There are also A LOT OF RUSSIAN African Violets out there now that look like chimeras but aren't. If the edges of the pinwheel stripes are not sharp edged and are variable in shape, length and central placement, ask for opinions.

I side with Hyn - Yukako - the easiest - Practucally always comes true from bloomstalks. Second easiest - Psychedelic Show. Third easiest Yachiyo - only because it gives the babies off bloomstalks - but 40% of them come to bloom not as a chimera - but as a lovely fantasy.

Some chimeras NEVER give you babies- usually they are the ones that have really practically non-existent leaflets. DS- Pinka never gave me one...

Here is a photo of one of my Yachiyos recently decapitated. I removed the crown about a week ago to root it. Here you see how /tiny/ the leaflets are on the bloom stalks - but at least they are green. On some chimeras that have variegated foliage or pink flowers you sometimes get bloom stalks with little or no chlorophyll at all.

If you look closely at the cut stem area you will also see both new flower buds forming /and/ tiny leaves that will become suckers. I can remove the suckers over and over again when larger to pot up and root - but eventually I'll let /one/ sucker grow to replace the old crown. I will likely remove the flower buds once it becomes more clear which are flower buds and which are suckers to conserve the plant's energy into making the suckers.

Bloom stalks! Here is a sample of the tiny Yachiyo bloom stalks I have put down into damp sphagnum moss and sealed in a baggie. I did wash them with Dawn dish liquid (not anti-bacterial as that damages plant tissue) and luke warm water to reduce chance of fungal or bacterial rot. You can see one of the bloom stalks did die and rot but the others are doing fine two weeks later. Some people put them directly into soil. If you don't have success with your soil mix, try using straight perlite or sphagnum.

By comparison, here is a Yukako bloom stalk with much larger leaflets. These are easier to grow into new plants so I put them into soil mix. Only two weeks later you can already see the new plantlets forming. This one also is sealed into a baggie. I don't like to open them and possibly contaminate them.

Beautiful, Irina! That one is on my wanted list for certain. I am keeping an eye on one that's available now so wish me luck getting it! ;)

Btw, since you mentioned Psychedelic Show as also being easy to do from bloom stalks, do you happen to have any to spare, Irina? It's a pretty one I do not have.

Strange - you can usually pick it on LLG - it is their chimera - nope, it is not there. probably sold out.

I am going to put a bloomstalk down and earmark it for you. It probably won't survive the shipping as is...

Another strange thing - our club was ordering gessies from Violet Barn - and from LLG - both sent us good plants - and i just checked on Ma's varieties. They do not have anything on sale ... they have Russkies, they have Rob's plants - but no Ma's at all and no standard chimeras. Sold out???

Just looked on ebay. 137 chimera plants, 2 DS-Pinkas, and plantmaniak - David Thomson - is posting his chimeras right now - His will be very high quality plants.

I've been watching Ebay closely. There are some interesting ones there though some of them are pricey and in Europe. I will go look at what David Thompson is listing and see if anything catches my eye. I /am/ watching the DS Pinka auctions already. ;)

Yes, both the Violet Barn and Lyndon Lyons had a ton of nice chimeras much earlier in the year and have simply sold out of most of them. I have orders in with both of them that are on their way. I didn't have the funds and it was still freezing up here until very recently so I needed to wait - and missed out on some good ones! They'll have more next spring!

My take - it is moving much slower on eBay this year - and much faster for for LLG and VB. They need a break!

I do not think that David Thompson will have anything brand new - but he carries some excellent older varieties. So - whoever wants to have Yukako in their collection - his will be very strong and well grown.

Some interesting stuff from the other side of the pond... Not cheap.

Last year I was looking at new Japanese chimeras - and decided Ii cannot justify spending that much money. They are very expensive there, even our regular old chimeras...

Truth be told I'd rather give my money to VB and LL anyway. I want to be supportive of their efforts and keep them in business /and/ I know their integrity is outstanding.

