It is spring! Everything is a propagation mode! I talked yesterday to an AV friend on the phone - you can hear frogs outside her window.

Umm, even though I'm a bit farther south and typically warmer, it's suppossed to be 27 (again) tonight. Several outside plants have came up, been frozen, and foliage is dying (bulbs in amaryllis family especially)....such a sad year :(

I've heard frog and toads last week, this week they're probably frozen solid.

Oh what a sad thought, frozen frogs. There are iguanas in South Florida that hang out in trees and when the temps get too low, they fall out of them. People think they are dead but are told not to throw them away, they're only stunned until the weather warms up again. What a sight...dead looking iguanas strewn along the streets! The worst kind of litter.

irina_co(z5 CO)

"I talked yesterday to an AV friend on the phone - you can hear frogs outside her window."

Actually have heard frogs already around here as well. Surprised me as the one day, in particular, it was only in the 40's to maybe 50F. Would have thought they would have needed it much warmer than that.

dviolet1

"People think they are dead but are told not to throw them away, they're only stunned until the weather warms up again. "

Must be easy pickin's for avian and mammalian predators during those times.

It was 46 degrees here in North Florida this morning. Our frogs were wearing sweaters.

The 'new' plant is Music Maker, a 4-finger blossom! Never had one this large! Here, have a look-see.

Back on topic -- yes, another Florida cold front coming through tonight! Will be in 40's tomorrow morning. :-)

Are you sure that's not a squash blossom (joke), it's too big to be an African Violet flower?

I have several music maker babies too. Can’t wait for them to grow up.

@Julie, they're classified as large plants so this one has grown so much larger and bloomed faster than my other leaf babies. I don't think it will be long for you either, and when they do...

Want to compare blossom sizes, lol? Really though, I am curious about yours now too.

It will be a few months before mine bloom. I will post pictures

Two more 'plants' from O. Little Oneida leaves have bloomed, and though not quite as remarkable as my squash blossom violet, their flowers are still notable. These plants' flowers do not look alike! Heard this can happen from time to time, must be more common than I thought though.

First OLO plant:

Second OLO:

Both leaves from same plant. Both leaves same growing conditions. Thought the difference was pretty amazing.

Looks like you have a sport. I love the bottom one. Does it have a darker pink eye as the picture seems to show?

Violet, I love that Music Maker bloom!!! It is huge!! I have the first few baby leaves from a leaf I started. It is a leaf from a standard. My mini leaves I've started show no growth, they are alive and look healthy though. Do mini leaves take longer, or are mine just being stubborn?

Greetings, the time it takes for a leaf to produce plantlets is the result of several factors: age and general health of the leaf; size of pot, depth of planting, light, moisture level, etc. Some standards will grow faster than minis and vice versa. One of the significant factors for me has been the pot size. The bigger the container, the longer it can take a leaf to produce plantlets.

If you are in a hurry there are a few things that can speed up propagation sometimes: make sure you use a small pot, like a 2 1/4" or even condiment cups for small-leafed varieties; Adequate light; humidity with plastic cover (not airtight, the cuttings need some air), even breathing (adds CO2 which plants need) on the cuttings from time to time; and finally cutting the tip off a larger leaf after a few weeks to coax it into making plantlets instead of growing itself.

Alabama, Where do you get the tiny pots? I use 3 oz. Solo cups for the specialty leaves, but they are hard to find. They are a bit too deep so I put perlite on the bottom. I also use Keurig cups, for Optimara leaves, but they are a bit too shallow. I sometimes put 2 in a cup as they sometimes grow faster that way. Joanne

Oh my! That Music Maker really "tunes it up" for me!!! lol

As far as O. Little Oneida, I love both of those blossoms but if I had to choose only one it would be the white with the pink edge. Well, wait,,,,maybe it would be the pink with the dark eye. Oh DARN don't make me choose!!!! Rosie

For leaf cups, I used to use the skinner but taller little cups but I found I kept tipping them over. Now I only use the wider shallow ones. Fortunately I just found I can grab them at the cafeteria at work when I need them.

Good for you Julie!!! Reuse!!! Corse I still think kcups are the best! Rosie the recycler/reuser!

The squatty condiment cups (~2 oz) from dollar tree work well. They are shorter than the 3 oz solo cups and somewhat sturdier. They are sold in a pack of ten for a dollar. Would like to find them in a larger pack without the lids. Also found the small condiment cups at a show and bought some (1 oz, I believe).

YAY kcups!!!!! Thanks Irina! Rosie

Judy, it does have a darker eye, and Rosie, I think I will choose to keep only the pink and white one that seems to have bloomed true. The all pink one is So Much larger than the pick and white one -- very peculiar.

Noticed that Optimara calls it Little Oneida Girl, and First Class just calls it Little Oneida.