It reminds me of the Russian trailer Lituanika, but if it came unlabeled there's no saying for sure. Where did you come upon this beauty?

Just one concern: the ceramic hanging pot it's planted in is really lovely, but are there any drainage holes? If not, be very, very careful about watering. You certainly would not want to lose it to root rot!

I looked up the Russian trailers,....very pretty. It looks close.

For now I have the plastic pot sitting in the ceramic pot. Once the blooms are done she will go under the grow lights so I can keep a better eye on her. I think I'll restart some leaves. Thanks for the suggestions.

How pretty in that hanging pot! Actually it looked like a single crown plant to me. But I only have one view. It sure is pretty! And that pot compliments it nicely. Rosie

It is a single crown. Not a trailer then I guess? I hadn't realized the diversity out there until I started doing a little research. I can see why it takes a lifetime to become an expert. :)

Where did you get it ?

If it is a single crown, it is not a trailer. Oh no, it doesn't take a lifetime to learn to grow violets,,,,,,it just takes Garden Web Forum! And you are already here!

Yes, I would also like to know where you got it. It looks like an Optimara I have. Not saying it is,,,,,just looks like it. I buy all my violets at Lowe's or Meijer. Those are the only places here. And they sell only Optimara. Our Kroger doesn't even carry violets. Lots of orchids but no violets. Darn. Rosie

I've also got a bunch of Meijer violets now. The only problem is that they're only leaves, most rooted, but just waiting quietly for Spring.

Today we've had the second major snow storm this season, so I guess the wait will be a long one.

Long weak bloomstalks look beautiful in this pot. But otherwise they are considered a flaw - because the plant cannot hold the flowers above the foliage, I do not remember seeing Optimara that cannot keep the blossoms up. This habit is generaly bred out, you can see it on vintage violets - like White Madonna - and it is very old. Long bloomstalks are more typical for the trailers, but this one looks like a standard rosette to me. The name - it probably will be a mystery.

Appreciating all the insights.

I'm in Canada. I got it at at a little nursery called Coles, in a small town called Grimsby. (Near Niagara Falls) We were just out for a drive and stopped in. I'm kicking myself because they had a purple one I wish I would've got too. I guess I'll be going for another drive soon.

Oh Irina! Another trip down Memory Lane!!!! White Madonna! Have been looking for her for a few years now. She was one I had in the early 70's. Very old and beautiful! Rosie

I grew it 15 years ago - and I remember that the bloomstalks were always laying flat on the leaves, May be I had a weak clone... Registered by Eyerdom in 1953 - it was already vintage when you grew it.

Did you grow yours in a window or under lights? Mine was in a south facing window not behind a curtain. I didn't have lights yet. Her leaves were nice, thick and sturdy. And I do remember her flowers not standing up but laying on the leaves. But I loved her she was one of my first's !!!! I have never forgotten her and it never occurred to me she would not be readily available!

For all of her flaws I still want another one. I will have it someday.

Wow, you are right. I never did the math. She WAS very vintage when I discovered her! Just never did the math. Holy cow. Thanks for making me aware of that! Rosie

WM is not lost, it comes to ebay every so often. I grew it under the lights - and I can describe the plant the same way you just did. But I bet in 1953 - she was a sensation.

She was a sensation to me in 1971. I can only guess how she was received in 1953! Wish I could have been a fly on the wall back then!

I just couldn't get enough varieties! Christmas Holly, Wintergreen, Lillian Jarrett(oh that foliage!), Tommy Lou & family, Athena, the Rhapsodies, Chanticleer, Coppertips, oh my vintage list is extensive! As I have mentioned, it didn't help that I worked at a greenhouse that grew only violets & gesneriads!!!!! I love to thumb through my old Buell catalog and walk down my favorite street,,,,,Memory Lane. Course I have to wear my bib! I start to drool !!!!--Rosie

Chanticleer, Lillian Jarret and Tommy Lou are still around - we need to get you at least one - so you will feel as in 1971 again!

That reminds me of a conversation I had with my aunt two days ago...reminiscing about my her mother (my grandmother) always having AVs in her window. She had three varieties (but about 5 plants of each). I was wondering what she'd think if she saw what violets look like now. It was the purple one, the pink one, and a white with a bit of blue on it. Compared to today's hybrids, they were pretty close to the species type.

