Uzambara violet “Summer Twilight” is a delightful masterpiece by Konstantin Morev.
As a child, Konstantin went to visit his housemate, the famous breeder Boris Makuni. The beauty he saw struck the boy. The talented student took up the selection like a real researcher. Dear readers!
For you, we have created communities on social networks in which useful articles and interesting ideas are published several times a day! Subscribe and receive useful content in a convenient format! Famous varieties of Morev are “Frosty Cherry”, “Baby Mermaid”, “Pink Watercolor”, “Stars of Crimea” and dozens of others. “Summer Twilight” is a bright variegated variety loved by many gardeners, created in 2007.
Description of the Moreva variety
Let's take a closer look at the variety.
Leaves
The “Summer Twilight” variety forms a neat, medium-sized flat rosette.
The leaves are green, slightly concave, quilted.
There is a white border along the edge of the leaves, capturing the cloves and a small part of the leaf, as in the photo on the right; this is one of the varietal characteristics.
Flowers
Saintpaulia flowers are large double and semi-double stars 5-6 cm in diameter.
The color combines blue-violet petal centers with a white background.
The petals are velvety with a wavy edge, the flower is voluminous and lush, which is clearly visible in the photo on the left.
The short, strong peduncles sag a little under the weight of the flowers.
The variety blooms abundantly and for a long time. Even young rosettes are blooming. Violet is very elegant and creates a lyrical mood.
Peculiarities
The “Summer Twilight” variety is easy to care for and blooms successfully even for beginners.
Grows well both on a shelf and on a windowsill. The white tips of the leaves are susceptible to sunburn, so the violet is shaded from the hot sun.
The variety tolerates heat, but will show best growth and foliage color in a cool place. In hot weather, variegation decreases.
Reviews
Natalya Veniaminovna. “ The seedling “SM-Petersburg” once became the basis of my extensive collection - I fell in love with it at a flower exhibition and decided to try to grow it myself. The violet has been producing constant caps of spectacular flowers for many years. The only negative is the large area occupied by the outlet.”
The variety has many positive reviews.
Photo of violet “Summer Twilight”
Growing conditions
Let's consider the basic conditions for growing the variety.
Priming
Most gardeners use ready-made peat-based soils. Popular mixtures are Greenworld (preferred) and Saintpaulia.
The soil is sieved, separating large pieces and fibers. Then sterilize in a steaming pan or in the microwave for 10-15 minutes.
After the soil has cooled, loosening agents are added to it: perlite or vermiculite. Loosening agents are needed to prevent the soil from caking and allow air to reach the delicate roots.
The ratio of soil and loosening agents is approximately as follows:
- 2 parts peat soil;
- 1 part baking powder with a predominance of perlite.
For violets on wick watering, the proportion of baking powder increases. Many gardeners make up their own soil mixture, adding leaf soil, moss, coconut fiber and other ingredients.
Important! The soil must be sterilized and the additional components washed well.
Pot
Plastic pots for violets are preferable to ceramic ones. They do not cool the roots, are not clogged with salts, are easy to clean and leave the ground easier.
Attention! Size matters! The diameter of the pot should not exceed 1/3 of the diameter of the rosette.
The Saintpaulia root system is not able to absorb a large volume of soil. Overflow and acidification of the soil occurs. For the Summer Twilight variety, a 7-12 cm pot is sufficient.
Lighting
Saintpaulia "Summer Twilight" needs soft, diffused light 10-12 hours a day.
Excessive lighting is indicated by crowding and drooping leaves.
The best location in summer is a northern window sill. You can shade the plants with gauze folded in half, paper or a non-woven tablecloth.
A lack of light is indicated by pale leaves, elongated petioles and weak peduncles. Use backlights or move the violet closer to the window.
Detailed description of other varieties on our website: violet “Blue Dragon”, violet “Cinderella’s Dream”, violet “Esmeralda”, violet “Lituanica”, violet “Ice Rose”, violet “Olesya”, violet “Blue Fog”, violet “Chanson” ", violet "Jan Minuet" and others
Temperature
Violet “Summer Twilight” grows comfortably at a temperature of 22-25 C°. In a cool, bright room, the variegation of leaves is brighter and the blue in the color of flowers is richer. High temperatures cause growth to slow down and the center of the rosette becomes clogged.
Reference! At temperatures above 26 C°, photosynthesis in Saintpaulia slows down and the violet stops growing.
Humidity
Violet can suffer from dry air both in the summer heat and in winter.
During the battery operating season, air humidity drops to 20-30%. An ultrasonic humidifier or indoor greenhouse will help increase humidity.
