The Most Perfect Houseplant

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Posted by @bennysplace on
It may interest you to know that the literal definition of the word perfect is completion. So, when we say something is perfect, we deem it the most complete state of being that exists. This is how I feel about a certain houseplant.

2013-02-12/bennysplace/0f1644As I wrote before, I had to rediscover my indoor gardening green thumb. During this process, I killed some plants, but I also had some wonderful successes. One success I did not mention in my last article was that of the Cape Violet. As an aside, I love all violets. They are by far my favorite type of plant. During a visit to a local gift store, I immediately became infatuated with rows of Cape Violets on display near the window. I inquired as to what they were and was happily told that this is the Cape Violet, a very strong, hardy, and undemanding houseplant that blooms constantly and prolifically. Well now, going beyond the fact that this was a variety of my favorite type of plant, how could one turn down all of the additional touted attributes?

 


Under the AeroGardenAt first I set the violet under a small AeroGarden, and there it did thrive and of course flower. It quickly grew and it became very lanky. I am one of those people that just hates pruning, etc. for fear of killing the plant entirely, so the lankiness was completely my fault. One day in the spirit of returning the plant to its previous robust form, I grabbed the pruning scissors and cut many trailing branches off, so soon there were only three main stems left. I think I may have gone a bit overboard, though, for it took a long time to recover and start growing again, but alas it did. Now, before I continue, I feel it is important to say that the more compact growing form is how it was growing when I first bought it and this is the form I have personally opted for. I have however seen this plant growing in a hanging basket and the lankiness turns into a lovely trailing form, which many people reading this article may very well prefer.

 

As of July of this past year, we were finally able to move into a house and I once again had a garden. All of my gardening emotions were suddenly awakened, and just like that the majority of my thoughts and time became devoted to getting a bit of gardening done before autumn arrived. I would not say the indoor plants were neglected, but they definitely took second stage as I devoted much of my time to beautifying the outdoor garden. As it was warm, some of the houseplants were set outside as a temporary measure while the house was organized and ideas of where to put things were worked out. Well, this very nearly ended in tragedy for the Cape Violet and another plant that was receiving direct sun, and both very nearly died. I brought both in and surveyed the damage, which turned out to be extensive.

 

The majority of the leaves of the Cape Violet had turned brown and crumbly. I then started triage. First, I cut away all the dead bits, which left hardly anything. To give you a mental image, there were exactly two leaves remaining on one viable stem. That was it. I thought I would "help" it along by putting in some non-burning fertilizer, which actually did more to stink up the living room than to bring the plant back to life. Due to ongoing complaints from my better half regarding the smell, I had to repot the plant in an effort to get rid of the offending fertilizer. I found a self-watering pot, which would be perfect for the plant, as it would keep the soil from drying out too quickly, which is one integral aspect of successfully growing the Cape Violet.

 

Well, today, I am very happy to report that this plant has rebounded beautifully. Here is an image to illustrate this:

 

Cape Violet

 

This plant can take so much abuse, as I have demonstrated, and yet it can provide so many rewards. Perhaps you can see why I consider it to be the perfect houseplant. Should you wish to obtain one of these beautiful plants, let me share with you some things to keep in mind. These are my own personal experiences and observations.

 

First, never let the soil dry out. It will not die, but it will appear droopy, and this may affect the amount of blooms you get. The best type of pot for the Cape Violet would be one that has no drainage or one of the countless varieties of self-watering pots. When choosing the location to display this beautiful plant, choose an area that receives indirect light because direct sun will burn the leaves. Bright indirect light seems to work best.

 

Second, how many of you like to propagate your own houseplants through cuttings? I am thinking nearly all of you. Well, let me very happily tell you that I have found this to be one of the EASIEST houseplants to propagate. Have a look at the images below. I recently bought two more specimens from the local gift shop I spoke about earlier in this post and for fun decided to pinch off a bit and stick it in a small self-watering pot. There were two rows of leaves to start and now look at it. Not only is the plant growing by leaps and bounds, but it aso is already flowering! How exciting!

 

 Cape Violet Cutting

I thank you all for reading this article. Do you have a Cape Violet in your indoor garden collection? If so, I would love to have your thoughts. Alternatively, please share with the rest of us what your favorite houseplant is.

 

Blessings to you all,

Benny

All images were taken by the author

 
Comments and Discussion
Thread Title Last Reply Replies
Well, bless your heart! by virginiarose Nov 20, 2013 3:09 PM 19

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