Oops--haha, misread that! Right, going to toss it in the trash later. I'd better have a word with the eBay seller that sold me this malfunctioning leaf.

aw dont be too hard on the seller! even the most experienced growers loose leaves! its not your fault or the sellers fault.... you jusy happened to get a cranky leaf. :)

Rosie I think your problem with rooting in water comes when you plant it in dirt. I used to have a lot of failures at this point too. Then I started to make a super saturated "dirt soup" to pour around the roots of the plant instead of piling dirt in and firming down. You might try this method.
Fred

Fred, you are right. You jogged my memory! I did that once and it worked! When the little leaf put out roots, (I had it in a small whiskey glass on my kitchen windowsill so I could watch it) I added little bits of soil every other day and didn't add water anymore until it started to get a little dry. I was successful! But now with so many leaves down I would probably lose track of adding soil and they no longer fit on my windowsill ! But maybe for grins & giggles I may try it again! Thanks for the memory!!!!! Takes me back to the days when I played with mud pies!!!!! lol Rosie

joanne - ive wondered a bit about hydroponic growing of african violets! im off to search the forum...! but before i do, i wanted to say that i enjoyed your long informative post! i've heard that rooting hormones tend to burn the first roots off... and it actually slows down growth.. i wouldnt know cause i cant see the roots when they are in the soil! chuckle.

i just break the stem of my violet leaves usually. i watched the youtube movie of Paul Sorano and Martha stewart, and that is how he showed to do it there. i thought, "well goodness - if an expert just does it like that, why am i wasting time cutting mine precisely!!" so i just place my thumb about 1-2" down the stem, give a quick snap and insert the leaf in the soil that is equal parts of perlite/vermiculite/peat. then i dome them... and wait. i can say from personal experience that it takes about 4-5 weeks from putting down the leaf to mouse ears. some leaves take longer - and i firmly believe that older leaves are the ones that take longer! i have put down probably close to 100 leaves this spring, and have only lost maybe 10... thats not counting the ones that were squishy whrn i got them and i put them down anyway after a sugar treatment. if they are already squishy the best you can do is hope! :)

but everyone has found things that works for them. i got a violet for mothers day from someone who has successfully grown optimara violets from leaf to blooming just using regular potting mix! but she was not able to grow willodene from a leaf at all... although she tried and tried. so perhaps it depends on how picky our violets are! theres something to be said for hardy violets. :)

Yes, the only violets that were not affected by my filtered water were the Optimaras. What color violet did you get for Mother's Day? Thank you for saying the post was not too long!

I used to do what you do. Then I gradually tried the other way. I read that cutting the leaf at a 45 degree angle and exposing as much stem as possible encourages the babies to grow at the front of the leaf, not behind it or on it. Also, scraping up the stem to expose more tissue causes more babies to grow. So I am a bit "religious" about cutting at the angle. My leaves root better using the hormone. Just a light dusting is all that is needed. But it is optional. Some experts never use it. Have you watched the videos of Ann Marie Keene? She has a website, I think it is called African Violet nerds. She is a fun gal. Gosh, Paul Sorano was trying to make it look like child's play on Martha Stewart. Although I learn from him, at Lyon's, they are much more casual with their plants than I am because they handle them all day, every day, year after year. Lyon's violets are similar to O's in how strong and resilient they are, being among the oldest varieties and starter stock around.

Do you have the book, Growing to Show? It is a worthwhile book to have. Joanne

Wow, learning so much from this thread! I wonder how a leaf would do in a "soupy" dirt mix, where there is water and dirt mixed together and as time goes on the mixture slowly dries. So, maybe at the end of a month just damp dirt is left. That might be a gentler transition for leaf cuttings that may be too young, old, damaged, etc. and would otherwise fail in a soil-only mix. I should hand this to my little cousins as a science project... Back in the 1980s I had ordered rooting hormone from Lyon too and in those days rooting hormone was considered necessary standard procedure for leaf cuttings. I wonder why the "official word" from the AVSA is different now? Maybe newer varieties are bred to propagate easily or hobbyists have realized that av leaves root more quickly than other plant species? I still remember how clueless I was about leaf propagation--after dipping the leaf stem in a bit of the rooting hormone I placed it in a plastic solo cup (without a dome because I had no idea it was necessary to dome). All I could find information-wise was that you can start a new plant by potting a single leaf. When the babies came up I thought they were weeds and picked them off and threw them out. The poor leaf gave me another crop of babies which I mercilessly plucked out and threw away because I'd thought that the leaf itself would develop a crown and turn into into a new plant! Hah, those were the days of being the most amateurs of amateur av hobbyists! Glad to have found this forum and expert hobbyists who know what they're doing (you guys are pros)!

