Rooting Violet leaves....

AFRICAN VIOLETS, easy to ROOT.
My Mom and I shared a love for violets and she always had a window sill full of them. She had a variety of colors at any given time and usually bought them in a 5 and dime store. For those of you old enough to remember, there was Woolworth, Kresge, H.L. Green to name a few in our hometown of Auburn, N.Y. (pls visit http://www.ohearnshistories.com/ ). My Mom had a green thumb with plants and grew many beautiful ones throughout the years. But she had violets all of her life. She taught me to propagate them by taking a healthy leaf, pinching or cutting it from the plant and set in a shallow dish. Using some gravel or small stones to support the leaf, she added a small amount of water so that the stones were not covered but were wet half of their height. Place the leaves so only the tip of their stems touch the water with their leaf body resting on the pebbles. It may take weeks before you see root growth, but they will sprout roots. Once you see a good bit of root system developing, you may plant the leaf in a pot barely covering the root to prevent rot. I have grown many violets from this method. Once the plant expands in leaf and flowers, repot when necessary as violets tend to grow mostly on top of the soil and do not have a very big root system. A larger pot will support the outer expanding leaves and make a beautiful display. When watering, do not overwater and avoid getting water on the leaves. Use a soft artist's paint brush to dust the leaves now and then. I only water once a week sparingly. Let me know how your cuttings and plantings come out! Send a picture if you like!
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