Yes, some of my favorites are still around and guess what? I DO plan to get them. I am going to my first ever African Violet Show (I am sooo excited!!!) and I can't wait to see what they have (saving money as we speak!) From what I hear, they have violets AND streps!!!! Maybe they will have a couple vintage? I can wish! After THAT I will be "on the prowl" so to speak and will beg, borrow, buy and try to trade for them!!!! I will find and enjoy them once again!

dbarron you mention a white with a bit of blue. I have one with those colors! I am sure it is not the same, and I have no name but it is very pretty! Rosie

If the Violet that came from Coles is in an Optimara style plastic pot then it could be MyDelight. The blooms have longer petioles and tend to be pendant scattered around the plant like a vintage variety, with the trailer gene bred out of it. That's my theory as I grow MyDelight. The purple version is light orchid in color, is called Trinidad II and can be ordered in leaf sets from Selective Gardener, the mail order division of optimara. MyDelight propagates from a leaf or occasional sucker. The buds on the more recent introductions resemble roses, they have a slight frilled edge in a golden green color that fades to silvery white as the flower bud opens. Then the flower opens to a flattened shape rather than cupped. The leaves are pointed at the tips and smaller than standard AV leaves. Joanne

Rosie - just come to a sales room early as soon as they open. Then you will have a choice. I am sure you will find some oldies. And Streps.

Mona, that looks more like a vinca than a violet.

Joanne,

i checked out MyDelight, the flowers look the same. They offer so many beautiful varieties. Dangerous.

The pot had no tags or stickers. I guess the only way to find out for sure is to go back to Coles. :) Thanks for your imput.

Hi Mona! Your flower is an annual in my zone. Nowhere near the gesneriad/ african violet family! They come in a few different colors. I always buy some to put in my flower bed come spring!

Hi Shelly! Yep so many varieties,,,,,so little time!!!!!

Hey Irina you bet we are getting there early! I may be short (5'3") and my knees may be bad,,,,,but I have great elbows!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Rosie

LOL!!! Beware- Rosie is coming like a steam engine, huffing and puffing!

We have our sale in 10 days. And after the long winter people are so starved for blooming plants... they come on Saturday like a horde and wipe everything off. On our fall sale... they could care less. We could close the shop after 12.

Shelly - it can be a trailer like Lituanika, which is a short stemmed traiiler, kind of bushy. They all start with one sterm - and develop suckers and bushy habit later. I do not believe any Optimara has these elongated trailing bloomstalks. Just do not match their style at all.

Go back to Coles and find out where they got the AV shipment from. Ask for the phone. Do some detective work. Interesting.

I.

Irina

do you ever stick a leaf to root without trimming the end if it is the right length? I read somewhere that if cutting a leaf, to let the leaf harden or dry before sticking. So if a leaf was sent in the mail and is still crisp, with the end healed off, is that better? I always use rooting hormone because Lyon's recommended it. I know the leaf is supposed to be cut and set at an angle towards the back of the pot so that babies will form in front of the leaf. But sometimes it doesn't matter to me where in the pot babies form. Also, you once said to use a communal pot so I sometimes stick the two leaves that came together in the same pot. They seem to propagate faster and more that way. They seem to recognize they are from the same parent so the survival instinct is matched.

Irina and Shelly, the above plant is likely to be MyDelight, an unusual plant for Optimara with pendant blooms on longer bloom stalks. It resembles a trailer but does not develop multiple crowns. It is a well behaved plant and easy to grow and propagate. That is why I believe it has trailer genetics. Most casual buyers in stores do not recognize it as a violet. They go for the traditional look. I like to give it to orchid growers as something different and no-fuss. It is one of my favorites because I had at one time sent for numerous violets with double pink blooms to resemble roses. That year optimara came out with MyDelight. In my opinion, it is one of their more successful innovations because it is beautiful and not at all fussy.

when optimara builds on a plant's natural genetics to tame it for domestic use, they do a great job. They do not go for the weird-looking, they go for beauty and reproducible perfection.

Irina, the April plant sale in my area is as you describe. However, it is the Violet collectors that grab everything. They must make a special trip. The local people are not grabby.

Rosie, my advice is to grab what you can, when you can. The sales room often has a shopping basket to place over your arm. Fill it quickly, best not to study labels. Plants might be alphabetical, or if different vendors, in different areas. Look for the rare and unusual. Then step aside to look at your catch and put back what you don't want. If Anne goes also, same strategy, grab first and put back.

