Photo of mislabeled Streptocarpus, likely a Robinson hybrid. It is labeled as Bristol's Goose Egg, but does not match at all. The Strep I have has beautiful flowers but they are not scented. Ordered it from a greenhouse in NY (not the hybridizer). Thank you.

Photo of African Violet species S. shumensis. Blooms easily for me and is a natural miniature. Very tough plant with interesting leaf texture and pale lilac flowers. This one is correctly labeled.

NIce blooms! I can't help with the identity of your first plant but it certainly is lovely.

Jeff, a few tips that may help in keeping S. shumensis growing well:

Plant in soil mix with some organic matter if you have it. Add a little more perlite than usual. Don't overwater or over fertilize. It likes to dry out some between waterings. Mine even began wilting a couple of times before I watered it (a tough plant). Water smaller amounts per interval than you would use for most violets. I use 1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon of fertilizer per gallon for most of my violets. Remove flowers as they start to fade or turn brown. Since they are not sticktite, they slide off of the calyx easily. For lighting, place near the end of the tube if you use flourescents. They will tolerate older tubes. Mine is on the edge of the tray from the LED light. Many of the species prefer less light than the hybrids. I bought mine as a plug from Bloomlovers and love it. Good growing!

The strep may be Ribbon Candy, as it appears to match and is also sold by Taylor Greenhouses.

Good to know. The next time I order something from BloomLovers, I will get her to throw one of these in the box!

Alabama, The first is pretty but it does not look like the photos I have seen of Cajun's Royal Knockout. I grew it briefly. Mine did have the fringed green edge. I lost it and will try it again. The foliage grew easily, large, ruffled, dark green. Joanne

I believe Belinda Thibodeaux used an Optimara space violet as one parent for Cajun's Royal Knockout. As Optimara's can be unstable, that could explain the sporting.

Terri

It looks like an Optimara. I did not want to say that. Stay off the Cajun hot sauce!

I actually have a few Optimaras. Acadia is a nice blue Semidouble and I also have a no id thumbprint hybrid that had tons of mostly white flowers. I grow Modesty too and love its pink variegated foliage and purple flowers. I am disappointed that Optimara stopped labeling their mass market violets years ago. It makes me want to avoid buying them. But then I will see one that looks unique and I will buy it sometimes.

Alabama, Acadia is lovely. I have Manitoba. I bought Maine and Modesty directly from the company because I wanted to be certain. Cora is easy to i.d. Sure, the mass market releases are easy to i.d. for a few reasons. The company releases only a few each spring, nationwide. From San Francisco to Boston, there are the exact same annual releases. At their website i.d. page, the current releases can be i.d.'d because they are labelled "in production." The company realized people wanted to know the names so they provide tips. Many single and bi-colors are so similar, it is helpful to have their charts.

A few years ago, there was a HEATED discussion on this forum with the Optimara customer service representative who was kindly explaining why the tags were removed. It was as though cayenne, chili, red pepper and jalapeno had been ingested by all!

When I failed with Rose Bouquet and Ann a couple of years ago, O came out with pink double My Delight. I happily grew that as compensation.

It was always left over at the BBS, because it does not look like an AV. So I bought all I could to bring to a club sale to the public. I had to explain what it was to buyers, because of its looks. Again, it was the last to go.

The O company test markets new releases each year and discontinues those that do not sell well. They will typically offer at least one deep purple single and a semi double. Also a bright salmon-pink single and usually a deep wine semi-double. Then whatever they developed that is new. I learned this from reading articles on the internet. So, from a marketing point of view, they seek to develop subtle diversity within the color range. So on their charts, many resemble each other.

By the way, Kent Stork used some of the original Holtkamp or Reinhardt stock to create his red violets.

Going back to the beginning, there was only H or R which are commercially now the O company. When Lyon's got started, he most likely began with R stock.

They patented some of their earliest hybrids. They developed symmetry and sticktite features.

Almost everyone got started growing AVs because they first admired "Aunt So and So's" seemingly modest little purple AV sitting quietly on a window sill, and plucked a leaf. Even the giants in the field got curious and started that way.

Yes, little did we know, violets are even MORE addictive than cayenne!

(Rhymes with Joanne)

I agree, some of the Optimaras, such as the Victorian charm variegated series are much easier to identify. The green leafed single pinks, Reds, and purples are more difficult. I usually won't buy if I can't identify it. The last one I bought was from a reputable eBay seller and it was properly labeled ( Rhapsodie Michele). I don't understand why the coolest varieties like mySensation never seem to end up in the stores. I could easily identify it and love green flowers.

Michele is beautiful. I have kept that one.

The person from Optimara explained they do not mass market the fancier new ones. They sometimes will place a few in a shipment of common varieties.

My guess is 75% to 85% of people who buy AVs at retail stores do not realize the plantx have names and they do not expect them to last more than a few months or a year.

Or else, if the plants sucker, they look ugly but the owner does not know what to do. Or they use tap water and kill it, or do not fertilize, so it never reblooms.

So back they go, simply replacing the same violet they had before, and not thinking twice!

Joanne