Citrus Varieties

Grapefruit

March Seedless(White)

• Most popular white-fleshed grapefruit.  Best flavor in hot-summer climates.  Holds on tree for long periods.  Deep green leaves.
• Large fruit, juicy.
• Harvest January to May

Red Blush(Ruby Red)

• Improved variety with fewer seeds and richer blush red color to the flesh and rind.  Fruit lasts well on the tree, ripening in winter through spring.  Evergreen. Full sun. Fast grower.
• Good flavor and productions.
• Harvest Nov to May

Rio Red

• A sport of Ruby Red.  Large, vigorous-growing tree.  Fruit holds on well.
• Large fruit usually blushed red.
• Harvest December to April

Kumquat

Nagami

• This small tree loads its dense branches with bright orange, delicate tasting oval fruit, appearing nearly year round.  Very ornamental in containers on patio or indoors in bright light.  Slow growing.
• Excellent in containers.

Meiwa

• Round fruit is sweeter, jucier, less seedy than other varieties.
• Best kumquat for eating fresh.

Lemon

Lisbon

• Productive, commercial variety more tolerant of heat, cold and wind. Fruit can be harvested year round.
• Good production.  More cold hardy than Eureka. Vigorous.

Eureka

• Produces abundance of fine, market-quality lemons year round.  Juicy fruit with few seeds is borne at an early age.  Attractive landscape specimen with bronzy-purple new growth.
• Harvest year-round.  Thornless. Fruit highly visible.

Eureka Variegated Pink

• Excellent patio or container plant.  Bright yellow fruit. Juicy, market quality lemons year round.  Volk Rootstock.
• Unusual variegated leaves.  Pinkish tinge to new growth.

Meyer Improved

• Round, thin skinned, orange-yellow.  Less acidic.  Very juicy.  Bears fruit year-round at early age.
• Fruit quite different than commercial lemon.

Lime

Bearss

• Heavy bearer of juicy, lemon-sized fruit in winter to early spring. Grows into a densely branched, full rounded crown.  Excellent container plant for patio or indoors in cold areas.  Cutting grown and grafted on Troyer Citrange rootstock.
• Few to no seeds.  Juicy and acid.  Good prodution.  Harvest June to September.

Calamondin

• Attractive columnar shrub bears small, juicy, sour fruit excellent for preserves.  Fragrant white flowers back bright foliage.  Ripe fruit holds well.  Cutting grown and grafted on Rubidoux rootstock.
• Cold hardy.  Highly productive and decorative.

Indian Sweet

• Also called Palestine sweet lime.  Not a true lime but a hybrid of unknown parentage.  Fruit is lime like in appearance and its juicy but not sweet.  The tree is vigorous, medium-large and thorny with cupped leaves.
• Favored in Mexico for medicinal purposes.

Mexican

• Develops best flavor in hot-summer areas.  Fruit is borne year-round, with harvests concentrated in winter.  Fruit can be picked green or yellow.
• Bartender’s Lime or Key Lime.  Very sensitive to cold.

Limequat

Eustis

• Hybrid of Mexican Lime and Kumquat.  Fruit shaped like a big olive.
• Good Lime substitute with edible rind.

Orange

Blood Moro

• Unique red fleshed orange that produces delightful flavored juice with a hint of raspberry.  Highly ornamental tree.  Red blushed fruit form in clusters near the outside of tree.
• Harvest December to March.  Few seeds. Juicy.

Blood Sanguinelli

• Small to medium size with attractive appearance.  Very productive.  Beautiful external blush.  Distinctive flavor and very juicy.
• Very popular variety in Spain.

Hamlin(aka AZ Sweet)

• An early ripening variety often sold as an Arizona Sweet Orange.  Fairly easy to peel but used primarily as a juice orange.  medium to large tree.  Good cold hardiness.
• Harvest November to January.  Sweet flavor.

