I have a feeling you're looking at strandard size on the one from Piotr (that's where mine are from, they seem to be big lusty plants). I don't know about Braun's breeding lines, but my intuition is...yes, I see large plants.

The american lines like Rob's Bristols tend to be more compact. Nancy Braun's is an American breeder, but I just feel there's Ukraine or Polish blood in those babies...but I don't know :)

I especially like the one you posted with the name Joy.
If you've done AV leaves before, it should be similar. Additionally, you can cut the leaf into segments containing major veins in Streps, but I've never done that.
Here's a link, you can google for others.
http://www.dibleys.com/cuttings/index2.htm

If you set your messaging to allow me to email you, I'll send you Nancy's email and you can ask her about the two of hers.

Thank you! Very helpful. :-) One question... I went to the link, and came across this.. which i have read about in various books. how would I go about finding this stuff and is there an equivalent that I can mix myself?: John Innes no. 2

dbarron, the first one I believe is 7046 which is now named Garu. A very nice large flowering plant. And yes, many of Piotr's plants grow large, particularly Verso. I have grown this plant in the past and it will grow 3' from leaf tip to leaf tip with little effort.

Most of Nancy's hybrids are standard size plants. However, standards do grow differently, some are compact, some about 18-24" wide and some even larger.

You can control the size to an extent by keeping them in as small a pot as possible. Also by not fertilizing as often from my experience. I do not have lots of room as well and I control my plants by keeping them in as small a pot as possible.

Verso, Fred's Yellow Ice, Roulette Cherry are just a few varieties that grow very large. Check the description when buying a plant. Not everyone lists the size of a plant in theirs. I have started a page on Facebook with pictures of streps blooms I grow with descriptions of the plants and if they are a large standard grower, standard grower, compact grower or miniature. It's called Dave's Streps. I did this just for this reason, so people know what to expect if they buy or trade from me a particular plant.

Dave

Here's a few of my favorites, though I have many! Don't we all though. Heartland's Aussie Butterfly is a Dale Martens hybrid and a miniature. Wendy's KA Moon Glo is a compact size plant.

Dave

oooooh wow..... those are stunning. i'm going to check out your facebook page. ;) my leaves came today... and i have stuck them in a mixture of perlite, peat, vermiculite and just a tad of reg potting mix. its mostly peat and vermiculite. tell me quick if i need to change something. ;) i planted them in a washed foam thing that ground beef is put in in the store. i poked some holes in the bottom of it and then set the whole tray down in a lasagna tin and snapped the plastic cover on. is this going to work for them? at least until they root anyhow..

The mix should be fine. Just keep the mix slightly moist not real wet. A trick I use is dusting the cut end with cinnamon. It acts as a anti-fungal to help prevent rot.

I do not have all my plants on the page. As they bloom I am adding them to the page. Also check out "why you should love Streptocarpus" another page to help people new to streps. Tips, links, vendors and articles I have written.

Dave

Serious? Cinnamon?? Wonders never cease! I quick slipped out all my "slices" of leaves and dipped them in a bit of cinnamon powder (kitchen grade) and slipped them back in the dirt. I hope that didn't set them back. Is care of them similar to African Violets? I do have a year or so experience with them... as well as numerous other houseplants that have done well for me. I have no success with Ivy (GO FIGURE!) and I always manage to kill any dessert cactus that comes my way.. although I've had some success with Forest Cactus (christmas and orchid cactus). I to tend to "fuss" with my plants.. i.e. I'm always checking the soil and moving them to better light sources and using them in my decor. and that may be why I accidentally kill some. :-]

Do either of you have websites where you actually sell your streps? Are there copyright laws and such in place? This is a new venture for me... are streps pretty common? I've never actually seen one in Home Depot or Lowes.

Streps are not as common as the AV in general. However, over the past 3 years many AV growers and the general public have become aware of them primarily due to forums and Facebook groups. Now unfortunately, the ease of Facebook has really made many forums dead.

I do not have a website but you can contact me through email. We are not allowed to sell on the forum here, only trade. Strepbystrep@gmail.com you can ask me questions any time and I will get back to you asap.

Dave

I'm just a hobbyist grower, with a degree in Horticulture, and a love of plants.
I find it a shame that streps aren't more readily available. I'd be glad to trade a division when you have small plantlets from what you received.
Yes, there are copyrights for at least some of the plants.