My Technique is to remove the rooted cutting from the water and suspend it
where I want it in the pot, then I pour a soupy slurry of potting mix around the leaves till the pot is filled. I allow the excess water to drain away. I will not water it again till it is just dry on the surface. Over the next few weeks monitor the plant for stress. This is the only way I've been able to have an acceptable loss to success ratio with rooting in water. You know it worked when you see growth.
Fred

4blossoms, thanks for the story on your learning curve! Glad you did not give up!!
Fred

Joanne, interested in the part about letting a leaf "callous". I know that if I have a fresh cut leaf and leave it on the table for oh let's say several hours it will start to look not so well. How long do you let it callous?

And when you got the leaf already cut, how did the leaf look overall? Was it starting to show stress from no water or anything? Or did it still look fresh cut?

I know you said you recut it anyway, I would have done the same. Also I am haphazard about rooting hormone. If I remember,,,,,,I use it, if not,,,,,well. And I really don't know if it helps or not. I never kept track of how many I dip vs. how many not dipped in hormone.

Both you and Su say you place the leaf in the medium and dome it. Do you water it right after planting and then dome it? After all aren't you putting it in dry medium? Am I missing something?

OMGosh Su, I envy that you can snap off a leaf! My short little fat fingers break leaves even before I get to where I want to go!!!!! I have to go in with something loooong and sharp. Tried to get a not so great leaf off of the outer row last week and before I even got to it I hit another leaf and broke it off not by the stem,,,,no of course not!!!!! but broke it clean off where the stem meets the actual leaf!!!! I was so mad! But I stuck it in a Kcup anyhow. lol

But seriously,,,,,Here is what I do. Get leaf, cut at angle, fill Kcup, tap cup on table to settle soil, insert leaf (with or without hormone), and give about a teaspoon of water right at the base of where the leaf went in. No dome or plastic bag. I guess to me the slight bit of water will get the hormone powder going to help the leaf root. And I just can't imaging not watering it! Then, I check every few days to see if the cup is dry. If so, another spoon or so of water. I just can't stand the thought of dry.

Having said that, I have lost a lot of the leaves I got this spring. I am sick about it. But I don't know where the fault lies. I have to be missing something but I don't know what it is.

I do know one problem I had. Where I put the trays of leaves there was little to no air circulation. I wised up and now run a small fan. and things seem to have improved! Wish I would have done that at the beginning. Probably would have saved a lot of my leaves!

Any help would be welcome. And I started a new discussion named "Wick Watering" if anyone would care to post. Thanks! Rosie

Rosie, dampen well the perlite mix in the k cup. Poke a hole in the center. Dust the stem with rooting powder. Insert in the hole. With a pencil tip, push the perlite mix around the leaf. Place in a domed tray. Check in a few days for moisture. Joanne

When I set leaves, I start them in my regular mix that is used for all my violets. I moisten the mix & then squeeze it lightly so it is just damp. Leaves are cut with a scissors or a knife, or I just use my fingers to pinch it off. I have rooted leaves at all stem lengths from less than an inch to three or more. I sometimes cut at an angle, but don't always do so. If I received a leaf in shipment, I usually recut it but not always. I have never used a rooting hormone.

I insert the leaf in a Kcup or solo cup with my damp mix & then may add a drop or two more of water at the leaf base. I then put each pot in a baggie, seal it, & usually place it on the corner of my light stand. Other then making certain the leaves aren't overally warm, I try to ignore them. After a couple of weeks, I will open the bags to let in air. Rarely do they need water. After they have rooted, I usually leave the bags partly open at which time they may need an occasional light watering.

I do much better rooting leaves in baggies than in domed containers. Its too easy to fuss over them when you can just lift off the dome as opposed to having them tucked away in baggies.

Terri

terri - quick question... do they not like being fussed over? when do you usually divide and pot up all the babies? like - how big are they usually? sorry... thats two questions! ;)

I am not Terri, so i should not jump in ... but this popped up on my phone ... Quick one answer, yes, they do not like being fussed over. I'll defer to Terri because I let them go for months. Karin has also written about this on the Forum, perhaps a search will turn up her old answers with diagrams. J

Thanks Joanne, dampen or literally water it? I understand everything else. I usually don't use domes. Seems that keeps things too moist. And my mix is more perlite than soil. I usually check everyday. If you think I need domes I will try them again.