Trovita(aka AZ Sweet)

• Widely adaptable thin skinned orange that develops excellent flavor.  Produces good crops in hot areas. Great for juice or eating.
• Good Juice and eating orange. Few seeds.

Valencia Campbell

• Excellent juice orange with fruit ripening earlier than standard Valencia orange.  Fruit can remain on the tree until late summer and remain sweet.
• Harvest January to May, earlier than standard Valencia.

Valencia Maars

• Improved flavor, higher juice content, and early maturing distinguish this selection from the standard Valencia orange.  This nearly seedless variety matures 2 to 4 weeks earlier, extending harvest.
• Large fruit. Exceptional flavor.  Matures 2-4 weeks earlier.

Washington Navel

• Delicious, easily peeled, seedless fruit.  Full sun.  Moderate-growing
• Largest, best eating orange.  Irregular production.  Harvest fruit November to February.

Pummelo

Cocktail

• Produces sweet, juicy fruit with a distinctive flavor.  Ripe fruit is greenish-orange with light orange flesh.  This hybrid offers an exciting addition to the Citrus pallet.
• Pummelo/Mandarin hybrid.

Chandler

• Exotic fruit favored in the Orient.  Pink flesh is sweet and juicy, and easily segmented for eating flesh, unlike a grapefruit.  Produces seedless fruits if planted in isolation.
• Harvest fruit December to February.  Wonderful background.

Tangelo

Minneola

• Delightful tangerine-grapefruit hybrid produces juicy, thick-skinned orange-red fruit with a rich tangerine flavor.  Winter ripening fruit has few seeds.  Great in containers.  Evergreen.  Full to partial sun.
• Harvest fruit December to March.

Tangerine

Dancy

• Easily peeled, tasty red-orange fruit in winter from this dwarf evergreen tree.  As a landscape specimen it offers year round glossy foliage and fragrant flowers.  Produces best with heat and humidity.  Full sun.  Vigorous grower.
• Harvest fruit December to February.

Clementine(Algerian)

• An early season tangerine producing sweet and juicy fruit that will hold on the tree for months.  Easily peeled, highly ornamental fruit.
• Harvest December to March.  Fruit holds well on tree.

ROSE PLANTING AND CARE

Roses love sunshine and grow beautifully here in Tucson.  There are rose types to fit nearly any landscape application:  groundcover roses for a carpet of color, tree roses for a touch of elegance, hybrid tea roses for cutting, floribunda roses for mass color, miniature roses for small spaces, climbing roses for architectural interest, and hedge roses for privacy and screening.

Basic Rose Requirements

• Sun Exposure – At least 6 hours of direct sun daily for optimum growth and flowering.  Roses prefer afternoon shade and no reflected sun in the summer.  Less than 6 hours of sun daily will inhibit flower production and pest resistance.
• Soil – Rich well-draining soil, high in organic material.  Here in Tucson that means you must add mulch (compost) to our native soil at a 1:1 ratio.
• Space – Roses need space to grow without competition from other large shrubs and trees.

Planting

In Ground

• Dig hole at least 2’ x 2’ wide and 18” deep;
• Blend ½ excavated soil with composted mulch in a 1:1 ratio;
• Backfill the hole with enough blended soil so the top of the rootball will be at ground level when planted;
• Tamp lightly or settle with water to remove air pockets;
• Place rose in hole and backfill with blended soil (1:1 composted mulch and native soil) and 3 tbs. of a slow-release fertilizer (like Osmocote Vegetable and Bedding)
• DO NOT place blended soil on top of the rootball; however, straight mulch may be applied up to 3” thickness.
• Water thoroughly.

