Saintpaulia

Saintpaulia violet, or Saintpaulia ionantha Wendl. (this. gesneriyevy). Homeland - the mountainous areas of tropical Africa. Low, herbaceous plant with a rosette of leaves. There are numerous varieties with white, pink, purple, blue flowers. The flowers are simple or terry. Stems in Saintpaulia short, fragile. Leaves, depending on the variety from light green to dark brown-green, thick, brittle, pubescent. Form a beautiful flat outlet, above which towers flower stalks. There are forms with beautiful wavy leaves. All varieties are derived from the Saintpaulia violet flowering.

The plant is light-requiring, but it should be protected from direct sunlight. Watering cautious, in the edge of the pot. If water gets on the velvety leaves, they can rot. Propagated by leaf cuttings rooted in spring, summer, autumn in the glass at a temperature of 22 ... 25 ° C. After 2-3 months, young plants are transplanted into pots with a diameter of 5-7 cm. In the summer, with soil culture, mineral supplements are given once a month. Spraying is not recommended. In the winter, Saintpaulias should be kept on windows at a temperature of 18 ... 20 ° С, reducing watering, as the period of rest must pass. The best soil is a light mixture of leaf earth, peat and sand (4: 1: 1). Also used soil "Violet". Earth lump should always be wet. Utensils need close. For the winter, saintpaulia can be placed in room greenhouses with daylight lamps, then it blooms in winter. Saintpaulias are transplanted once a year in the spring, with additional lighting in the winter, autumn and spring. It grows exceptionally well and blooms profusely in hydroponic and ionitic cultures under artificial light. Abundant bloom is observed in the second year of their development and growth.
Currently, many varieties of Saintpaulia are bred:

Blue Sky - the stem is very short; leaves form a beautiful rosette; they are round, fleshy, light green, jagged at the edges; petioles are long, with sharp pubescence. The flowers are very beautiful, densely double, bluish, collected in inflorescences of 5-6 flowers. Peduncle 5-6 cm in height. Flowers 5 cm in diameter. It blooms almost the whole year.

Mentor Fight - the rosette of leaves is dense, almost without a stem; leaves are oval, slightly elongated, dark green with a yellowish tinge, entire. The underside of leaves is purple with a purple tint. Flowers 3.5 cm in diameter, blue, terry. The inflorescence consists of 4-5 flowers, dense, 6 cm tall.

Plum Type - a small, rosette of leaves, small to medium-sized, light green, heart-shaped, entire, with long, pubescent petioles, pressed to the soil. Peduncle 9 cm tall. Inflorescence loose, carries 3-5 flowers. Flowers 5-5.5 cm in diameter, light purple, with purple tips, simple, five-petal. Blooms profusely.

Double Pink Giant - leaves in a socket pressed against the soil, with smooth edges, round, light green. Peduncles 6 cm tall, with 5-6 flowers. The flowers are strong, bright pink, 2.5-3.0 cm in diameter. Blooms profusely and continuously throughout the year.

This lovely plant is suitable for compositions in special baskets and hanging vases, as well as winter gardens. Does not tolerate tobacco smoke and drafts. It blooms excellent when grown in artificial light at a 16-18 hour day.

Secrets of successful cultivation

Location and lighting

Sunlight is good for plants in moderation. Saintpaulias grow beautifully on the north window in the summer, but will not be able to bloom profusely in winter. And, perhaps, the most suitable place on the eastern window with a hanging roof. Many flower growers successfully grow saintpaulias in the western and even southern windows. In this case, some protection against direct sunlight should be provided.

If the window is not protected by trees, shrubs or climbers, the amount of illumination should be adjusted using a bamboo, plastic or other material louver. Blinds are great for this purpose, if you change the position of the plates by changing the position of the sun. Some believe that translucent plastic curtains regulate the flow of light well.

It should be remembered that the light that enters your windows is not only direct sunlight. Part of it is reflected from the flat surfaces of the surrounding objects. If your house is surrounded by green glades, trees and bushes, the reflected sunlight will not cause you much trouble. Perfectly softens the light and greens.

Especially you have to protect plants from light, if your windows overlook a paved road, a white or light-colored wall, or if you are close to a lake, the sea or a sandy beach. Light reflected from the snow cover is usually too intense for the Saintpaulia. Some growers recommend the following way to assess light. The hand should be held above the plant at a height of about 10 cm. If you see a slight shadow on the leaves - there is enough light. Different varieties react differently to the intensity of illumination. Varieties with thick leathery dark green leaves tend to withstand brighter lighting than plants with soft green leaves (they begin to turn yellow from too much light). In addition to the intensity of light, the duration of illumination is also important. In the summer, of course, do not have to worry about the length of daylight hours. But in the short dark winter days the period of illumination is usually very short, at this time the light-colored lights are very useful to the seniors. It is better to use fluorescent lamps (2 LDC and LB 40-watt lamps are installed at a distance of 25-30 cm from each other 15 cm from the top leaves).

