PLANT IT
Violets beat the blues
October 24, 2009
Sonia Day
SPECIAL TO THE STAR
African violets Saintpaulia
Is it too early to think about indoor cheer-up plants for the winter? Brr! Clearly not.
One night last week, I found myself rushing around like a maniac, hauling everything from amaryllis to a back-breaking jade plant into the house, because the weather pooh-bahs were predicting unusually heavy frosts.
And Jack Frost's icy fingers did descend that night, mightily. He gripped my glorious swaths of zinnias and black-eyed Susans so hard, they were a mushy mess the next morning.
So I'm already contemplating pretty stuff on window ledges indoors.
If you are too, here's an opportunity to bone up on one of the world's most widely grown houseplants: African violets.
The Toronto African Violet Society is presenting a one-day workshop next Saturday, Oct. 31. It's at the Toronto Botanical Garden from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. and costs only $5. You can learn all the ins and outs of getting these little cuties to grow well and produce their pretty little blooms that are so heartwarming in winter.
It's a pity, I think, that African violets suffer from a staid image. They didn't always. Originally from Tanzania, they get their botanical name from a German gent named Baron St. Paul who discovered them back in the 18th century. People went nuts over Saintpaulia back then and they are certainly delightful, although underrated today.
Shapes and colours can be surprisingly varied (not just that boring purple), with varieties that are dainty enough to fit inside a teacup. I think this makes them practical for modern urban houses and condos because, unlike monster show-offy plants such as Dieffenbachias, they don't require a ton of space.
Advance registration is necessary for the workshop. Contact Jackie Mills (jacmil@sympatico.ca or 416-924-3278), or Don MacDonald, (maconapc@sympatico.ca or 416-964-9305).
Sonia Day's latest book is: Middle-Aged Spread: Moving to the Country at 50. soniaday.com
Toronto Star