In Decorative Pots

• Hybrid teas and grandifloras will do best over time in a pot of at least 18” diameter.  Smaller pots may be sufficient but only for one or two growing seasons.  Smaller roses (floribunda and miniatures) can be maintained in smaller pots indefinitely.
• Whatever kind of pot you use must have adequate drainage, and plants should NEVER sit in saucers filled with water.
• Fill pot with enough fresh potting soil so that the rootball will sit at least 1” below rim of pot.
• Gently place rose into decorative container and fill in with fresh potting soil and 3 to 4 tbs. of slow-release fertilizer.
• Water thoroughly.

 Watering

In Ground

• Proper watering of roses planted in the ground is critical!  Newly planted roses may require water as often as every other day.  Soil should be kept moist, not wet, and never allowed to dry completely.  Pay attention to weather trends and adjust your watering habits accordingly.

In Containers

• Roses in containers may require daily watering during the warmer months, less frequently in winter and early spring.  Care should be taken to apply water evenly to all soil in the container.  NEVER ALLOW CONTAINERS TO SIT IN SAUCERS FILLED WITH WATER.  Containers drain best when placed directly on the ground. If you must use a saucer, dump out or siphon off (using a turkey baster) excess water that collects within minutes of watering your plants. 

 A Little about Fertilizers

Roses require an abundance of nutrients to flourish in our desert soils.  Fertilizers should always be applied according to label directions.  However, during the hot summer months of June, July, and August, the label’s recommended rate should be reduced by one half (½). 

Here are your choices:

• Organic fertilizers can and should be applied frequently; they improve soil structure and quality while promoting optimum biological activity which enhances nutrient availability and uptake.
• Water-soluble powder and liquid fertilizers are available for uptake by the roots quicker than any other method.  These are the best choice for container rose gardening.
• Dry chemical fertilizers take longer to become available to the plant but persist longer in the soil.  These are applied less frequently than other forms.
• Chelated iron is recommended in addition to a complete fertilizer June through October.  This will replace the iron that is being constantly leached out of the plant’s root zone by our warm-season watering practices and monsoon rainfall.
• Epsom salts are also included in a regular fertilizer regimen to increase basal bud break, encouraging shoot growth.  The application for dry Epsom salts is ½ cup per large bush in late February, then again 6 weeks later.  Mid-to-late September, right after pruning your roses back by one third (1/3), you may treat again with Epsom salts at a rate of 2 tbs. per gallon of water or with a water-soluble fertilizer solution.

Planting and Establishing a Seed Grown Ocotillo

• These seed grown Arizona ocotillos are easy to transplant and establish in your landscape
• They may be grown in full sun or partial shade
• Growth rate with regular water should be 10″-12″ a year
• Flowering should take place in 3-4 years
• Hole size – Same size as the container
• Lay container on its size and gently remove the container while supporitng the plant and root ball
• If soil falls away, it is okay to plant bare root
• Place your ocotillo in the hole so it looks the same in the ground as it did in the container
• Tamp lightly and make sure the plant is vertical
• Give it a good saoking and continue to water generously at least once a week for 2-3 months
• After that period, continue to water weekly for maximum growth and to have the plant retain its leaves
• Beginning in April, fertilize twice a month with a 1/2 strength solution of any basic houseplant food, until the end of September
• Form November to March, do not fertilize but water twice a month
• Throughout the year, you may water less frequently, or skip some waterings. The plant should be fine although it may drop its leaves
• You may eventually water less frequently or not at all, but you will have a faster growing plant with leaves on it more of the time if you water and fertilize

Tortoise Diet

Acceptable Produce:

(Produce is generally less nutritious than the other foods listed and should only be fed when other foods are unavailable or as an occasional supplement)

• Beet greens
• Bok choy
• Cilantro
• Collard greens
• Dandelion greens
• Endive
• Green beans
• Kale
• Mustard greens
• Parsley
• Spinach
• Snow peas
• Turnip greens

Growing Plants:

• Bermuda grass(Tiff)
• Alfalfa
• Clover
• Dichondra
• Sweet peas
• Petunias
• Nasturtium

Native(growing) plants:

• Cassia (senna)
• Globe mallow (other mallows)
• Evening primroses
• Rock hibiscus
• Morning glory
• Honeysuckle
• Trailing 4 o’clock
• Buckwheat
• Spurge
• Prickly pear pads and fruit
• Plantain

Native Grasses:

• Arizona cottontop
• Bamboo muhly
• Bush muhly
• Deer grass
• Curly mesquite

Other recommended foods:

• Grape leaves
• Hibiscus flowers and leaves
• Mulberry leaves
• Rose petals
• Hay (Alfalfa, Bermuda, Timothy or combinations)

A diet composed of an assortment of these plants is nutritionally complete; additional vitamin, calcium or other mineral supplementation is not necessary and may be harmful.  All tortoises must be kept outside, as temperatures permit, to insure adequate exposure to UVB to maintain normal calcium metobolism

This information was provided by Sonora Animal Hospital, 410 W. Simmons Rd., Tucson, AZ 85705, (520)888-8988

Ladybugs

Always keep the ladybugs out of direct sunlight and as cool as possible.  They may even be refrigerated down to 35º F (they hibernate at 35º – 40º.)

The ladybugs should be watered once a day (unless refrigerated.)  Two or three shots of a fine mist is about right.  You want to moisten the wood shavings but not allow puddles at the bottom of the boxes.

1. Water your garden before releasing the bugs.
2. Release the ladybugs after sundown since they do not fly at night.  If released during the day, they will immediately fly away.
3. Shake them out of the box in groups at the base of the plants that have aphids.  Ladybugs always crawl up.

Re-blooming Christmas Cactus

After blooming, keep your Christmas cactus in a cool place and do not water for six weeks.  As new growth begins to develop, resume watering so that the soil remains fairly moist, and fertilize with a half strength solution of Schultz All Purpose Plant Food.  Re-pot if necessary.  During the summer, water plant so that it stays moist but not soggy.  Keep it in a shaded location outdoors.  In the fall (beginning about September), water only well enough so that the foliage does not wilt. Stop watering about the beginning of October.  At this point, your Christmas cactus will need 13 hours of uninterrupted darkness every night.  This may be done by placing it in a dark room or closet. Resume watering in November, but only enough to keep the foliage from wilting.  Once buds form, place plant back in normal light and temperature conditions, keeping it evenly moist.  (Normal temperature range is 55 to 65 degrees F.)  Fertilize every other week with a half strength solution.  Enjoy another season of beautiful blooms!

HORTICULTURAL TIPS FOR PLANTING CACTI

When planting cacti in the ground, the most important consideration is the hole into which you put the plant. Minimally, the hole should be a foot deep and a foot wide. Within reason, the bigger the hole the better. In effect, you are creating a volume of disturbed soil in the earth for the plant. Desert soils are hard. Breaking up the soil facilitates root exploration and water infiltration and helps the plant establish itself in the shortest possible time. It also leads to faster growth rates and more profuse flowering.

Unless you have hard caliche, you can use the soil from the hold to plant in. If you have caliche, discard it and get some topsoil or potting soil. Add 30 to 50 percent coarse sand, including the sandy mix from the pot. The sand is very important. It gives the soil high water infiltration capability and aeration. So when it rains, or when you trickle irrigate, the hole acts as a sink for water and the soil becomes far more charged with water than the surrounding undisturbed hard soil which has a low infiltration rate. Sand is available at the right price in your local wash. Mix the sand and the soil well, breaking up any chunks of earth. The plant can be removed from the pot by carefully setting the pot on its side on the ground and easing it out with tongs or a rolled up newspaper. When planting your plant, allow the roots to reach as far down into the hole as their length allows. This encourages deeper rooting and gives the plant access to the moisture in the lower soil layers. This will help your plant grow and prosper steadily during the hot summer months. Fill in below and around the plant with loose soil, tamping lightly once the plant is in and the soil is filled in around it. Handle the plants gently when transplanting them as minimizing the impact of the transplant on the plants, especially the roots, will also help them become established quickly. Of course, the more formidably spined ones will help you learn fairly quickly how to handle them. As an attractive final touch, spread some gravel or small stones on the ground about a foot or two wide around your plant. This gravel mulch will help keep the plant cleaner, as well as help the soil retain moisture by staying cooler. From the design standpoint, the stones can help define the area of your planting, creating an appealing island of cacti. A gnarled piece of desert wood with a few select colorful rocks finishes the job nicely.

