
And here’s another tip: Grow your plants in clay pots. Clay absorbs moisture, and then releases it as humidity through evaporation.
Watering. Use only room-temperature (or slightly warmer) water. You can water from the top or the bottom; sometimes bottom watering is easier because of spreading leaves. To water from below, fill a saucer or bowl with one inch of water, and let the plant absorb all of the moisture it can for exactly 30 minutes. Then pour off any excess. Water often enough to keep the soil moist, but not saturated.
The weekly shower. To remove dust from leaves, and also to deter pests (including aphids and red spider), I shower my plants once a week with room-temperature or slightly warmer. Afterwards, the plants are kept out of direct sun until their foliage has dried. Leaf spotting only occurs when the temperature of the water is colder than the temperature of the leaves. You can safely return plants to the fluorescent light garden even when leaves are wet.
Fertilizing. A low-nitrogen, high-phosphorous, soluble plant food is terrific for African violets. I fertilize every time I water, using Jack’s Classic 10-30-20 formula. Window garden plants receive one 1/4 teaspoon to 1 gallon of warm water. I increase this to one 1/2 teaspoon food per gallon of water for the hard-working light garden residents.
Soil. Use a light, humus-rich, well-draining potting mixture. Almost all commercial mixes intended for houseplants are suitable for African violets.
Multiple Crowns & Suckers. With time, most African violets become burdened with multiple crowns and sideshoots, or “suckers.” These rob the parent plant of energy, and interfere with bloom. To free your plant of these offenders, follow the directions I described in this post.
Pots. Mail-order plants always arrive in tiny, 2 1/4-inch plastic pots. You won’t need larger pots for months. The African violet in a too-big pot will be slow to bloom. I wait for six months to a year before shifting to 4-inch pots, and that’s that. I prefer clay pots — glazed or unglazed, but always with drainage holes — for display in the window garden.
Propagation. It’s fun to make new plants from old. Simply snap off a leaf with one inch of stem attached…
Then insert the stem, or petiole, in a 2- or 3-inch pot of damp soil. Lightly firm the soil.
To produce a pleasantly-humid environment for the cutting, place the pot in a clear plastic bag.
Then set the pot in a bright but sunless window, or, even better, beneath a fluorescent light.
Alternatively, if you want to propagate several leaves, you can make a terrarium out of the plastic tub that (hydroponically-grown) Boston lettuce comes in. Use a knife to cut a few drainage-slits in the bottom of the container…
Fill the shallow bottom with soil, and then insert leaves about 2 inches apart from each other.
Close the cover, and place the nursery in a bright window or beneath fluorescents.
Neither the bagged pot nor the Boston-lettuce bin will require water until new plantlets emerge.
After two to three months have passed, the leaves will give birth to numerous baby plants, as pictured above. One year, I had a single leaf sprout 9 new clones! Separate the tiny rosettes from the mother, and then pot them individually in 2- or 3-inch pots. Give them the same care I described earlier, and in six to nine months they will bloom as beautifully as the parent plant did.
Of course, after propagating the leaves, you’ll end up with an entire forest of African violets. But who can complain about that?
Do African violets bloom well for you? You can let me know by leaving a comment. As always, I love to hear from you.
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Related Posts:
African Violets: Divide & De-Sucker for Better Flowering
Forcing Fun: Tropical Narcissi
The Window Garden, November 2012
Thanks for this info, Kevin! I had a plant that someone gave me…I kept it alive and healthy for two years without a single bloom.
I got sick of trying and gave it to my neighbor. I just might have to try again now.
Hi beetree – Glad you found some useful information here. Maybe your neighbor can snap off a leaf for you to propagate. Then you’ll soon have many, many African violets to play with!
Ha- I was thinking the same thing!
You are such an inspiration…..I am on it to make new violets.
How I’d love to just clone your bathroom window for my own.
This winter one of my indoor projects is to turn a hallway window that is east facing into a window garden. I don’t know if it’s the best because during the summer it’s shaded by a maple tree, but in the winter it’s fairly sunny!