Just read the other posts..........Well, I guess I killed them. I fussed over them too much. And I know I did fuss. I haven't set leaves down in years and I guess I just forgot they don't need that much attention. Darn. Will have to trade for some of the leaves I lost and try again.

Thanks! Rosie

Thanks, Fred! I actually took a break from growing AVs after going to college. Now decades later with the help of the internet I can pick up my old hobby and do it right this time around. Thanks to the internet and this forum my violets are much healthier than anything that I grew in the past!

so...... whats the definition of fuss? :) im getting too technical here maybe...

I agree with Joanne that they don't want constant attention. If your mix is damp enough when you set the leaf, it shouldn't lose moisture if sealed in either a baggie or domed. If your light & temperatures are in the acceptable range, you should be able to stand back & let them do their thing.

I don't separate babies too early. Many times they are on the mother leaf until the leaves are dime or even nickel size. At that age, they usually are quite strong growing young plantlets.

terri - even minatures? i usually leave my standards alone until the leaves are dime sized- but this spring is the first time ive grown minis/semis and i struggle to know when to divide. i left some until the biggest babies had 3-4 rows of leaves! they definitely tend to grow faster once they are off the mother leaf... but maybe thats my imagination?

Su I know the definition as it applies to me. I loved them too much. I got so excited that I paid tooooo much attention to them. Probably overwatered them also. Maybe even a little overcrowded? Well, I have to start again trading for leaves.

I still have some left and I am going to go "tough love". And the thing is I KNOW better!!!!! Rosie

I don't grow many minis these days but I would separate them whenever I felt they were large enough to comfortably handle.

Su, not sure if it was on this thread or another, you asked about leaves. Once I set them, I forget them. I put them under a dome of some kind. Then I check only about every five days to make sure they are still moist.

Rosie asked about doming. In my dry environment, the leaves do much better when domed.

I think of them like seeds germinating underground. They have to be undisturbed if they are to do all the work they need to do. Even though one end is sticking up, it should not be touched because the business end has a lot of work to do. If you touch it, then you might get tempted to tug on it, and that can tear off a root.

Once the dots appear, I remove them from the encased domed tray and let them get some air and sunlight. Weak, dilute early morning sun. If I am away for a weekend, they go back under a dome. I once read that when we breathe on plants, it is good for them, we exhale CO2, which they love. So talking or singing to the mouse ears is a good thing. Again, I don't over watch them at this stage, either, as I don't want to be tempted to separate them too soon.

Once the babies are separated, some months later, they don't have much of a root system. Some people suggest foliar feeding rather than root feeding. To do this, use a very dilute fertilizer solution of hot water and spray the foliage lightly. Don't drench it. Try this on one or two babies, not all, to make sure it works.

I don't work with minis, so when I separate them, i don't know how many rows of leaves there are. Maybe minis are so small, you work with more. I have not had good luck with minis, so I leave them alone. The culture of minis is very different than that of standards.

With standards, it probably is no more than two rows, although i never paid that much attention.

It was on the other thread, with your lovely photos, but I suggest just leave Lil Ballerina alone. If you give her away, she will probably burst into bloom. This is the time when plants are setting buds, so give it another month.

As for the one that lost its variegation, again, just give it a chance. It is going through its Ugly Duckling stage but one day, it will be a Swan again. (Linda always says, plants teach us patience.) Joanne

Terrilou I was fortunate to obtain some mini's. AND micro mini's! I have never seen anything so tiny. Believe it or not, I took some leaves and planted them. So far so good! I can't believe it. NOW, after listening to all of this great advice,,,I am going to let them grow all they want before I separate them. Remember I don't have "slim" fingers to be playing with something so little! Wish me luck!!!!!! Rosie

What do you do about powdery mildew growing on the leaves? After I tossed out the dead leaf I noticed that the rooted leaf had started to develop some stuff on it that looks like powdery mildew. Spraying with water mixed with baking soda hasn't helped. I had just prepped another leaf cutting and put it inside the container. The new leaf needs a sealed environment but when I leave the lid on for a day the mildew starts to develop on the rooted leaf. What would you do in this case? It's summer and humidity is around 60%. If I leave the lid off will the new leaf root?

I would probably leave the lid off... or propped open...