Although these plants will do acceptably well on just the rainfall in this area, an occasional watering during the growing season from roughly March to October will help them grow significantly faster. Water infrequently, but thoroughly. Soaking the soil down deep will help keep the plants well hydrated and growing actively during the hot summer months. When you water cacti in the ground, you’re not really watering the plant, you’re charging the soil. The plant will absorb water from the soil slowly and continually as the weeks pass. The best way to water is to trickle irrigate at the base of the plant for at least several hours. Overnight is a convenient method. Trickle at a rate that wets an area no larger than two feet around the plant. Avoid spraying water all over the

place as this will germinate all the weed seeds in the upper soil layer. There is no particular watering schedule. In general, beginning when the weather warms up in the spring and carrying through to when it cools off in the fall, a plant in the ground can be watered about once a month. Plants in full sun positions need more water than ones in shadier locations. Plants in containers also need more water than plants in the ground. Once these plants are in the ground and have a chance to root out, which takes several months to, in some cases, an entire growing season, the roots explore a far greater volume of soil than a plant in a pot. The best strategy is to learn to interpret the appearance of the plant so as to understand its water status. A plant which is plump and robust is well hydrated and doesn’t need to be watered. However, a plant which has shrunken in size or one in which the ribs are becoming increasingly pronounced would appreciate some water. There is really no substitute for periodically examining the plants and learning to “read” them like this. It’s quite simple once you’ve seen it a few times. Understanding the cacti in this way will also enrich your appreciation of these fascinating plants. You may also use drip irrigation as long as you water infrequently but thoroughly.

If you wish, you may occasionally apply some fertilizer to the plants. Use a half-strength solution of any general houseplant fertilizer. Apply several gallons, adding it slowly to the soil at the base of the plant. Any fertilizer is fine in moderation. While fertilizing will enhance the growth of cacti, it is certainly an optional consideration. Once planted in the ground and having taken hold after a season, these plants will do quite well without you.

Be sure to leave sufficient space between the plants. Plant the smaller cacti no closer than a foot or so from one another. The larger specimens should be no closer than about 2 or 3 feet from any other cactus, especially when you consider that some of the larger ones become quite sizeable.

WE DO NOT SELL WILD COLLECTED PLANTS.

Prepared by Jon R. Weeks, Ph.D.

BROMELIADS

Discovered by Columbus on his second voyage to the New World, the edible pineapple was Europe’s introduction to the bromeliad family.  Natives of North, Central, and South America, this exotic, even bizarre, family of plants has remarkable beautiful foliage, flowers, and long-lasting bracts and berries.  Most plants usually consist of a rosette of strap-shaped leaves from the center of which a highly colorful flower stalk emerges.

Bromeliads are found in a variety of growing situations:  on tree branches, attached to rocks on bleak mountainsides, in dark corners of jungle floors, on ocean sands, even on cacti in deserts.  But the majority of the ornamentals live in the warm rain forests of Brazil.

MOUNTING OR POTTING

The “air plants” or epiphytes such as Tillandsias attach themselves to a host plant or object with a few tenacious roots, but do not take any nourishment from the tree.  Roots are basically for support and at best furnish only 5% of the plant’s water absorption.  Decorative possibilities are unlimited, from bromeliad “trees” to wall plaques, hanging mobiles, and rockscapes.  Attach plants to a new host with florist’s clay, white glue, builder’s adhesive, plant tie tape, monofilament fishing line, or stainless steel wire (no heavy corrosives such as copper, iron).  Larger specimens can also be potted in orchid bark or even pebbles to hold them erect and to insure roots will not rot.

