Sinningia speciosa (florist gloxinia) grow in similar conditions to african violets, but they prefer much more light. Whereas violets prefer unshaded east windows, S. speciosa seem to prefer west windows that only receive shade during the very brightest part of the day. In very sunny areas or very southern areas the duration of shade will need to be increased because the sun is more intense. I grow mine (I have 3) in a mix of 1:1:1 peat moss, perlite, and vermiculite and use a wick watering system for them. Keep in mind that these plants have tubers and the foliage will die back about once a year. When this happens I cut off any foliage leaving about 1" of stem still attached to the tuber. I unpot the tuber, remove soil and roots, and place it in a ziploc bag of just damp vermiculite. I seal the top of the bag only halfway across and then clip it to my plant stand. Once I see new foliage poking up (this could be a couple weeks to several months later) I simply pot the tuber into my potting mix and start the cycle over again. Many S. speciosa grow fairly large tubers and will ultimately require a 5-6" pot in order to accommodate both the tuber and roots. My non-hybrid plant produces a much smaller tuber, but the plant itself is much more "weedy" in appearance as one would expect. I use 1/8" tsp of Optimara african violet fertilizer per gallon of water to feed my Sinningias. Because I wick water they are fed 100% of the time. Hope this helps.

I don't have much to add to snappy guy's excellent advice. I like to grow these plants under lights about 4" from the bulbs. If I grow them in windows, they get leggy. After blooming or sometimes before (whenever I need the room,) I place them outside (in their pots) under the trees. They will remain there until fall, oftentimes blooming again after removing the top set of leaves. I then dig up the tuber & store it in a cool spot until spring. I don't worry about bugs with just the tuber left.

Terri

Thanks to both of you very much! I like the idea of setting them outside... I only have one little 18" grow light for my leaves and baby Violets... and these guys are just a bit too big to fit under there. :-) Thanks again for the advice!

i stuck my plant outside this year - it decided to grow 7" leaves and tons of flowers - more than it could really support. it just loved the sun it was getting - in fact its still going.