Maybe in the summer I could attempt some ferns or something…
But this is a beautiful guideline for african violets! I know I keep promising that I’ll do this one day… I need to make this year the year of the indoor garden! I will be triumphant!
[Okay, I'm done with my personal pep talk.. haha!]
Hi Kevin,
I have a violet that is healthy, green and beautiful….and no longer blooming, despite good light and fertilizer. It has also morphed into a trifoil, with only one stem appearing to have roots. It’s a pretty plant and the shape is nice but I miss the blooms! Any suggestions? Thanks!
Hi Donna – Sounds like you have the perfect window for a garden — shady in summer, and sunny in winter. With glass shelves and a broad sill in place (I use a low bookcase as a sill), you can have all kinds of fun making horticultural portraits!
constantine – By “trifoil,” do you mean the plant has produced little off-shoots, or suckers?
Hi Kevin – by ‘trifoil’ I mean this: imagine three separate plants cojoined at the base, just above the soil. I would guess an offshoot would come from below the soil line, and these do not. Maybe I am mistaken. I think if I would cut two of the three off I would not be able to root them as the stem is pretty thick. Thanks for asking and I hope you have a suggestions! Cheers.
Constantine – From what you’ve described, it sounds like your plant has multiple crowns. These interfere with flowering. I deal with them this way.
Hi Kevin,
I have an African Violet with beautiful pink leaves. It has never flowered. Are they only grown for their leaves or do they need an environment different from the green leaf variety? Its a beautiful plant. I almost killed it by forgetting to empty the water in the saucer its in. Have to root some leaves “today”.
Hi Kevin, Thanks for those valuable tips for African violets. I’ve managed to get one of mine to flower again last year, and now I know why. I still have the plant and will give it the treatment you recommend, so that it’ll continue to flower!
Thanks for sharing Kevin. I have always loved my african violets and had extra wide window sills built into my east and southeast windows, just for them. Last week was plant dividing time and really enjoyed potting up new little pups. Ran out of room this year so not making any new plants from leaves. You are so right on using slightly warm water for the lovely plants they show their appreciation! I also use a fluffy makeup brush to clean up the leaves after potting and montly just to give them alittle dusting. Always enjoy seeing your plants, I am green and violet with envy.
Kevin, you are always an inspiration. I can’t begin to duplicate your environmental conditions_we are still running the AC daily, but I am going to try-again-to grow an african violet. Thanks for the detailed directions.
Kevin, my Mom also had African violets in many colors when we were kids. And my Grandmother and my Great Auntie Alice. And every other blue-haired lady I knew as a kid! Mom kept them in her bedroom in a huge south facing window in the winter. Sort of set back on a shelf unit. And she always (as a real Yankee) kept that bedroom COOL!!). This was also the home of probably the world’s largest Christmas cactus! lol
I never really thought much of them as I grew all kinds of other things my Dad, who worked in the greenhouses at Brookhaven Natl Labs, would bring me home. He could grow anything! Well, now that I am older (yikes!) and retired and live in NW Rocky Mountain Montana! I crave flowers! My summer is so short that by time your petunias start to look good they freeze! lol So I have started with 2 and am loving them. I always thought they were finicky plants and that is why old, gray haired ladies always had them! lol I am going to put glass shelves int he window and get some more colors and propagate! Thank you for the shove off the starting line to get going with them. Mine also surprising bloom pretty much all the time.
Thank you, thank you and I am going to make cognac cookies!! Have a wonderful holiday!!
Hi Kevin,
Thanks for the great tips on growing African Violets. I have one that I’ve had for YEARS (20+), that thrives on neglect. It always has flowers! The stem –if I could straighten it out is probably 6-12 inches long. It just spirals, and spirals. I need to transplant it, but i’ve been afraid to mess with “perfection”. What do you to to keep it from growing like that? Oh..and I stuck a broken leaf into the soil, and it has given me a baby!