Yep, the cost of living in Japan is expensive even compared to the USA. So I understand why their prices are high and their plants are in demand over there. I'm with you - I'm not about to spend that kind of money as a rule. It has /seriously/ got to knock my socks off and come from a well established reputable seller for me to even half consider it. I've rarely spent a lot on single plants. I'm patient and there's a lot of good stuff out there for a picky buyer.

Atm, I don't see anything else on Ebay I'm interested in anyway. I want good, crisp, clean flowers with well marked colors that aren't too small compared to the leaves. And I want them not to look too much like things I already have unless I think the one I have isn't producing well and needs replacement with something better.

I never tried bloom stalks from the Yachiyo before. I'm kind of hoping some of them come out as variable sports. I would love to have the 'blue' form of a Yachiyo chimera without the pink.

I also like how small mine grows - more semi-mini than standard and I've been using the pollen in hybridizing attempts. I like the peloric star bloom shape and passing on the tidy little pointy leaves and fantasy, even without the chimeric characteristics. So I'm looking forward to seeing the offspring especially crossed with minis.

Hyn - email me your address - i have a Yachiyo sport with pure white and blue chimera blossoms. Do not plant to keep it -so - you can have it. When I have Yachiyo coming with fantasy blossoms - they go as gifts. Reason - droppers. Lovely very busy pinks with blue fantasy.. you start propagating Yachiyo from bloomstalks - this will be your by-product. Pure blue and white chimera is rare. Second time for me.

That is extremely generous if you, Irina! I'll PM you and I'll also send you my Pinterest folders link - if you see anything I have that you'd really like, we could work out swapping packages. Or I can pay you for yours.

Funny that you say Yachiyo is a dropper. It is /very/ stick tight for me and never drops the flowers /ever/. They wilt and die on the bloom stalks and dry up there. I have to cut them off, they hold fast and don't pluck off. Again, I wonder if it's a humidity issue or yours and mine sported ways somewhere in the past and we have slightly differing strains. It's not the first time I have run into that issue. Interesting.

Mind, I do get droppers sometimes in other things but it's still rare. I think gesneriads don't much care for air conditioning and dry homes which isn't an issue - we hardly ever run heat or air compared to most people. Even when we lived down in Georgia. Conversely we are used to high humidity - 70% isn't unusual. I do have to keep an eye out for mold and mildew and take some precautions.

Still a few of my streptocarpus, if I move them around, will tend to drop flowers. Wow and DS Katja Tujua both for example are better not jostled for me.

I think it is strain...not humidity.

Aha - these 2 -- and my old favorite Bristol's Party Girl is also a dropper. You sneeze - and off they go.

Will ship Monday...

Thank you so very much. It will be interesting to see if the blue 'Yachiyo' is a dropper for me. I've never had Bristol's Party Girl though I do have her sibling, Bristol's Party Boy. Not a dropper.

As for the humidity issue, you might be surprised. Morgan's Patootie is a very noted dropper for some, but when grown in a terrarium? Not a dropper. It wasn't a dropper for me on my open shelf either but it's a fairly typical example of how humidity is documented to be a major player in some droppers vs non-droppers. So there is /something/ there even if it may not always apply. It does seem to be genetically linked issue that is also well traced through generations. Fascinating stuff.

Thank you for sharing! I just cut the crown of chimera Sweet, it was not that easy to make just one slight cut because the plant is hard and too big for the surgical blade. I guess I should use a knife next tim.

Exatco or other fine utility knife or even cuticle scissors can be useful. Do sterilize between plants with alcohol to keep from contaminating plants. Post here if you have any questions and we'll help!

Hyn Patty- thank you so much.

More info about Chimeras in general can also be found here too:

https://www.babyviolets.com/african-violet-chimera-flowers/

Love your beautiful Chimera pictures shown here Hyn Patty!!

Cooks.

Also if you have a chimera and might be interested in trading bloom stalks through the mail I am happy to swap.

I know this is an old post, but I'm hoping someone can tell me how/where to obtain Yahichyo and Yukako. I am willing to pay and would be forever grateful.