Some people use Lysol spray. There were discussions on the topic on this Forum. It used to be easy to search for related threads, but not sure if it is still easy to search. You could try by typing in the words 'powdery mildew" and see if the older threads come up. They will explain about the Lysol spray. Joanne

Cool, thank you!

For Powdery Mildew, which I tend to see when the seasons change, I use Spectracide Immunox Multi Purpose Fungicide. I found some at Lowes. I use about 1/8 teaspoon per 12 oz of warm water.
If I notice a spot of PM on any of my plants, I spray it and the plants around it on the shelf. I let them dry and voilà... Do make sure the water warm, though, so the leaves don't get spotted.

I don't know if it's safe to try it on your last remaining leaf, but I've used diluted White Vinegar water on a plant that had powdery mildew on the leaves... and it completely cured it. I haven't seen it again since. :-) That might would be a more natural route if that's important to you.

I'm ready to try anything at this point but I'm nervous about doing anything to my last leaf of Ness Satin Rose (haven't found any more on eBay). I attached a photo below. It's the small leaf at 2 o'clock. Does it look like it's going to survive and produce babies? It looks pretty yellow even though soil, light, and humidity have been close to perfect. I tried to tug on it lightly and it seems to be rooted.

It won't hurt it at all to be uncovered at this point... Many people never bother with the humidity chamber step! I would probably just leave it uncovered and just wait and hope! It looks better than some of mine that I'm waiting for them to get established! ;-) But keep in mind, it's common to loose leaves. I HOPE you don't lose both of them, but it as happened to me before that I lost two leaves I REALLY didn't want to loose!

Ugh....oh well, it's my first attempt at leaf propagation, so losing a few is bound to happen! Just from this experience alone I'm discovering how important it is to start with a mature, healthy leaf and neither of the Ness Satin Rose leaves were very healthy to begin with. From the way it sounds on youtube videos and other websites leaf propagation seems like such an easy and reliable way to get new plants, so I'm surprised when you say that it's common to lose leaves!

Has anyone ever had a not-so-perfect leaf (a little too young/old/yellowish/etc.) survive and produce babies using soil (not water)?

Hi,

Ness' Satin Rose can be difficult to take root. Others have reported that it is a difficult one to keep alive.

In general, I usually have better success with leaves I get from commercial sellers such as Lyndon Lyon Greenhouses rather than non-commercial sellers. The commercial sellers have ideal growing and shipping conditions and probably a larger stock to select healthy leaves from. Lyon's also will send two leaves, which is good. So will Optimara. Their leaves are very strong.

Those U Tube vids do make it look easy, but they are being instructional.

Years ago, I was advised that not all leaves will take root. I used to lose about 2 out of 5. Now I lose about 1 out of 4.

Be sure to follow all the rooting instructions. I find that a 60:40 perlite or even 70:30 perlite is better. And no cup smaller than a K-cup. A solo cup is too deep, I cut it down. Your photo above looked perfect, with the two leaves in the same pot and both with their edges trimmed.

Joanne

it's experience, and just when you think you have it figured out, you'll lose another batch ;-)

mine are very susceptible to too much water and colder temperatures.

one thing i learned when looking up how to grow AV's from seed was to moisten the mix and let it air out overnight.

i started doing this with pots i prepare for leaf starts - then i plant the leaf, bag it and hang it on the light fixture or the wall - it won't need watering again for quite some time.

of course, i don't always follow my own advice.... and then things go "off" and make me remember to do things better next time.

right now i am experimenting using straight vermiculite, and i am seeing pretty good results (faster than potting mix - but it could just be the time of year). next i'll try using a vermiculite/perlite mix.

but usually i just use my potting mix, on the theory that any plantlets will be accustomed to it and thus stronger.

one thing i always read, and it could be true, is not to use scissors, but a sharp blade - because a blade slices, where scissors crush the end of the petiole. Now how to keep DH from borrowing my Xacto knife - i can never find one when i need it.

now i just have to figure out how not to kill the plantlets when potting up :-)

Karin

Omg...there definitely are tiny black specks growing on the surface of the Ness Satin Rose leaf--the same black specks that grew on the other leaf that died. I did a quick search and the Doctor Optimara website says that these black specks indicate sooty mold that grows on "honeydew" left by insects! I hope I don't lose my entire collection! Just put those leaf cuttings back into the plastic container and moved it to another part of the room. Does anyone know how to identify sooty mold? And I'm starting to notice that my other plants have looked strange for a little while. Could it be cyclamen mites? Either I'm getting paranoid or just didn't seen the warning signs in front of me. There is a lot of hair on the crown of Optimara Wichita and it's starting to look deformed.

