Grow Flame Violets

When is a violet not violet? When it's bright orange! Flame violets or Episcia, to quote their Latin name are violets that are neither true violets, nor violet colored. They are related to another non-violet violet, the african violet or saintpaulia.

Perhaps you are familiar with African violets. Maybe you have even killed a plant or two. Saintpaulia are notoriously sensitive to crown rot, botrytis and mildew, but their lesser-known cousin, episcia grows under conditions that would finish off the better known plant.

Both African violets and flame violets are gesneriads, a large and beautiful family of tropicals that include favorites like gloxinias, streptocarpus, achimenes and many others.

Episicias feature metallic green, silver, copper or chocolate colored leaves. The leaves are thinner than those of African violets, and they do not grow from a neat crown, but are more unruly in appearance. Flowers are flaming scarlet, yellow, orange or pink and the plant looks hairy.

Forget everything you know about African violet culture. These plants like it hot, hot, hot-- in the seventies to low eighties fahrenheit, and they like soupy air that would wreck a violet. Think terrarium or a retired fish tank with a few pebbles on the bottom and a covered top.

They mix well with other finicky tropicals like aphelandra, crotons, hypoestes, and fittonia. Just stick the lot in pots in a covered fish tank on pebbles or in a terrarium prepared with an inch of pebbles, an inch of activated charcoal and three or four inches of soil in the bottom of a goldfish bowl, candy jar or other wide-mouthed container of your choice. The layers of pebbles and charcoal keep soil sweet and keep roots from sitting in water. Mist until the plants and soil are moistened, they don't need to be sopping wet, and cover the container of your choice with a plastic bag, saran wrap or glass top.

Unlike African violets, these plants don't care if you water them from the top, bottom or sides, just keep them moist, humid and draft-free. Use a rich soil with plenty of humus and peat, but avoid clay. The roots have to have air and drainage, but less than their saintpaulia cousins. Keep them in bright, indirect light. An Eastern or Western exposure without trees or shadows would be great or use grow-lights and lots of them.

Under the right conditions, these are fast growers so buy them small and cheap. Another nice thing about these plants is if you don't get it just right, no flowers, but the foliage will still be absolutely gorgeous. No need to water often, just keep an eye on things. If plants begin to droop, the soil turns lighter in color and there is no moisture on the sides of the container, it's time for a quick spritz. Otherwise, just enjoy your beautiful violets.

Sources:

http://www.gesneriads.ca/epistour.htm