The terrestrials, or those plants which grow on the ground, have a somewhat more active root system and should be potted in terrestrial orchid mix or any other fast-draining potting medium.  Choose a pot size just large enough to insure the plant will not tip over easily.  As with most house plants, the larger the pot, the more chance for rotting roots.  Do not bury the plant too deeply.  The bottom leaves which come in contact with the main stem of the plant should be level or slightly lower than the top of the potting medium.

WATERING

Bromeliads will respond to regular watering even though they are very tolerant of poor moisture conditions.  Plants not potted in soil, such as Tillandsias, absorb 95% of their moisture from the air through specialized scales, which are actually tiny water reservoirs.  Basically, the more grayish scale covering the foliage, the more moisture the plant absorbs from the air.  Depending on weather and location of the plant, mist with distilled water every 1 to 3 days until water actually drips from the foliage.  Morning misting is preferable.

The rosette shaped bromeliads that grow closer to the ground. (Neoregelias, Nidularium, Guzmanias, Vriesias, most of the Aechmeas and Billbergias) should have their cups or tanks filled with water, but water should be changed occasionally to avoid stagnation.  Most of these (along with Ananas, the pineapples, even though they have no center cup) are grown in a potting medium and watered before the rootball becomes completely dry.  Constantly wet soil will rot roots.  The Earth Stars or Cryptanthus are terrestrials without center cups and require more soil moisture.  Keep them evenly moist – NOT SOGGY!  Some bromeliads (Dyckia, Hechtia, Puya) do have terrific resistance to drought.  Often seen in botanical gardens alongside cacti and succulents, they have thicker, heavier leaves.  Allow soil to dry between waterings.

CULTURE

Bromeliads will take more abuse than most of our house plants and are one of the most pest resistant plant families available to us.  For good foliage color, or bloom, and sturdy leaves and stems give them bright light, even early morning sun or late afternoon sun.  Not too close to windows in our hot summer months!  They are generally happy in normal house temperatures.  Used during our temperate months as patio shade plants, they will be particularly handsome.  Especially important to these exotics is good air circulation.  Avoid close corners with stale air at all costs.  They need fertilizer too.  Mist foliage with any good house plant food at half the recommended strength every 3 or 4 weeks during the growing season.  Fill cups in the same manner.

BLOOM

Many of the bromeliads turn fiery colors as their blooming period approaches.  The vivid flowering stalks often last many months.  Once the show is over, the plant will gradually die – living six months to two years.  But during and after blooming, the parent plant produces vigorous young “pups.”  Some varieties pup freely regardless of blooming period.  These offshoots may be kept as a multiple plant, or they may be removed to make separate new plants.  The pups are generally mature enough to bloom by their second or third year.

All mature bromeliads are capable of flowering, but we can sometimes help Mother Nature out.  In early summer, enclose a bromeliad in a plastic bag with a very ripe apple.  Be sure to remove all water from the cup of the plant.  Then, leave them together for a week.  The apple produces ethylene gas, which, through a complicated chemical process, triggers the bloom. This dose of magic apple gas hopefully produces a blossom within several months.  Some bromeliad enthusiasts feel forced blooms do not have the intensity of color typical of natural blossoms.

Planting a bird and/or butterfly garden is relatively easy (even in this climate,) and very rewarding.

Things to remember when planting a bird and/or butterfly garden:

1. Pick a sunny location.   Most of the plant varieties will take full sun.  All will need partial sun for bloom and/or berry production.
2. Choose combinations that will provide food, nectar, and protection on a year-round basis (or as close as possible.)  There will be times when the garden will provide only 1 or 2 out of these 3.
3. Make sure there is a water source in the area, primarily in the summer, for the birds
4. Insects are a major part of birds’ diets (including hummingbirds,) so the more insecticide you spray, the fewer insects there are for your feathered friends to eat.