If your plants get too much light, their leaves will become more faded or will turn a brownish tint; the center is compacted, the leaves lose their shape and begin to curl down over the edge of the pot. On the other hand, if there is not enough light, then the leaves will grow straight up, long petioles will form, and the flowering will be bad.

When lighting fluorescent lamps plants grow twice as fast and bloom twice earlier than those standing on the window. They form more lush and dark leaves. Blue flowers are more intense than usual, but red is not so bright. Other colors practically do not change. With the onset of flowering plants can be moved to the window, it will not break flowering, provided that the same temperature and humidity is maintained. If the flowers still wilted, it is these conditions that have changed.

Watering

Saintpaulias require uniform watering, which eliminates the possibility of drying the root system. In general, if a loose mixture is made up and there is good drainage, one should not be afraid of excess water, but water should not be allowed to stand on a drip pan after watering.

Some lovers recommend the so-called bottom watering. But putting the pots in water, keeping them for a certain time (so that the earth is soaked with water), then ensuring the flow of excess water and re-installing the pots on the tray - all this is quite difficult, especially with a large number of plants. Watering from the bottom also contributes to the spread of nematodes.

It is absolutely unacceptable to water Saintpaulia "from the pallet". At the same time, the lower part of the earthen coma becomes overwetted and the upper part often dries out.

In room conditions should be watered from above, it is better from a watering can with a narrow long spout, so that water does not fall on the leaves and flowers. Ideal water for irrigation of Saintpaulia distilled. However, having a large number of adult plants, it is not so easy to get a lot of such water every day.

Most amateur florists have to rely only on ordinary water supply, although not everywhere such water is suitable for irrigation of the Saintpaulia.

Tap water can only be used if it has been settled for at least 24 hours before watering; otherwise, after a few days, using it will reduce the size of the flowers and inhibit the growth. If the water is hard, you can add apple vinegar as an acidulant (1 tablespoon to 4.5 liters of water). Good results are obtained by watering plants with such water once every 6 weeks. The rough nature of the water can be determined with litmus paper. Alkaline reaction indicates increased water hardness. Do not use water from faucets that are wearing chemical softeners. It is better to use ordinary hard water.

Water temperature should be slightly higher than room temperature. Watering with cold water often leads to the formation of white spots on the leaves.

With a large number of plants, you can accidentally overdry individual specimens, which is generally not dangerous for the plant. So that this is not a system, you should water the plants twice, in small doses.

Excellent results gives irrigation with snow water. It stimulates the development of plants, accelerates flowering. Clean, possibly fresh snow, collected in a plastic bag and immersed in hot water. Avoid long-term storage of snow water. It goes without saying that the use of snow, as well as rain, water is permissible only in areas where the air is clean from industrial pollution.

The basic rules for watering are simple and easy to do: water only plants with warm water, let the excess flow out, and if there is water on the saucer in about an hour, pour it out, do not let the plants stand in it. Then do not water again until the surface is dry to the touch. It is dry, and it is the surface.

Never allow the ground to dry to the bottom of the pot. If you allow the soil in the pot to dry, and it moves away from the walls, then later, when you pour from the surface, water can pass through the pot without wetting the middle part of the coma, i.e. the soil around the roots. In this case, the plants will experience a lack of moisture, although the surface will be wet and water will pass through the bottom hole.

Only the upper layers with a thickness of no more than 1.3 cm can be dry, about 2.5 cm - in larger pots.

The frequency of watering depends on the size of the pot, the porosity of the soil, the variety and age of the plants, the time of year and the conditions in which they grow. Some plants require more watering than others. In a room with higher humidity, less water should be watered than in drier ones. If the leaves of Saintpaulia constantly maintain their elasticity and good coloring, it means that the irrigation regime is correct. If the leaves are made soft (first lower leaves are made soft, older leaves), then water does not flow to them - the roots do not work. They may not work because they are rotten due to illness or improper care, or because they lack moisture. In the latter case, the surface of the earth is dry. If, after watering, the leaves are not made elastic for 1-2 hours, the whole pot should be immersed for 1.5-2 hours in warm (25-227 ° C) water, and then for a day to keep the plants under the film in a darkened place . Thus, as a rule, it is possible to save Saintpaulia: usually after a day, its leaves become elastic again. This plant further needs special attention. Often, some of the thin roots die in those affected by overdrying, and until new ones develop, the plant consumes moisture more slowly.