Hobbyists successfully use lattice trays, into the lower part of which water is poured. Evaporation works better if expanded clay soaked in water is placed in the tray. This method of moistening is also used for wick irrigation. The only difficulty is adding water to the pan in time.
Contents in room culture
The seedling is characterized by flower growers as a completely problem-free variety of Saintpaulia, since to create a decorative image, the simplest agrotechnical regimes, supported by the accuracy and regularity of their implementation, :
- It is best to place the seedling on a western or eastern window; for plants on northern windows, it is desirable to additionally equip them with lamps with a diffuse spectrum; for plants on southern windows, artificial shade is necessary;
- You can water in small volumes when the effect of slight drying appears on the upper tier of the substrate;
- Additional mineral supplements must be applied based on the appearance of the violet;
Saintpaulia requires proper care. - Lighting should be mostly natural, long-lasting and diffused;
- The best temperature is within the range of +20 + 24°C, excluding sharp fluctuations in indicators;
- Plant seedlings using nutritious, permeable soil with good aeration and a thick layer of drainage;
- When transplanting , use transshipment more often, except in special cases.
Planting and propagation
“Summer Twilight” is a variegated variety. For cuttings we choose the healthiest, greenest leaves - they are more viable.
Leave the petioles 4-5 cm long and lightly dry the sections.
For planting, we take small pots with a diameter of 5 cm or plastic cups. We make drainage holes.
We paste the labels. Place some moss on the bottom. Pour steamed soil with the addition of perlite into the pots and spill with Fitosporin solution.
We plant the cuttings in pots one at a time, at a slight angle to a depth of 1 centimeter. Place in a greenhouse and transfer to a bright place with a temperature of about 25 °C.
How else can you get new plants?
As already mentioned, the violet Dushechka (seedling of K. Morev) can also reproduce in children. This is also a fairly simple way to propagate this beautiful flower. The grown-up baby should be carefully separated from the mother plant and transferred to a pre-prepared pot filled with soil mixture intended for violets. There is no need to arrange any greenhouses over the planted plants. Children of this variety are able to develop well even without such “delights”.
As you can see, caring for the violet Dushechka is not particularly difficult. Propagating this beautiful variety at home is also quite simple. Pay more attention to your flower, and then it will definitely delight you with a healthy appearance and abundant flowering.
Violet care
Care includes the following procedures.
Watering
Watering violets is the most important element of care.
Carefully! The plant should not be flooded, but at the same time the violet is afraid of drying out.
Typical watering mistakes:
- Abundant watering in drafts and cold weather;
- Bay of violets in a heavy, caked substrate;
- Overdrying followed by abundant watering when the root hairs have already died.
It is more correct to water a little with soft water when the top layer of soil dries out. The wick method of watering helps to avoid fluctuations in humidity.
Transfer
The plant is replanted when the rosette outgrows the diameter of the pot by 2-3 times.
A larger pot with drainage at the bottom is filled with soil. We insert the previous pot in the middle, then carefully remove it and place the violet in the resulting hole.
Replanting with soil replacement is used in the following cases:
- Withering violets;
- Damage, soil acidification.
Remove the violet from the pot and shake off the soil from the roots. Rotten roots are removed. The rest are dusted with charcoal. The violet is planted in loose soil, and after a few hours it is watered with a solution of Fitosporin.
Fertilizer and feeding
Saintpaulia responds well to fertilizers, but overfeeding is dangerous for violets. Balanced liquid fertilizers with a solution of vermicompost cause the least harm. The concentration is taken to be half that in the instructions. Violets are fed during the growth period - from April to September.
Diseases and pests
Saintpaulias are susceptible to fungal, bacterial diseases and pest attacks.
The reasons lie in improper care - flooding, drying out, drafts, sunburn.
When attacked by pests - mites, thrips or mealybugs, the affected plant is isolated and treated with the Fitoverm insecticide.
Fusarium affects the entire plant starting from the roots. The violet fades irreversibly. The plant is destroyed, the pot is disinfected with copper sulfate.
Powdery mildew is a common disease. The plant is treated with fungicide Skor.
If the roots rot, the only way to save the violet is by re-rooting the top or a healthy leaf. Prevention of the disease - reducing watering, spilling the soil with Fitosporin. In cold weather, violets are not sprayed; water should not get on the leaves.
How to water
Of course, the violet variety Dushechka (Morev) needs periodic moistening of the soil underneath it. This flower should always be watered at the same time. In summer this is usually done in the mornings, in winter - in the evenings, before dusk. As for the actual frequency of watering, it depends on the age of the plants. The soil under young violets is moistened quite often. In any case, it should always remain raw. Adult plants are watered less frequently - maximum once every two days. Water for violets of the Dushechka variety, as for any other, should be used exclusively warm (room temperature) and settled.