At one if these shows, I was second in line in the door yet still got crushed by the horde and shoved into the first table. So I got all the same plant as I had no choice but to grab what was in front of me. I was with club members so we divided the spoils later.

I thought I would make my way around the room but they were all picked clean.

except for the optimara table, which had some hard to find varieties.

Next time, I will go to one of the tables deeper into the room that has more exotic varieties.

The plants were $10 each, however, the starter violets raised from stock from the specialty vendors were large. The Optimaras were full grown and in bloom.

in my limited experience, there are not too many bargains. At the end of the sale, violets will be reduced. But you might not want to wait.

No matter how sharp your elbows, be prepared to move fast! In fact, if you can borrow someone's 10 year old boys, let them run around all the tables for you! Joanne

Ohhhhh, I am so getting ready. Irina you won't guess the next thing I have done. Ok well, I was in Meijer last night and they had just unpacked some violets!!!!! Not only that,,,,the cardboard boxes they came in were full of the cellophane sleeves the violets came in!!!!! Soooo, assuming they were going to toss them I asked if I could have some. She looked at me funny so I explained why. She said sure, have at it!!! So now I have enough for more plants than I have money for!!!!!!!! But you know, I would rather get rid of some I don't use than wish I had a few more! I am READY!!!!!

And Joanne,,,not to worry. I absolutely have a strategy! AND strong elbows! And if all else fails I will bop them with my cane! I do hope Anne comes also. 4 hands are better than 2!!!!!!!!! Rosie

Rosie - do not get carried away - figure out how much you can accommodate... 50 plants is too much, I think.

Local show...I do not think it is violet collectors. Convention - that's serious. I am sorry for being a cynic - but there are plenty of certified plant killers in the mob. Collectors - go to the starters table, dig through the bagged leaves. They recognize the names, the hybridizers, and select the stuff according to their ideas, getting excited with some rare finds. They wouldn't buy a large plant with all blossoms open and looking fantastic - unless it is the only plant of this variety in a room. Because - by the time you get it home - the blooms are already in decline - plus who knows how many thrips were in a sales room, so you really need to disbud this thing.

Joanne - regarding My Delight - since I am not familiar with this one - I appreciate your input! Will know now!

Irina

Oh not to worry Irina, my plan doesn't include another 50 plants. As far as my delight, she is very pretty. I do have one and I must say she does "delite" me when she is in bloom. A nice soft med pink with a beautiful silvery white edge and even if her flowers don't stand up like bouquets she is very charming.

Joanne as far as rooting a leaf, my friend breaks (not cuts) a leaf off and stickes it in a 4 inch clay pot. And she doesn't worry about correct soil. And they grow!

When I worked in the Violet greenhouse there was no luxury of time to let the leaves sit and callous overnight. We cut and planted. But we had perfect conditions! We also slant cut them and plopped them in their trays pronto. There was always another violet to take leaves off of.

I have little Trinidad ll in a kcup and the darn babie came up in the back of the leaf! Go figure! Rosie

The slant cut is so the new plant will come up in the cut area or front of the leaf. Did you get any plants from Mejer's? What did they have? Grocery stores have bouquet bags, they might let you take home a few if it is somewhere you shop regularly..

Irina, I appreciate the distinction, that makes sense. I will let others know, between club and convention..

Hi Joanne! Yep I know the idea behind the slant cut. That is the way I learned to do it in the waaaaay back. I don't feel right doing it any other way.

I did buy a violet that night. It is very dark purple with a thin white edging. Have to look it up. Of course it is Opt. Rosie

It is probably Hawaii II, a real beauty! Glad you found at least one!!! I admire your restraint!!! Joanne

Yes ; Meijers had that one this winter and now has it again. Leon

Oh Joanne! It was not restraint! I already HAD the other three colors they offered! lol Rosie

Mona,,,,I forgot to tell you that the pix you posted is Vinca. Google "vinca flower images" and you will see all the different colors it comes in! I really like it and always buy one in the spring. I remember my Great Grandma would take a cutting in the fall and root it in water and let it grow and flower on the windowsill during the winter! Back then (50's) they only had the white with the red eye. It is still my favorite color vinca. Rosie

Like the color of the vinca above. It is a clear, light color. Brighter than any AV color I have seen