As far as fuss with streps, that's fine...I find it excellent to watch the plants and notice changes. Just don't find that every time you touch them, you want to water them. They HATE being waterlogged. They hate being dry too. They need the middle ground....they do recover from a mild 'too dry', better than a 'too-wet', though you'll often lose or disform blooms if you let them get too dry. I lift my pots every 2-3 days to decide if they need water...so based on weight often.

I too am a hobby grower but without any formal education. I have had a love for plants since I was a child, my grandmother was a huge influence as she loved gardening indoor and outdoor. In my case I have grown everything from Azaleas, AV's, episcia, gloxinia, gardenias, orchids to Streptocarpus. Basically the more challenging the plant, I had to grow it until I had mastered growing them then move on to the next challenge.

I agree with dbarron. Here's a trick you can use until you have more experience with watering streps. If the pot size allows, put your finger into the soil about 1" down. If it feels damp don't water, if it feels on the dry side water. Over time you will definitely feel the difference in weight of a pot that is wet and one that is dry. Blooms will tend to drop if the plant dries too much then is watered. If you see this following watering sometimes an hour or two after or the next day it is usually from being slightly too dry. The bloom will look fine, not old or faded when this happens.

Dave

thank you very much for the hints! yes a trade would be fun - i will keep you posted on how they do. its always fun to come into contact with other people who enjoy plants. im not sure where my fascination originated... probably had a lot to do with my Grandma too. she always successfully grew clivia, asparagus fern, cactus, and other misc plants. my av love came from my great grandma who always grew many in her windows.

sorry dbarron... i kinda stole your thread!

Wow! What beauties! I have two streps, and no experience. Someone on the AV forum included strep leaves in the round robin, and I decided to see if I could get them to grow. I'm as amazed as anyone by the results! One is Blue Mars, and the other is Isis. They're both blooming now, even though they aren't very big yet.

So, I'm wondering if I just continue to treat them like AVs? I have them in a mix of AV potting soil and perlite, and I water them when they feel dry. I noticed some dry looking spots on the leaves of Blue Mars though. Do they need more humidity than AVs? There is an obvious difference in their growth sizes. The Blue Mars is much bigger than Isis in every way.

Also, I tried a Streptocarpella Blue Concord. It's doing well, and blooming tremendously, but it has such a funny shape. How can I reshape it? The Kohlerias have the same problem. They grow like they're desperate for light, but they're in a south window. I see pictures of them growing upright, but mine are vining...weird.

Thanks for any insight you can give a newbie.

Sue

They like humidity, but they don't require it any more than AVs. It's probably a watering deficiency. They don't like getting really dry..but no sure.
I think you can't do much about the shape unless you're a masochist and want to torment the poor thing and pull it's leaves (lol) out. You just have to take them the way they want to grow. Some better than other.s

Sue, streps like the same temps as AV's but unlike AV's they will grow and flower in cooler temps. They will not sulk when the temps go into the low 60's like AV's. However, temps at or above 85 degrees for a period of time will cause death in short time. Light can be the same or slightly higher but no direct sun like AV's.

AV soil is fine to use with streps. However, streps unlike AV's do not tolerate wet roots. I would add perlite to your mix when repotting. You are correct with your watering to water when they feel dry. Better to err on the dry side than too wet. If the plant wilts from being too dry it will recover after watering. A trick I use is to mist the leaves both top and underneath when this happens as well as watering throughly. It helps the plant recover faster.

You will find streps like to be fed constantly but weakly. 1/4 strength would be good. Be sure to flush pots once a month with clear water to avoid salt build-up. Streps should be repotted every 6 months at minimum and often earlier. They usually will outgrow their pots in 3-4 months. Do not over pot! Easiest way to kill the plant as roots could be wet for too long a time. Pot only one size up at a time.

Humidity is the same. I find if they are in higher humidity with proper air circulation it will not be a problem. The downside with too much humidity with them is rot of younger growth and powdery mildew. This is the same problem I have witnessed with AV's in the past.

One last important tip, do not use blossom fertilizer (ex. 10-50-10) on streps! Unlike AV's, phosphorous in large amounts over time will kill your plant. Use a balanced fertilizer (ex. 7-7-7 or 20-20-20) or something with with slightly higher nitrogen and potash and a lower phosphorous number. ( ex. 7-6-8)

I hope this answers your questions. Feel free to ask any others. You can email questions to me @ strepbystrep@gmail.com.

Dave

Thanks for the info. I'm glad to know they aren't so very different than AVs. I was really wondering about the pot size, so I'm glad you included that info also. I pinched the newest growth on each stem of the Streptocarpella. I hope it will still like me. :)

It's great to have a place to ask questions, and I will email if I have more questions. Thanks a bunch!

Sue