I can't begin to imagine what is going on here, but I will add my 2 cents anyway.

This has worked for me at times (more often than not). Assuming everything else has failed,,,,,,,.

FIRST,,,,for the plant you are trying to save. Remove any good leaves you have left from your plant. Maybe the outer ring or two of leaves. Take as many as you can. Just save a decent crown and its roots.

Second,,,for the leaf you are trying to save in the photo, uproot it. Rinse the soil off of it.

Third,,, Mix up warm soapy water. I have used anything from dish soap to bar soap. (just a hint, if you use a bar of soap, lather up your hands and keep washing the leaves etc just as you would your hands! Lather your hands as many times as necessary, you WANT soap all over the plant parts!) Wash all the leaves well and DON'T RINSE TOO THOROUGHLY! You want just a little film of soap left on them. Set them aside for a few minutes.

If you are trying to treat an entire plant I would shake all soil off roots, really swish the roots in water to remove all of the soil you can. Don't use that water on plants. Throw in outside in your flower bed or grass.

THEN wash (dunk) the plant in the warm soapy water. Use your hands gently but actually touch all parts of the plant with your hands and get soap everywhere.

Now,,,,,gently rinse all surfaces of leaves and plants. (Use your hands (gently to make sure you get the soap off!) all over under running water. You don't want soap residue left on them.

THE LEAVES: The leaf cuttings you can lay on a towel to just dry off (I do blot them with a paper towel to remove most of the water. You want them back to a dry state.

THE PLANT: All you should have left is a small crown, (you took off leaves and washed them remember??) trunk, and maybe some some roots. Dry everything but the roots really well. I usually put a piece of damp paper towel around the roots to keep them hydrated until I plant it.

Now, replant the LEAVES (unless there are roots formed or babies attached, recut the stem) but I would use something other than soil or make sure your soil has more perlite than soil in it. You may have to water more often.

Now replant the PLANT, again in a more perlite than soil ratio. I would not dome it. AND use the smallest pot you can fit it in. I would rather at this point water a little more often during the rooting/healing process than risk mold/mildew(which comes from dampness).

Now why did I go this route? Seems to me your problem centered around the mold mildew arena. I usually try this method before I use chemicals but it seems to me that you tried everything else you had available.

Let me know if I am off here or if you have questions. The idea behind the soapy water wash is that insects will not stick around to "feed" in the soil. Also mild soapy water is great for dampening things that don't dampen well (dry peat for instance), it will break the tension of the soil and allow absorption.

Let me know what happens. Rosie

Blossoms,

Just throw out the infected leaf. Because one leaf rotted does not mean that you have any other problems with any other plants. Simply disinfect the area where the leaf was with Lysol and sunlight, if necessary. Your other plants look ok to me. Just try to put them in an area where they are away from other plants, give them extra care, such as making sure the light and watering conditions are just right. In the summer, the light through the windows gets more intense, so monitor them. Plants are flexible and will adapt to an improvement in their conditions within a few days or a week. If you don't start to see some improvement, then just treat one at a time to see how it responds.

Rosie,

This is great advice. In the video podcast All About African Violets, Annie uses Dawn. She does not say why, she said she just got in the habit, someone recommended it. So that is what I use, too. A little goes a long way, so be sure to dilute it. When I have time, I will start to wash some of my plants as I repot them. Even if just the foliage to refresh them. Also, if anything suspicious, then I will follow all the instructions. Joanne

Blossoms, take Joanne's advice. One leaf out of two is not a bad loss, just do it before the problem spreads!

Thanks Joanne! Dawn is a really good detergent to use. The reason I didn't specify is sometimes I have used other soaps. I have even used powdered laundry soap! (any port in a storm!!!!! Dad was Navy and husband is retired Navy soooo,,,,). The point is this is a good remedy for getting rid of a multitude of problems. Good luck! Oh and if you want to hydrate peatrock, (hard peat moss, just my new name for it) don't use water without adding soap to it! Rosie

Rosie, I think the leaf she referred to was the dead one of Ness Satin Rose, not the leaves on her plants above. Military family here, too. all branches. J

Oh,,,thanks for the correction!!! Yeah, brother in law/Army. Grandpa/Army! No Marines or Air Force that I can trace. Rosie

Karin you are spot on with the scissors vs. knife/razor explanation. And it makes sense. It was one of the first things I learned.

