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Starting New African Violets

Source: NDSU Extension Service Horticulturists

African violets are one of our most popular indoor flowering plants. Indoor gardeners enjoy producing new plants to increase their own collection and to give young plants as presents to friends and neighbors.

There are two basic ways to produce new African violets: through leaf cuttings and division of crowns.

Handle leaf cuttings carefully to avoid the rotting of the leaf petiole (PET-ee-ohl) or "leaf stem." For best results, select semi-mature or moderately large leaves. Use a sharp knife to remove the petiole close to the center of the plant or the crown.

Root leaf cuttings in a 50-50 mix of peat moss and perlite or vermiculite (ver-MIK-ya-light). Make sure the leaf blade sits above the rooting medium. The leaf petiole should be about one inch long, enough to hold the leaf blade in a nearly upright position. Keep the propagating material moist at all times because periods of dryness will discourage root development.

Warm temperatures stimulate roots to grow quickly. Ideally, the root temperature should be around 70 degrees. Do not place the cutting in an overly bright location. Excessive light can quickly destroy the leaf blade.

A rotting leaf stem base often indicates there is too much water in the propagating medium. This may be due to poor drainage, inappropriate medium or cold root temperatures.

Some gardeners like to root leaf cuttings in water. Place a piece of wax paper over the top of a small container, and fasten it securely with a rubber band. Then, insert the slip, or leaf cutting, through a small hole in the center of the paper and into the water. It is important that the leaf blade not come into contact with water.

If often takes several weeks before roots begin to appear on the leaf cutting. You will later see plantlets developing at the base of the leaf blade. It may take two or more months before you can separate the plantlets and place them into individual pots. You can remove the old leaf when it is evident that new plantlets are developing and spreading out over the soil surface.

You can then move rooted cuttings to a slightly brighter location since they can now tolerate conditions recommended for the African violet. Apply a liquid fertilizer, according to manufacturer's directions, when your plants appear.

The second technique of producing new African violets is dividing the mature plant. A series of crowns or young plants develops around the perimeter of the mother plant. Use a sharp knife to separate each of the young plants. Each young plant should have a fairly well developed root system. Put the young plants directly into a soil mixture composed of 1 part sand, 2 to 3 parts loam and 2 parts organic matter, such as peat moss or compost. You can also use commercially prepared soils made for African violets. These are already sterilized to kill insects and diseases.

If you have further questions, please contact your county office of the NDSU Extension Service.

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