When re-potting African Violets, you trim off the lower leaves to maintain a neat crown with 3-4 whorls (rows of leaves). The lower leaves are older and more "tired". Trimming them off helps the plant continue to grow and be productive. It will be healthier and happier. Maybe someone else here can give a more detailed explanation, or knows more than I do, but I know that, much like roses, AV's love to be pruned and respond by growing and blooming more than if left to their own devices.

Ken,

As Lun says, these leaves are older and less productive than the young ones. The chlorophyll factories in them are shutting down but the roots still must nourish the leaves so it is best to get rid of them.

You don't 'have' to remove older leaves, it is just a good growing practice.

Linda

Thanks lun and linda, that makes total sense,I thought maybe it was to make it easier to top water if you go that way.I also thought it would make the plant grow more up-right.Im not sure what the standard is, but i like it when the bud stems rise above the leaves an inch or two, but i see alot that just lay atop the leafs.is this a type thing or something that just happens with growing conditions, etc.

Nope - it is just the leaf lives for a year or so - and the older leaves become unsightly and less productive. When you remove these leaves - it stimulates the growth of the top - and eventually gives you new leaves, new buds and new blossoms.
My understanding - it is a reaction of the plant to the wound. It kicks off the vegetative growth.

I.

hey thanks irina, i kinda hated cutting them off because they were healthy and green looking....but they were in the way of trying to cram all those roots into a smaller pot, so they would be root bound.I did stick some in distilled water to see if they would root and others right into my soil mix and into a baggie.not sure which is better though.

Thanks that was a good question, was about to re-pot an old violet of mine. Glad I visited this forum, lots of interesting questions.

Thanks that was a good question, was about to re-pot an old violet of mine. Glad I visited this forum, lots of interesting questions.

Hi Ken
Regarding your question about flowers growing above
the leaves or not, that seems to depend on the growing
pattern of the specific variety. Some grow that way,
others, not.
I think it also depends on the direction the light is
coming from. When I grew under fluorescent lights,
they reached upward toward the light. When I can grow
in natural light, they grow in whatever their genetic
pattern is.

Glad you mentioned
using distilled water, as I was not sure if that was
recommended.

@Irina
Thanks for noting that leaves get "old" after about
one year. (I think it might be different for those
that are heavily variegated.)

Joanne

Ken,

As stated before, some varieties bloom well above the foliage, some just lie on the leaves and everything in between.

You mentioned 'cramming' the roots in a small pot. If you have too many roots for your pot, cut them off! It's not good to fill the pot with just roots, there must be soil in there as well to sustain the plant. A plant will respond to root pruning by growing more roots so do not be afraid to cut some off especially if you have removed leaves. There is a balance between top growth and bottom growth.

Linda

Joanne - the leaves not only get old in a year- they wilt and die. Cannot guarantee that it is exactly 365 days though, ca be less, can be more. Variegated leaves as well do not leave forever.
I do not cut the leaves - I break them off. If you grab them not that far from a stalk - and pull sideways - they snap off neatly. Start from the bottom, remove a row of lowest 3 - they usually have pale petioles. Check if you need to remove more.

i.

Hey Irina, I already cut them off as close to the stem as i could....what is the difference between snapping them versus cutting.will they grow back sooner if cut. Thanks alot.

hey linda, thanks for the tip ,,,i will prune the roots back to where they are manageable. thanks alot

The article I read stated that it doesn't make any difference whether you snap them off or clip them off except that snapping them off leaves a neater neck on the plant. I clip mine off, which means I have to clean the neck when I re-pot, but I sometimes have a hard time snapping them off when the foliage is thick. It's really a preference thing. I have my little shears and I just nip the leaves off as close to the neck as I can.

Ken,

There are a couple of reasons why you should remove the leaves at the stem rather than cut them off. First, as mentioned, this makes for a neater 'neck'.
Second, a stub left from a snipped leaf can rot and attract insects and/or disease. A stub cannot heal itself; a complete removal at the neck can.
Third: it is thought that the snapping removal of a part of a plant releases a plant hormone called ethylene gas which stimulates the plant into more growth. Ethylene is the hormone that is responsible for cell growth.
Also, your leaves will not 'grow back', The only growth will come from the crown unless it is suckering.

Linda

Hey thanks alot linda, i have taken the AV and snapped off the remaining part that i cut with scissors. and you are so right it looks alot neater...

Dear Irina and Linda,
This advice is great. I did not know that leaves lived
for only about a year! I thought I was doing something
wrong when large, healthy-looking leaves began to lose
color, look tired, and "beg" to be removed.
That does result in "goose-necks," I am dealing
with that now with a plant I thought had two crowns,
but one is a sucker that "grew like Topsy" to be the
same size as Mama. I hope I don't kill it as I might
have to cut it off the neck with no roots. I will follow
the instructions I've read to pot it, dust
with cinnamon, and place under a dome.

On another older Russian plant, It seems that where
a leaf was knocked off
prematurely, suckers grew in that spot,
at a more rapid rate of growth than the plant.

I moved a few months ago and hand-moved most of
the plants myself. However, a non-violet
friend wanted to help and took some plants in her
car. One fell off the wagon, er, I mean the carton
and was lost in the dark recesses of her trunk for
a week. It got so beat up and lost so many
leaves, I just let it be, hoping it would recover.
Its spindly, lopsided neck is now covered with
tiny suckers. It is a variety
I like, but is not presently available. (The grower
said to check back in a few months.)

I hope to get replacements for this and others whose growth pattern is distorted due to leaf loss. In the meantime, I will try suggestions I have read here.
Joanne

Forty seven, One question: Cinnamon , as in the type you put with sugar??what exactly is the purpose of this or is it an old trick to use ...I am curious

Ken,

Cinnamon as in the kind you put on your toast. It has anti-fungal and anti-bacterial properties. I use it when ever I have to cut off rot on a leaf or a plant. Just dust the cut edge.

Linda