Hi Kevin – Thanks for the advice and nice detailed guide to dissecting my violet. This morning I got out the scalpel and went at it! The two crowns that looked less robust were cut off; each had a very tiny root system attached. I removed some lower petals, dusted all cuts with root hormone and repotted. The mother plant was also repotted. Several leaves were cleanly cut, dipped in hormone then placed in the lettuce container greenhouse as you suggested. Fingers crossed that I have success. This plant has a pretty flower:white with purple fringed edges and a coating of glitter over all. Thanks for the great guidance!
Cheers,
Constantine
I really enjoyed reading the article on violets and especially seeing the photos of your “family”. I have a bay window that faces pretty much east and my violets love it although I do have to curtain it in the summer so they don’t fry! I have about half a dozen plants that are all flowering profusely. Four of them are from leaves given to me by a friend. From these I was able to pass along three propagated plants to another friend while keeping four for myself of varying colors. The friend who gave the leaves to me cannot seem to get her original plants to flower so I am sending her a link to your site to help. However, I think it is probably the lack of light that inhibits her plants. One white violet that I have had for a long time was so very prolific that I think I re-potted around half a dozen suckers to give to a group of friends who adopted them.
Now though I am moving soon and will not have that wonderful window and actually don’t have any that face east in the new house. Not sure what will happen to my colorful plants but I will have to find a way to keep them going ….. perhaps I will be able to find a way to put your lighting idea to work some where in the house until we can build a sun room on the back.
Thanks so much for the direction for African Violets.. I have had 2 I got when my S/O’s mom passed on 7 years ago. I’ve split them a few times & they’ve always done wonderfully for me, but this year I almost lost all of them. I still have the 2 originals but none of the other survived. I have no clue what I did or didnt do, but my 3 orchids died as well. I think those plants all started to die after I brought a new orchid in the house.. No other plants died though I have a house full, none other are flowering types, they were the only ones affected.
I keep thinking I should repot the African Violets and give them new pots as well as soil.. there are new babies so I’ll split them too.
They are in a perfect for them window.. North in the winter and mostly shaded in the summer. I didnt know it was perfect for them, but as I said, until this year, they were happy.
kevin, your violets are beautiful.
do you ever sell leaves? I WOULD LOVE TO GET A LEAF OR PLANT FROM YOU. THANKS, DOROTHY
Hi Apryl – In my experience, African violets with wildly-variegated leaves (such as your pink-leaved variety) tend to flower poorly — if at all. The reason: lack of chlorophyll. But the pink leaves are something to enjoy even without flowers!
Hi Jerry Sealy – Good idea – use a make-up brush (or camel’s hair brush) to dust the leaves. I chuckled when you mentioned building extra-wide windowsills in your house. Oh, what we do for our plants.
Bobbie Floyd – Do give AVs another try. They are soooo worth the effort!
Cilla – Nice that you think of your Mom, Great Aunt and Grandmother when you survey your violets. I think of Margaret Jones, an elderly neighbor who gave me a leaf to propagate when I was 10 years old. Oh, the memories.
Hi Cathy – Wow – a 20-year-old African violet! You may not want to tamper with the plant. But long necks can be cured this way: knock the plant from its pot; cut off at least half the roots, and remove all but the top set of leaves. Then replant, burying the long, naked “trunk” right up to the remaining leaves.
And about the leaf which has given you a baby: don’t be alarmed, but it has given you many, many babies! Check carefully, and you’ll find at least 4 tiny rosettes of leaves. Best to pot these separately.
Constantine – Glad that worked out for you. And it’s a good thing you like your purple-fringed, white-flowered AV. With all your propagation efforts, you will soon dozens and dozens of clones!
Karen L. -African violets love to lounge and luxuriate beneath fluorescents. So if the windows in your new home are not suitable for plants…then by all means attach a fixture or two beneath your bank of kitchen cabinets. Then you can have blooming plants right on your counter top.
Kim H – Hard to know what caused your AVs to falter. Like you said, it could have been a pest or disease that came in with your new orchid.
Dorothy Hargis – I don’t sell leaves. But if you come to one of the tours here next summer, I’d gladly give you leaves!
About showering the African violets. I have soft water everywhere in my house except the kitchen sink cold water. Will the salt in the softened water hurt the plants?