Plant Selection

Plant selection is very important, and depends on what you want to attract.

To attract butterflies – You will want to plant larval plants and nectar plants.  Keep in mind the larval plants are meant to be eaten, so don’t be upset if you see them decimated.

• Some examples of larval plants are: dill, fennel, parsley, ornamental grasses, and passion flowers.
• Some examples of nectar plants are: Ageratum, Asclepias, Buddleia, Caesalpinia, Calliandra, Dyssodia, Erigeron, Lantana, and Vitex
• When your garden may not be blooming for nectar, you can make a simple butterfly feeder.  All you need is a paper plate and ripe bananas, pineapple, and/or apples!

To attract birds (other than hummingbirds) – Sparrow, Cardinals, Blue Jays, and others like nut, fruit, and berry producing plants.  Many of us don’t want to give up our stone fruits like peaches, plums or apples to the birds, in which case try pineapple guava or something else that you don’t like to eat.  However, larger fruit trees also provide some shade and protection during the summer.

• Some examples of berry plants are:  Pyracantha, Holly, Eleagnus, Wolfberry, and Sunflowers.
• Finches like smaller seeded plants like Rudbeckia, Echinacea, Mexican Hat, Tithonia, and any type of thistle.

You can always supplement with feeders to keep your friends happy!

In nature you will find African violets living in the moist, humid jungles of Africa.  When we grow African violets at home, we should try to mimic these conditions the best we can.  These plants thrive in temperatures between 70 and 75 degrees during the day with nighttime temperatures no lower than 60 degrees.  In the winter, it is best to move them away from windows at night.  To provide humidity, you can use a self-watering pot or a humidity tray.  You can easily make your own humidity tray using a saucer filled with pea gravel.  Add water to just below the gravel line and set the violet on top.

Watering

Watering is best done from below with a self-watering pot or with a watering can with a long spout so you can reach into the foliage without splashing the leaves.  One of the biggest problems home gardeners have is white spots forming on leaves, which is usually caused by cold water splashes.  The water should be room temperature or a little tepid.

Light
The African violets grow best in east- and west-facing windows.  They can grow in a north window, but that is only ideal in the summer months.  To keep leaves free of dust you can clean them with a soft brush, like an artist’s brush.

Soil

African violets like rich soil.  In the jungle the soil is alive with continually-decomposing organic matter.  It is best to use prepared African violet soil mix because the mix has been scientifically prepared to the exact specifications for maximum growth.  When transplanting , be sure the soil is not packed too tightly, as they like well-aerated soils in a roomy pot.

Food

It is recommended that a specialty fertilizer be used which, like the African violet soil mix, has been scientifically prepared for optimum growth.

Pests and Diseases

The pests that attack African violets are mealy bugs (white bugs along the stems and undersides of leaves), red spider mites (very small reddish bugs that usually spin fine webs), and gnats (black bugs that fly out of the soil).  All are a nuisance but can be controlled.  It is best to use something natural like Neem oil.  If you cannot find that, whatever you use should be listed as safe for African violets.  Diseases commonly found on violets are powdery mildew (a grayish-white film on leaves and stem) and botrytis (rotting at base of stem and leaves).  Powdery mildew can be controlled with Neem oil; with botrytis you would need to clean out rotted material and allow to dry.

Propagation
The most common method of propagating African violets is by leaf cuttings.  You will want to do these preferably in spring.  This way, new plants can benefit from warm weather to grow.  It usually takes 10 – 12 weeks for first new leaves to appear.  A successful new plant will flower after 4 – 6 weeks from the initial leaves.  You can also do tip cuttings in which case you can root them in water or soil.  If you root in water, you will want to plant in soil when your roots are 2 – 3 inches long.