African Violet – Care

Q: I think I have an unusual indoor plant. It is a purple African Violet that has been blooming continuously for 28 months.

It was given to me in Dec. 2000 in full bloom. After it lost those blooms it would not bloom again until I moved it to another house with more sun, almost 3 years later).

Now it is in a southern window and must be very happy. I feed it every week.

A: In my experience, when African violets are in the right environment, they will bloom their hearts out. Yours obviously has it!

Light is the biggest determinant of flowering. They need 12 hours of light strong enough to cast a distinct shadow of your hand held 12 inches above a piece of white paper.

Weekly feeding with a weak fertilizer solution is also recommended. The soil they grow in should be “fluffy”, with lots of peat moss. African violets should only be watered when the soil dries out but it should not be allowed to become soggy.

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