I was given a violet as a gift and have had some for many years. This one blossomed for along time in my east window and i moved it to the south in the winter. we have wood heat. It started looking limp and stopped blossoming, so i repotted it in a supposedly african violet pot. one that you can water from the bottom and it absorbs the water through the upper pot. It just got limper and limper and finally i got rid of it. We have our own well and i have wondered if that can have an affect on plants?
I used to have many violets and when i moved to this home brought my last one i had for many many years with. it was a double pink blossom. It had a trunk like a tree and reading your care ideas i realized i should have separated the off shoots but i thought it looked cool. Eventually i had to get rid of it also because it became limp.
I will put your ideas to use and see if i can make them survive but do wonder about the type of pot that the top pot sets in the bottom pot of water and if my well water can affect my house plants. Thank you
Hi Caren – Yes, softened water is harmful to African violets, and not just the leaves, but the roots, too. Any chance you can divert the water before it reaches your softening-unit?
Linda K. – Those self-watering “African Violet Pots” can be death traps. I never use them. Too often, water is left is in the outer pot. This means oxygen can’t reach the plant’s roots. Consequently the plant drowns. And the first sign of drowning is — you guessed it — limp leaves. Well water should be fine, especially if you first pour it into a gallon-size jug. Let the jug sit overnight (or longer) so that potential gasses can evaporate. Then water your plants.
Hi Kevin,
Thanks for a very inspiring presentation on window gardens at the Sand Lake Garden Club on Wednesday night.
Didn’t mean to put you on the spot about African geography. I lived in Africa for 6 years and still have a high interest.
I looked up the Usumbara Mountains and they are in Tanzania.
Thanks again,
Becky
Kevin, thank you so much for this article on African Violets. I have loved them and grown them for years. They remind me of my maternal grandmother whom I had a very close nurturing relationship with. She always grew them and I am absolutely in love with them. I can’t resist rooting a leaf if it breaks off, but my space is limited and I recently have been trying to control myself! But they are just so, so beautiful and varied when they bloom. I have definitely learned some things from your writing about them and loved looking at your photos. Question: I have always rooted mine in water and then transferred to a pot. Is this not a good idea? I guess it’s not really necessary since propagating directly in soil works so well for you. One more question: Some of my older, larger plants have outer leaves which have very long stems and rest on the pot rims, then seem to droop and die. Do you have this problem? Any ideas for a remedy? Well, that’s all for now. Keep up the fascinating life you lead!
Becky – Yes, Tanzania. Glad that’s settled!
Naomi Shelton – Petiole rot is a common problem with stems that rest against the rim of a pot. If you use clay pots, as I do, it helps to dip the rim of the pot in melted paraffin. Paraffin not only keeps the rim dry, but provides cushioning for the stems. A ring of aluminum foil along the rim works, too, whether the pot is clay or plastic.
I have had similar problems as KimH: After a few years my AVs seem to whither and die. I am fairly sure the cause is a build-up of salts in the soil from fertilizer and calcium in the water. My solution is to flush out the soil by slowly running water though the pot for several hours. After a week or so, my AVs will perk up and blossom again.
Kevin High on a ridge in the Ozarks… I took the backs off 2 glass bookcases and set them at windows which seems to work well…can’t build deep sills in an apt.
For Winter I have them at a West window diffused by miniblinds during strong afternoon sunglight, North and East windows worked until Winter. Switched to AV food like you use which increased blooms. My standards and semis are flourishing, but the minis are not reblooming for months. I have an abundance of pinks but none as bright as those on your bathroom window so am scouting. Would be wonderful to make your tours next year. Am so glad I found your site. Maggie
My violets have not bloomed in a long time. They are in light,I water and fertilize. What am I doing wrong and what can I do to get blooms?
my violets don’t look healthy at all, and I’ve debated tossing them, which seems so harsh. After reading your instructions, I feel that they have a chance to flourish and am looking forward to implementing them. Thanks so much!
Kevin I have my mother plant in a self watering African Violet pot. It is upstairs in a south facing window with bright light and has been doing fine. I went to my other home for 9 days and watered it when I came back as it was dry to the touch but within a day the leaves fell down but flower stems still standing tall. Outer leaves are rotting off. What did I do wrong? Too much water? And are those self watering pots really good for African Violets?
