Violet or Saintpaulia is one of the most common indoor plants. It can be found on almost every windowsill. The secret of a flower’s success is its unpretentiousness, a long flowering period, and bright, colorful inflorescences. Since the plant is very popular, breeders are constantly working on creating new hybrids. To date, there are more than 8,500 varieties of senpolia. Florists admire delicate flowers throughout almost the whole year. But it often happens that problems arise with leaflets - they turn yellow or spotted. To eliminate this trouble, you need to find out why the leaves of the violet turn yellow. Only by identifying the cause, you can solve the problem.
Essentials for Violet Care
For inexperienced gardeners, it may seem that as soon as the violet leaves turn yellow, it must be urgently treated. For this, the most commonly used chemicals are fungicides. But not always yellowing of the leaves of the plant is associated with the disease, most often the problem is improper care.
Violet Exhibition
Rules for caring for the senpolis:
- The plant should be protected from direct sunlight, otherwise the leaves will begin to dry first, and then may fall completely, getting serious sunburn. For violet, partial shade or shadow is preferable.
- Proper soil selection is also of great importance to the flower. When transplanting, it is necessary to monitor whether the plant feels good in a new place. Most often, special soil for violets is used, which is sold in all flower shops.
- Wick watering. This is something that many flower growers are not aware of, but it is precisely this lower type of water delivery that will provide violets with a sufficient amount of moisture. With overhead watering, it is highly likely that the plant will rot.
- Regular fertilizer during the growing season and throughout the flowering period. At the very beginning of the growing season, when the flower comes to life after a short dormant period, it needs nitrogen fertilizers, but as soon as the buds are planted and potassium-phosphorus compounds are added to ensure a lush and long flowering. Fertilizers are also applied during watering in a wick way. Complex liquid solutions are simply added to water.
- Change the soil in the pot annually.
In violets, you also need to periodically pick off the lower leaves, regularly remove dried flowers.
Advice! To make the violet more fluffy, it must be periodically turned to the light in different directions.
Why do violets turn yellow leaves
When identifying problems with the green part of the plant, it is very important for the grower to immediately find out why the leaves of the violet lighten. A discoloration of the leaves can occur from improper care or fungal diseases.
Wick watering of violets
How to find out the reasons
In order to save the flower, it is very important to identify the causes at the initial stage of the color change of the leaves. Since violets are not the most unpretentious plants, it is better to inspect them every day.
A healthy violet is as follows:
- the leaves are collected in the correct form basal rosette in the middle of which the flowers are located;
- the position of the leaves is exclusively horizontal - if they are at least slightly raised or, conversely, droop, this indicates the presence of some problems;
- the color is saturated, depending on the variety it can be bright or dark green.
If a plaque appears on the leaves, they turn pale or turn white, dry at the edges - these are signals to think about. Raised leaflets also indicate problems.
Violet leaves turned yellow
The main reasons that the leaves of violets turn yellow:
- natural causes - the leaves of any plants grow old and die;
- fungal diseases, pests;
- improper plant placement;
- unsuitable substrate;
- not observed watering and top dressing.
Important!For those who like to buy violets in stores and immediately put a new copy in their collection. Doing this categorically is not worth it; violets from the store can be carriers of infections or parasites that can be transmitted to other plants.
After purchase, the flower must be quarantined in an isolated room.
Excessive watering
Excessive watering is something that violets cannot stand. Because of it, the development of dangerous fungal diseases occurs. First of all, the development of various types of rot.
- Watering Rules
Watering the violets should be done in a wick way, that is, through the lower part. The roots themselves must absorb as much fluid as they need. Watering them in another way can be easily transfused, and water can also get on the leaves, causing unpleasant spots on them.
- Plant rehabilitation after excessive watering
The earth should be properly dried, it is better to transplant the plant into another pot. And for some time do not water at all. Remove damaged parts of the plant. This applies to leaves and parts of the root.
Brown spots on violet leaves
Wrong soil
It is important to know what to do if the violet leaves turn yellow. Most often, this process begins from the lower tier. One of the causes of this phenomenon is soil depletion. If the violet has not been transplanted for a long time to a new place, the lower leaves turn yellow and gradually die off. Every year, the plant is transplanted into new soil, most often using the purchased option.
A formulation suitable for the plant is required.
In any ready-made mixture, baking powder must be added. But you can prepare the soil, which will be more suitable for plants. The first option is the simplest: peat and baking powder, which can be coarse river sand or perlite. But there are other options.
The first version of the soil mixture for violets:
- soil + peat 50%;
- perlite 20%;
- moss 20%;
- nutritious soil + charcoal 10%.
The second option:
- nutrient soil 70%;
- moss 10%;
- perlite 10%;
- charcoal 10%.
The third option:
- peat and nutritious soil 3: 1;
- perlite;
- charcoal.
Important! All components of any soil mixture must be sterilized before planting a plant in it. This can be done using a solution of potassium permanganate or any other disinfector.