Sometimes, out of fear of planting, amateurs limit watering, allowing periodically more or less serious overdrying of plants. Such specimens grow slowly, their leaves become yellow, the flowers become shallow, and in terry varieties do not reach their normal size and shape. From the constant lack of moisture Saintpaulias often get sick and often die, especially in the autumn-winter period.

If saintpaulia begins to slowly absorb moisture, that is, its earthen clod remains wet and does not dry out on the 3-4th day after each watering, this indicates a plant disease. In overmoistened soil aeration and access of oxygen necessary for respiration of roots is reduced. The soil is compacted and sour, the roots rot, the leaves lose their elasticity, as well as when the substrate is dried out. In this case, it is best to remove the plant from the pot, wash off all the soil from the roots with warm water and remove rotten roots with a razor (they are dark and do not have light growing tips). Especially it is necessary to pay attention to the central trunk, which may have rotten places. It is cut from the bottom until the cut does not show signs of rotting. Cut off the places to sprinkle with charcoal powder and plant either in clean sand or in a mixture of sand with vermiculite and put in greenhouse conditions with high humidity (in the simplest case, cover with film). If at the same time there are practically no roots left on the cut plant, then it is better to root it not in the substrate, but in the water.

In conclusion, we describe another method of watering, namely watering with a wick.

This method allows you to maintain a constant humidity of the substrate. For this method of moistening a wick is used (it can be made of nylon stocking fabric with a length of 10 cm, approximately as thick as a string). One end of the wick should be spread around the hole at the bottom of the pot so that it does not fall out, and the other is removed through the hole. Then fall asleep land and plant the plant as usual. Watered on top until the water passes to the bottom and starts to drip from the end of the released wick. The pot is placed on a stand on a saucer or in another dish, in which several centimeters of water is poured. The bottom of the pot should be 2-3 cm above the water surface. There must always be air between the bottom of the pot and the water.

Approximately every two weeks you need to pour water from the pan and leave the plant to dry until the surface of the soil becomes completely dry. Then clean the bottom of the pan and fill it again with water or solution. The pot is put on the stand again and the end of the wick is lowered into the pan.

Although with this method there is some danger of rotting of the socket, many prefer it. And one of the secrets of moistening the wick is not to use a wick that is too thick, which gives a great overwetting of the soil. For plants in a pot with a diameter of 10 cm or smaller enough size twine. For larger plants, thicker wicks are used.

Air humidity

The amount of water vapor in the air significantly affects the state of senpoly. In a too dry atmosphere, the tips of the leaves of the senpolias shrink and turn yellow, the flowers become shallow, do not fully bloom, quickly fade. A similar picture is clearly observed when turning on central heating in urban apartments, when the air humidity drops sharply.

Under natural conditions, air humidity is 60–70%. It is impossible to maintain such humidity in living quarters, besides, with such humidity it will not be very good for people. As a rule, the humidity in the premises, especially in the heating season, reaches 20%, which is not enough for people and plants. The best option is 45-50%.

Since it is impossible to create a humid atmosphere in the whole apartment, the only way out is to increase the humidity of the air directly next to the plants. There are several ways for this moisturizing.

In very dry areas, you can put pots with plants on a layer of wet sand 5 cm thick on a saucer or in a flat tray. The sand must be kept wet, but not so wet that there are puddles on it. The moisture from the sand gradually evaporates, and the air is moistened.
You can just pour water into a common baking sheet. At the same time, so that the pots do not stand in the water, they are put on separate saucers, which are in the water. Excellent results are obtained by laying a layer of moistened sphagnum on a baking sheet, in which pots with saintpaulias are placed.
Saintpaulias love steam. This is one of the reasons that they grow best in the kitchen than in other rooms, they benefit from steam from cooking and washing dishes. However, some plants that adapted to the dry air of the rooms in the kitchen stopped flowering. In addition, bathrooms are also suitable for saintpaulia.

Increased air humidity is needed when growing senpolia from leaves, for rooting young, fragile plants, for germinating seeds and for seedlings at the initial stage of their development. To do this, they are covered with a can, plastic wrap or placed in special greenhouses. But the constant very high air humidity (80–100%) can cause fungal diseases in adults in Saintpaulia, especially in the absence of fresh air.

Saintpaulias cannot stand drafts. This is one of the reasons why they do not grow in the summer on an open balcony. But this does not mean that they do not need any ventilation. They need fresh air, but not blowing directly to them from an open window or door. If there is not enough air circulation in the room, the plants start to rot.

In an area with a hot and humid atmosphere, the florist will have to contend with rosette rot, especially in summer. It is necessary to place the plants in the coolest place.