Your plant looks to be Tommie Lou variegated. That depends on many factors, light, temperature, fertilizer. Sometimes a plant will not variegate when it is small. I have a Buckeye Extravaganza that is green when young and variegated when it grows to good size.

I have the original plant, Tommie Lou, that is almost white in the crown although the original plant, Tommie Lou, is usually only edge variegated.

I have Feather which is variegated although some people have Feather for years and it never variegates. It is tiny and struggling so variegation is not an asset. Variegated leaves lack chlorophyll and do not convert sunlight to energy as readily as green leaves.

Tommie Lou Variegation is culturally sensitive. However, I have read that crown (Champion) and Mosaic variegation are not culturally sensitive and will be variegated in all stages of growth and cultural practices.

I am also fascinated by all the different variegations leaves can have. I'm learning the difference between the 3 you mentioned lucky123. Thanks for discussing this. Trudy

Hi Lucky123! Sorry, I don't think this is Tommy Lou. Tommy Lou isn't pink. Rosie

Rosie -

"Tommy Lou" AV flowers are white. But Tommy Lou type variegation means most of light color areas are concentrated on the edge of the leaf - can be white, cream, beige, pink...

In my experience - crown variegation goes down if the light is low. Mosaic is probably the most stable.

Hear, hear - I lost Tiger's Son because it turned white. Cherokee Trail - is not a show plant because it rarely has more than 4 flowers... but the variegation is awesome.

I.

Tommie Lou is person, a plant and a pattern of variegation. Tommie Lou was the hybridizer of the plant Tommie Lou that was the first plant with stable Tommie Lou variegation.

Tommie Lou is the pattern of variegation. It is primarily edge variegation although it is mainly defined by not being the two other patterns. If the variegation is mottled, spread throughout the leaf it is Mosaic. If the variegation is only crown leaves which turn green as they grow out, it is Champion or Crown Variegation. All other patterns are Tommie Lou.

Most of the crown of my Tommie Lou Plant is white, pure white so I am not expecting it to live although with hot summer approaching perhaps I will see more green.

Mosaic, Hand Picked seems to be more mosaic as the leaves age. The newer crown leaves are slightly less mottled.

Champion variegation, I don't have anything yet big enough to know but the Mouse Ears on Trinket Summer Skies look more like Tommie Lou than crown variegation. I will see what the true pattern is as the plants grow.

Try fish emulsion! You need to green up the geezer! Or Epsom salt - 1/8 teaspoon per gallon of water. "Tommie Lou" is hard to get by!

i.

Irina, thanks for the catch. I think I misinterpreted the intent. I thought that Brett thought that THIS plant may be Tommy Lou. (Ahhhh another vintage I used to have.)

Think I will refrain from answering posts until I get a little more sleep. Still have not caught up. Rosie

Fish Emulsion, Thanks

I haven't done that in a while. I am not fertilizing with regular fertilizer for a week or two because I rotate out with plain water for a while, then fertilizer. Perhaps I will add a cap of Fish Emulsion to the plain water cycle.

Fish Emulsion is a great Spring Tonic.

Epsom Salts? I have too much of that mineral in my water naturallyso I skip that.

Are u sure about Magnesium Sulphate (Epsom Salt)? It is usually Magnesium Carbonate that is present in a hard water. The first one - is highly soluable, used for soaking aching feet and as a very potent salt laxative. Plus it tastes bitter. And it is as well a building material for chlorophyll.

Irina

I will have to research that. I think it is probably Magnesium Carbonate in the water. But I add phosphoric acid to lower the PH of the water so I am wary of adding any mineral that might react with that.

I discovered I can't use the copper fungicides such as Bordeaux Mix because too many copper ions are released in an acidic environment. AV's are very sensitive to copper. Turns the veins green, like chlorosis.

I haven't been able to find any information about the new copper soaps and phosphoric acid or just a low PH environment. Would be nice to use copper for fungus and mold. It is very effective.

The copper sulphate fungicide you want to try would be Phyton 27. But - these kinds of fungicides are quite toxic for home use. You spray with it, not drench. You do not want to mess the soil.

But read the toxicity report before using it,

http://phytoncorp.com/wp-content/uploads/Phyton-27-GHS-SDS-6-15.pdf

Ace Hardware is selling a copper soap. I haven't bothered to research it carefully but the copper is in some safer form although I can't find any information about toxicity on AV's or in an acidic environment.