In addition to the main components, in any type of substrate, you can add dolomite flour, eggshells, compost, river sand, coniferous land.
Turn to professionals
Soils for any indoor plants, including the senpolia, can be very different compositions. And a professional soil mixture can be very different from that purchased in a regular flower shop.
Professional breeders, as a rule, buy special soils, more expensive, but better. Most often they are sold only in bulk. The most popular professional mix is the German Klasman TS 1. On sale such land is most often available in a volume of 200 liters (weight over 40 kg). For one florist, this is a lot, but you can find like-minded people on the Internet and buy such packaging for several people.
You can also search for those who have already bought this soil and can sell part of it. This substrate is perfect for violets, it is perfectly balanced nutritional value, friability, acidity, ratio of components.
Post-transplant rehabilitation
The transplanted senpolia should not be watered immediately. It should be covered with a package and put in a warm place for a couple of weeks. After this, the package is removed and moderate watering gradually begins.
If there are problems with the leaves, it means that the roots have not yet managed to fully grow and can not let the flower get enough water. Then the greenhouse returns for a few more days.
Also, it is impossible to prevent the appearance of peduncles during the rehabilitation period, until the roots are fully formed, otherwise the violet does not have enough strength to form vital systems.
Transplanting violets
External factors
A huge influence on the condition of the leaves is exerted precisely by external factors. If you do not violate the rules of care, then the plant will always look good and delight the grower with green foliage and lush flowering.
Heat
Heat, overheating, scorching rays of the sun affect the plant negatively. If the violet stands on the south window in the heat without any protection, then you can say goodbye to all the leaves at once. At first, they simply turn pale and gradually burn out, and later burn out completely.
Such conditions also lead to drying out of the soil, which is also unacceptable when growing senpolia. To prevent this, it is worth choosing a window with the least illumination. If this is not possible (this happens, for example, in dormitories), it is necessary to provide protection for the delicate flower from sunlight. You can cover the plant itself, or you can purchase a special foil that will protect the violets from the scorching rays of the sun, but at the same time let in enough light.
The best option for placing flowers in the summer is shelves that are slightly distant from the window, but sufficiently lit. If it so happens that the earthball has dried up, you need to take the following actions:
- Fill the basin with warm water.
- For 30 minutes, put a pot of violet in it.
- Get out and put in a good place.
Important! In winter, radiators pose a great danger to the healthy growth and development of violets. If possible, they should be removed from the sources of dry heat, rearranging to another place.
Violets in the heat
Cold
If violets get cold, then fungal infections come to them instantly. First of all, we are talking about different types of rot. All parts of the plant suffer from these diseases. Yellow round spots appear on the leaves, the decorativeness of the flower is greatly affected. The optimum temperature for violets is +18 ... +24 ° С.
What else can happen to leaves with improper care
Improper care is harmful to violets, as well as to any other indoor plants. The results of this care may be:
- with a lack of light, new leaves become lighter and smaller, petioles are extended, the edges of the leaves bend upward;
- increased acidity or excessive salinization of the soil leads to curling of the leaf plates, the same problem occurs with a lack of nitrogen or overflow;
- light spots on the leaves or their tips hint to the grower that the flower is watered with too cold water or suffers from sunburn;
- with the development of root rot, wilting appears, and the color of the leaves is lost;
- gray rot provokes a process in which leaves can become gray coated;
- late blight is manifested by the presence of brownish, brown spots on the leaves of violets, turgor is lost;
- due to non-compliance with the temperature regime on the plant, rust may appear, characterized by unpleasant rusty tubercles and dots on leaves and cuttings;
- with excessive watering and hypothermia, black rot may develop on the violet, the leaves will darken and blacken.
Violets are quite whimsical plants, which an inexperienced grower will not be able to handle.
Proper care
Proper care of the senpolia is the key to success. If you follow all the recommendations of professionals, you can be sure that the flower will grow and develop.
Full blooming violets
The main provisions that must be observed at different stages of flower development
- At the very beginning, after acquiring violets, she needs to provide two-week quarantine in a separate room.
- At the stage of the beginning of vegetative development after a period of rest, fertilizing with nitrogen fertilizers is necessary.
- In the period of laying buds and flowering, potash and phosphorus fertilizers will come to the rescue.
- During the flowering period, it is necessary to remove fading buds and flowers.
Regardless of the stage of development, wick watering is recommended for all violets. Fertilizers are also applied to the soil in the same way.
What kind of violets should be changed for if nothing helps
If no methods help, but the leaves turn yellow and turn pale anyway, it is best to change the variety of violets. Experienced growers are advised to purchase a hybrid variety that blooms almost all year or, conversely, produces buds only for a short period of time. It depends on which varieties cannot be grown.
It is not difficult to grow a violet at home if you follow all the rules for caring for it. But it is better for an inexperienced grower to purchase a more modern hybrid variety, which is less demanding in care. Now different varieties are developed that are adapted to different conditions.