You know I wish I had a place to "hang" baggies of cuttings. I could fill 3 Kcups with soil and use clothespins and I would not have to find precious table space! Do you really need too much light for that? Or could it just be not near a window? hmmmm,,,,,I would like to try it! Rosie

Ok... so do you guys think the plants in the 3 photos look ok? I am definitely throwing away the Ness Satin Rose leaf! Should I do as Rosie says with the three plants (remove all leaves and wash everything with Dawn)? Or should I wait and see observe the plants a little longer? Sorry to freak out like this. This was an expensive collection that I'd built (I have Rob's plants too not pictured here and I'd bought them separately, so it would cost a small fortune to lose everything). Thanks so much. Can't believe I'm freaking out here. I never freak out like this :P

Thanks Rosie, for the instructions. Definitely good to know you can do this to save an expensive/ rare plant!

Jane

4blossoms, just save my info for when you need it. Of course I can't see your plants as well as you can. For my 2cents, if you think your plants look ok, (and I think they are ok except for that one leaf!) just hedge your bet and take a leaf from each variety and start it, just in case. That way if bad happens, you have another leaf down. Not a total loss.

BUT I would advise to just wash the new leaves you may put down just under running water with soap lathered like you are washing your hands. Simple. That will insure no mildew or bugs get transferred.

You don't have to tear your little plants apart. They actually look good to me from what I can see. AND you can just soap your hands and run them over the entire plant without tearing it apart.

Ummm, please don't take this the wrong way. I mean no harm. But slow down a bit. You may be a little too anxious about your "babies". I get it. And we have all gone thru it. By all means ask questions but I hear a lot of "frantic" in your posts. Slow down and relax a bit and you will find you can become a little more objective when you look at your plants. I understand about the cost, but sometimes we tend to see what may not really be there. Or misinterpret, or it may be what it seems, but as I said, they actually look took from my chair! Good luck,,,,,and remember B*R*E*A*T*H*E!!!!!! Rosie

Jane,

I panicked too about three weeks ago... I had these horrible visions of my violets being exposed to thrips and a virus... *shiver* I almost couldn't sleep at night! Don't feel bad for getting a bit panicky... these plants are important to us, and like you said, if you bought a bunch of expensive plants, that's scary to think about loosing them!

Best wishes!

Su

Hi Rosie, yes, I'm starting to discover what it's like to be an overprotective parent with my violets! They're fuzzy, so I gently pet them sometimes and treat them like my dog! That also includes carefully monitoring for any illnesses. Glad I didn't do anything drastic playing amateur African violet doctor.

Su, I remember that post about the INSV. I hope you were just anticipating INSV and it didn't actually infect your plants! I'd definitely be losing sleep too if that ever happened!

4blossoms that's ok, you'll get it. We all did it! Violets are fun and relaxing even when you are "working" at repotting (and cleaning up the huge mess!!!) them like I did yesterday! But it was relaxing and fun!

Su is right. I remember her frantic posts. Hope all turned out well, I think it did.

Good luck with your violets! I think it will turn out ok. Rosie

Jane -

Yup! I'm a hopeless case too!! ;-)

Thankfully there was no INSV problem... and no thrips. :-) Because I was so scared of bugs in the soil of my violets, I restarted the crowns of 5 of my newer optimaras... three of them are doing fine... two of them look a bit pitiful. They are still fairly crisp though... I'll give them some more time. I figured I'd better get some experience on inexpensive optimaras, just in case I ever need to restart the crown of an expensive on!

speaking of....., did you know there's a couple Picasso violets?! I have the one by M. Tremblay now! ;-) I have seen gorgeous pics of full grown plants... mine is just a baby. Eagerly waiting for it to get big enough to bloom.... ;-)

Haha, that's right, I have heard of Picasso violets! Glad you took precautions with INSV, always better to be safe than sorry! I'm going to monitor my plants a little more and if there is any sign that looks like it might be mites, leaves will be coming off and getting potted. When I wrote the post in the morning I was a little sleep deprived and probably wasn't thinking straight and overreacted.

One of my plants, Rob's Cotton Ball, has an interesting personality. Every time I try to lightly brush off dirt with a soft makeup brush it gets angry and raises one of its leaves like it's saying "stop touching me". I have never seen a plant do that before. After 10 minutes it puts its leaf back down. It's like a cranky cat--fuzzy but has a temper lol.

lol - thats great!

i think Chicago Flair purposely lets its bloom buds shrivel after i see them! i have been waiting a year and a half for this plant to grow up and bloom, but she is taking her good old time!