Michele
I love your violets…never quite thought of them in quite that way though…it will probably be a line forever in my mind now.
Beautiful! I use to have a window full until I moved down South. Now I’m home again I’m going to work on sprucing up my window area.
thank u for the information.. i do hav some african violets in my balcony, there is plenty of bright light, but no direct sun.. hope they ll bloom as beautiful as yors..!!!
I love African Violets and have no problem getting them to bloom. But can anybody tell me why my plants are too leafy because the ones I see in photos have few leaves
Kevin – thanks for the info. I already have a couple African violets but you have inspired me to get more! By any chance, do you have a favorite source for plants? I would love to be able to find some plants which are specific cultivars rather than just the typical no-name varieties found at my local garden center.
Jokha – Probably your African violets have produced suckers. You can remove these off-shoots and create new plants this way.
Abby – My favorite mail-order source for named varieties of African violets is Lyndon Lyon Greenhouses. Paul Serano, who owns the business, is a world-class hybridizer. I visited the greenhouses one frigid January day, and thought I’d stepped into the Garden of Eden. Amazing!
I enjoyed this post. I have one violet, inherited from my grandmother ten years ago (no idea how long she’d had the plant) that is an absolute powerhouse! It is in nearly perpetual bloom, and it produces new side plants regularly. I separate the plant every two years, and share the babies with friends. I was glad to read that you put plants in a north window. That’s where mine live, and they do great. People react almost violently when I tell them that!
I have other violets as well, which do not thrive as well as my grandmother’s. Some have leaves which have curled under, and I wonder if they are more sensitive to the cold temperature I keep the room. I’ll try to be more careful about using warmer water for them. My grandmother’s violet, in the same room and conditions, does not have curled under leaves.
I enjoyed your post and lovely pictures!
Thanks for the info about Lyndon Lyon. The only problem is that now I have to CHOOSE which cultivars I am going to order and, given my plant obsession, I will probably order more than I should. I have already propagated lots of Begonias and it looks like they have to make room for some neighbors. If you hear about a woman who has been swallowed up by her plants, you will know whom they are talking about!
Hi Kevin,
I was given an African Violet for Easter last year and it was beautiful. Now the leaves are great but it hasn’t bloomed since last year. By the sounds of everything here I’ve read here I may be overwatering it. It is stil in the original 4″pot that has drainage. The pot is in a bowl that I’ve been putting about 2 inches of water in every week and just leave it. Actually I just did that this morning and noticed the soil is saturated and the bowl still has water in it. If I allow the soil to dry out and begin watering as suggested above will the plant bloom again?
Hi Patricia – Yes. If you keep the soil moist but not saturated, and if you follow all other cultural directions described above, your African violet will most definitely bloom again.
I purchased 1 violet last fall & it was blooming, but it has NOT bloomed again. I heard once that violets need companions. Is this true? Also are there male & female violets & do you need one of each?
Kevin, I have read all blogs about not blooming African violets, I purchased one in March 2013 with plastic container , blooming, then of, now of course blooming has stopped, I water underneath,bottom, and every now and then I have a 5cc syringe to water the top to remove white desidue top of soil, I named her Lucy, I did see one sprout looking like about to bloom go in to the light and I was excitied ,but wittherd and died. Lucy is a beautiful Plant under whats called an Intellegent Light(fluorescent), I keep her in my bedroom….I have researched and researched I would be SOOOO HAPPY if a single bloom would appear, should I just be patient? dunno why that new stem abut to try to bloom died, huge beautiful leaves , beautiful crown , no suckers…no matter what happens she will live with me I just want her to bloom….
Hi Conrad Horst Jr – It sounds like you are doing everything right. However, you did not mention food. Try feeding Lucy a high-phosphorous formula (sold as “blossom booster”). I feed my violets with every watering. Plants under lights receive 1/2 teaspoon formula dissolved in one gallon of room-temperature (or slightly-warmer) water.