- October 20, 2018
- Flowers
- Elizar Krivov
In almost every house on the windowsill you can see a colorful and bright plant - the indoor violet, which is also called Saintpaulia. This plant blooms every spring with delicate, elegant flowers, and the palette of colors is so rich, varied and deep that it amazes with its beauty. Violets do not require special care and do not cause allergies. They fit perfectly into any apartment interior. To make these indoor flowers pleasing to the eye and bloom for a long time, you need to know just a few rules. How to grow violets yourself?
Temperature, humidity when growing violets
The indoor violet is a flower that loves warmth. The most ideal temperature for its growth will be from 20 to 25 degrees Celsius. In such conditions it blooms and grows profusely. If the temperature is above thirty, this can have a detrimental effect on the flower. It will become dull, the flowers will become small. If you have a purebred violet growing on your windowsill, then the characteristics of its variety will disappear.
To lower the temperature in the room and prevent the flower from dying, you should resort to all known methods and tools that you have at hand. For example, turn on the air conditioner or use a fan. Or resort to the simplest method - ventilate the room.
Violet is a flower that does not tolerate sudden changes in temperature, scorching sun and cold drafts. As for keeping violets in the winter, at this time the temperature in the room should be from 16 to 20 degrees, but not lower.
To create good conditions for growing violets at home from leaves, you need to pay attention to the natural conditions in which the flower grows. And these are warm regions with high air humidity. If the indoor microclimate is dry, then it is best to purchase an air humidifier. It is inexpensive and does not take up much space. It is not recommended to spray violets. Such moisture can cause fungal disease in the plant.
Variety of Saintpaulia varieties
There are a huge number of different types and varieties of violets in the world. They may differ in the following ways:
- By flower shape and number of petals: regular;
- pansies;
- star;
- bell;
- cup-shaped;
- wasp;
- semidouble;
- terry;
- pectinate;
- fringed.
- wavy;
- small;
- yellow;
Violet "Summer Red".
Chimera "Sora Patty Ann".
- By leaves: classic;
- longleaf;
- excellent;
- compound, compound leaves;
- holly;
- pointed;
- rounded;
- heart-shaped;
- corrugated;
- glossy;
- multi-colored;
- pimply.
Often one variety can belong to different categories.
Which lighting should you choose?
Both natural and artificial lighting are perfect for violets, but it should be diffused, since direct sunlight is detrimental to the leaves of the plant. They burn out and fall off. In order for the violet to feel comfortable and grow, the daylight hours for it should be from 10 to 14 hours. If you grow Saintpaulia with thick and dense leaves, then the daylight hours for it should be longer.
If a situation arises when it is necessary to extend daylight hours, it is better to resort to the help of artificial light sources. Fluorescent lamps, LEDs, and so on are ideal for this. Just remember to rotate the plants to avoid bending. In this case, the bushes will be compact, dense and attractive.
Leaf selection
First of all, you need to think about how to choose the right leaf to grow. A good cutting is the key to a productive result. It is not recommended to select weak or unhealthy leaves, otherwise there may be no offspring at all or they will not be viable. Leaves from the lower tier of Saintpaulia are also not suitable, since they are old and prone to the spread of bacteria and fungi due to their proximity to the soil.
When propagating, cuttings of the second and third rows with fully formed leaves of the required size are ideal. The cuttings should be strong and rich green in color. If you ordered leaves from the store and they have lost their appearance, place them in warm boiled water for a few minutes. You can add a few drops of potassium permanganate. In this way you will disinfect the sheet and return it to its previous shape.
How to choose a violet leaf?
The viability of the future plant directly depends on the choice of planting material. Professionals in growing indoor plants do not recommend taking leaves located at the base of the flower (the lowest ones) for propagation. Ideal leaves would be taken from the middle of the bush.
Experts also advise placing the planting material in warm water with potassium permanganate before planting. This must be done so that the leaf comes to its senses and complete disinfection occurs. After this treatment, the leaf trunk is carefully trimmed. Here you need to leave a trunk 3 to 4 cm long from the base of the leaf.
Growing violets in water
How to grow violets in water? It's a simple process. Growing violets at home from leaves is a rather labor-intensive process, but as a result you will get a beautiful and healthy plant. The leaf that is selected for violet propagation should be placed in a container of water as quickly as possible. The liquid must be either well settled or boiled. Only in such a liquid can the condition of the plant be clearly visible; this will allow timely care for it and observation of the formation of rhizomes.
Before placing the flower in a container, the latter should be washed well, or better yet, sterilized. To avoid the formation of mud and algae, you should use bottles with dark glass.
Rooting of leaves occurs according to the following scheme:
- Bury the leaf in a container with liquid by 1-2 centimeters.
- The cutting should not come into contact with the walls of the vessel; for this, the sheet is secured with paper or a plastic lid.
- Be sure to add 1 tablet of activated carbon to the water. It helps fight pests and fungi that may form in the water.
Violet roots begin to appear after two to four weeks, depending on the plant variety. If rotting of the cuttings occurs, then the place with rot is carefully cut off. Next, dry the plant a little and place it in liquid. When the roots become stronger, the violet is planted in the ground.
Preparation of planting material
Rooting a violet from a leaf is quite simple, even if the leaf is broken, damaged, frozen or rotted upon delivery. For propagation in this way, a very small but healthy part of the leaf is needed. A flower takes root from the veins on a leaf; each such vein can produce one child.
