Redbud Club enjoys program on violets
Published 1:25 pm Thursday, October 1, 2015
The Redbud Garden Club met on Aug. 25 at the home of Liz Dunn with Janet Higgins serving as co-hostess.
Members enjoyed refreshments prior to the meeting. Jeanne Grunert, speaker for the evening, shared her love of African violets with a slide presentation on everything you need to know about African violets.
Violet started in 1892 near Tanzania, Africa; hence their name. The speaker explained that African violets need bright indirect light which is usually in the east or west window. In the winter, the plants need to be positioned in a sunny south or west window and require six to eight hours of light.
Florescent lights are used to encourage even growth. Temperatures need to be between 65 F to 70 F at nighttime and 70 F to 90 F in the daytime. They also need high humidity.
Remember to remove the foil surrounding the violet pot when you get it from the store. If the violet becomes irregular in shape, rotate a quarter turn every other day.
If rooting a leaf, choose the fattest leaf and put it in water with foil over top of the cup. Once the roots appear, plant the violet in a pot.
When using root tone and good soil, the leaf should root in four to six weeks. Only when splitting the crown, can one get the identical color. Jeanne advised members to visit the website MyViolet.com to get more information.
Exhibits for the evening included “We Can Do It.” Blue ribbons went to Janet Higgins, Ann Ligon and Jo Smith. “Carol Alderman Redo” blue ribbons went to Liz Dunn, Dottie Fahrner, Rebecca Giles, Janet Higgins, Geraldine Sanderson, Sarah Schember, Jo Smith and Joyce Thompson; red ribbons went to Ann Ligon and Kate Shorter.
For specimens: Liz Dun – one blue; Rebecca Giles – two blues; Janet Higgins –four blues, one red; Ann Ligon – two blues; Audrey Robinson – four blues, one red.