If propagation is carried out from a damaged leaf, you must perform the following steps:
- remove the damaged part with a clean, disinfected blade, slightly capturing the healthy area;
- cut out fragments from the remaining healthy part of the leaf that will contain a vein, not even necessarily a central one, maybe a lateral one;
- rinse the sheet with a weak solution of potassium permanganate, leave it in the liquid for 15-20 minutes, which will eliminate any parasitic elements and prevent the process of rotting;
- dip the sections in crushed activated carbon;
- Allow the sheet to dry thoroughly, only then can you begin planting the cut fragments.
How to root a violet from a leaf, the photo shows an example of a section.
All the same manipulations must be performed before planting if propagation is carried out by a single leaf.
There are several ways to cut a sheet:
- cut the leaf so as to first cut out the central vein, and then cut each side part into three lobes, where there will be side veins branching from the central one;
- from the healthy part of the leaf, cut 2-3 strips containing 2 lateral veins, this gives a high probability of the appearance of two children from one cutting;
- an element cut from the upper lobe of a leaf, which will contain more than two thin veins, will take root well; children may appear from each;
- cut the leaf in half horizontally, each fragment will produce more than 2-3 children;
- if the leaf rot is large, you can cut it out so that a cutting from the central vein remains about 1 cm in height.
Regardless of the method of cutting the sheet, it takes 15-20 minutes. Leave these fragments alone in the air. This is necessary so that the sections are covered with film.
Planting a violet leaf in the soil
Now let's look at how you can grow a violet by planting leaves and stems in the soil after propagating it in water. To make the plant feel comfortable, you should use small containers to fill with soil. Let's look at this process step by step:
- Stage 1. It is necessary to fill the container 1/3 with drainage, then cover it with earth.
- Stage 2. Plant the leaf with roots shallowly in the ground.
- Stage 3. The soil around the leaf should be compacted and watered.
- Stage 4. Cover the violet with a plastic bag (under the bag the plant will live until the cuttings form shoots).
- Stage 5. Young violets are planted in different pots.
Now you know how to plant a violet leaf in a pot.
Features of transplantation
The need for a transplant occurs if:
- The plant grows poorly and is weak.
- The roots are tightly intertwined.
- A new shoot has appeared.
There are two methods of replanting: with a complete replacement of the soil and simply transferring the flower along with the soil to another pot.
In any case, you need to try not to damage the roots.
You will learn about the remaining rules for transplanting violets if you use this link.
Growing violets from leaves in soil
If you adhere to the opinion of experienced flower growers, they advise planting violets directly in the ground, as the plants are stronger and more resilient, and they also produce more children. How the process of growing violets occurs is discussed below.
To make it easier to plant violets in the soil, you can buy synpolia soil at a specialized store. The following disintegrants must be added to it:
- Styrofoam;
- vermiculite – perfectly loosens the soil and absorbs moisture;
- sphagnum moss;
- perlite is the main one, it is always used in growing violets.
Rooting of violets in the soil occurs according to the following scheme:
- The stem of the leaf must be pulled to the side and broken, then it is cut off at an acute angle.
- It is necessary to release the stem and leaf into the manganese solution for a few seconds.
- Then leave to air dry for about thirty minutes.
- A disposable cup is filled with warm, moist soil.
- Plant the violet leaf and stem and compact the soil around it.
- There is no need to water the plant.
- It is worth covering the glass with the flower with plastic wrap. Watering is carried out once every seven days. In order for the violet leaf to take root faster, it does not need to be fertilized additionally.
Secrets and nuances of care
Not every gardener will undertake to grow violets. Despite the fact that Saintpaulias are considered unpretentious, they require some care. And if you know the secrets of growing, you will certainly achieve success.
Leaves and flower stalks
For abundant flowering, it is recommended to remove old leaves and flower stalks . As soon as you notice that the leaves have lost color or turned yellow, feel free to pick them off. Sooner or later they will disappear, but until that moment they will draw juices from the plant.
Watering
Watering should be moderate. The soil should always be slightly moist.
Pot
Choosing the right pot is of no small importance. For planting, you should choose a pot three times smaller than the size of the rosette .
Reminder for choosing a pot.
Drainage
Make sure there is a drainage layer in the pot. Without it, the fragile and thin roots of the violet will quickly rot.
By following these tips, you can achieve excellent flowering.
Separation of children when propagating violets from leaves
After the children appear at the base of the violet stem, they begin to replant it. Small plants are divided so that each baby has at least two leaves and approximately an equal number of roots.
To avoid injury to the violet before separating the children, the ground needs to be watered. As can be seen from the article, if you follow simple rules by planting a violet leaf in the soil, you can get a strong plant. It will delight its owners with beautiful flowers and healthy foliage.
This article discusses two methods that answer the simple question of how to grow a violet from a leaf. Maintaining order will give you strong plants, but you decide for yourself which method of growing violets from leaves to choose. Both methods are good and do not require special knowledge and skills. The main thing is not to rush and follow all the points one by one.
A few more nuances that answer the question of how to plant violets with leaves:
- When planting a plant in the soil, do not forget to make holes in the bottom of the container so that excess moisture can be drained out freely. This must be done to avoid rotting of the plant’s root system.
- The film must be removed periodically to ventilate the planted plant.
