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newplanter5

New AVs from Trader Joes

newplanter5
9 years ago

Bought 4 new plants today from trader joes. Currently keeping them isolated from my other plants (just in another room, is there another way I'm supposed to isolate? baggie? sealed container?)

They're in beautiful bloom but the plants are in the typical shape that you'd expect from a grocery store. So many suckers!!! There is one with extra pretty blooms that I'm worried has mites or thrips or INVS. I am isolating that one in a room by itself. Any other advice on how to deal with this one in particular? (picture attached)

I would like to do some grooming and repotting. Any tips? Should I wait until the blooms die? until i see that they are free of pests? I hate buying new plants because of the possibility of bugs but I couldn't help myself.

Comments (14)

  • newplanter5
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    There are the other 3 new plants. They need some TLC to look symmetrical again.

    Should I put down a leaf before I find out they're pest free? Can pests be transferred through leaf cuttings?

  • fortyseven_gw
    9 years ago

    They are lovely! Trader Joe's is great! When I get plants there I just keep them in a room away from my other plants. I don't do anything to them until they stop blooming. No baggies needed. Just enjoy them. I buy a lot of AVs from TJ and never had a problem. Where do you live? I wouldn't worry about INSV. Don't worry about putting down leaves. They are very healthy looking. In a month or so when they stop blooming, you can take them apart, one at a time, to separate suckers. If you have an African Violet club near you, take them there. The experts are very skilled at taking apart locally grown Optimaras, which is most likely what you have. For now, just enjoy! After all, we buy them for the profuse blooms. Every time I see one of those pink rosebud looking ones, I grab it!

  • Karin
    9 years ago

    Wow, i disbud before i even leave the store parking lot! But then i've seen thrips there before and i can't help myself but go back and buy stuff. So off with the blooms, then chop the crown off at soil level, wash it, re-root and i'm good.
    at least this way i don't rot the roots in the commercial potting mix. i used to be very "good" at that.
    Having plenty of blooming plants at home, it is easier not to cling to the blossoms on a new plant. besides they do so much better once they are properly potted and established.

    And yes, pests can be spread with leaf cuttings, but they are safer than (blooming) plants, because you can wash them (some people use diluted bleach or alcohol).
    If you are keeping them separate, you don't [have to] take any radical measures, i am probably a bit extreme because i only have one spare room, so anything in "isolation" can be contaminated by any new plant....

    (paranoid) Karin

  • janartmuse
    9 years ago

    I had a Neon Fantasy that got mealybug. No matter how hard I tried, i could not get rid of them, so i took a leaf off that looked clear and rooted it, tossing the rest of the plant (sigh). No mealybugs and one very healthy plant now (phew!). Still, i find it hard to imagine getting a plant and chopping it apart right off the bat. I suppose if you have limited space, it's safer. J

  • fortyseven_gw
    9 years ago

    The rosebud one is MyDelight and the flowering pink one is Michele. Two of my favorites. The red one is hard to identify as Optimara produces many reds. I can 't tell them apart.
    Karin is our resident scientist who is fearless. Joanne

  • Debra Andruska
    9 years ago

    If you leave the buds on- you risk your collection getting thrips. They fly, jump- and can basically come in from outside. So, it's just a matter of chance if you keep the buds on. Look for spilled pollen (yellow dried stuff) spilled on the petals- that's usually your first sign they have thrips. Your plant in the pic looks healthy! It just multiplied- once you take it apart and see how many plants/suckers there is (plant them of course, LOL) it will be back to normal just one crown. Some plants naturally do that- they are unruly (tend to sucker.)

    I would take off the blooms- but that's just me, I'm so hesitant of getting thrips, so far, I've never had them! :)

    Deb

  • newplanter5
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Thanks everyone for the responses! Especially the ID. I don't think I will ever become a collector or showgrower, I'll be happy if I can keep these plants alive, blooming and pest free.

    I think I will take the advice on keeping the blooms until they die and then giving them all a tepid bath, removing the suckers and repotting in my 1:1 potting mix/perlite. I had a lot of fun doing a division for a plant I got from OSH and ended up getting 5 suckers plus the main plant. It's amazing how much better the original plant is looking after surgery.

    I really adore the rosebud looking ones, but for some reason, those were in the worst condition. There are small brown spots on a lot of the leaves that looks like mite damage (I've pinched off most of the damaged leaves) and today, I think I saw a bug crawling in the dirt!! Also definitely killed a small black flying bug but I couldn't identify it or tell if it's a pest infestation. Will definitely allow it to bloom and then take care of any pest problems. It's on a desk by itself so hopefully any pests will be contained. I am so terrified of getting any sort of infestation, I think I am mentally psyching myself out more than anything. I think my hypochondriac tendencies are transferring to my plants but I've read so many posts about INVS, thrips, mites, mealybugs... sounds like a nightmare!

    I have been looking for spilled pollen on all the blooms but haven't found anything yet. I'll have to keep a close eye on all of them but I'm almost excited for them to stop blooming so I can groom them!!

    One more question, any issues with keeping african violets in the bedroom? Not directly next to the bed but on a bookcase against a wall, any chance pests will harm people?

  • terrilou
    9 years ago

    You can safely keep your violets near you. I've never heard of anyone getting sick from bug invested plants.

    Your plants are lovely and I would just enjoy them and don't obsess about bugs. Yes, we have all read too many horror stories about bugs and INVS, etc. . . but just use common sense and you will be fine.
    The brown spots on your leaves were probably not mite damage & the flying bug could be a gnat. Way back, I read someone state that there are only two types of AV growers: those who have thrips and those who will get thrips. You deal with them if found; there are zillions of thrips; I would imagine that only a very small percentage of them are carrying the virus. The odds are on our side.

    When I buy a new plant, I mainly check the very center because thats where mites live and I have had to deal with them a few times over the last 40 years. If anything looks odd, I skip the plant.
    I confess to purchasing some plants with thrips present; I keep them in isolation and enjoy the blooms because I won't be held hostage by a few bugs. After blooming, I spray & wait for a second bloom in a couple of months. Usually the thrips are gone & the plant can join one of my main groups. If they are still around, I repeat the process. By then, I have also had time to check for suspicious characteristics & if found, I can pitch the plant. So far, I have never had to do this.
    Just my thoughts.

    Terri

  • newplanter5
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Terri,

    Thank you for the reassurance. It is really good to hear that sometimes, it's best to just back and enjoy the plants instead of over worrying. I think I needed that!

    I've had a couple of miniatures that are thriving and blooming for over 2 months now, I'll try to upload pictures later today!

  • fortyseven_gw
    9 years ago

    NewP
    Thrips are not a big deal. They are not hard to get rid of. Insv is probably not a worry this year. The other two bugs you mentioned are no big deal. Thrips resemble bits of moving thread, whitish. When you do remove suckers you don't have to wash, just brush off with a soft brush such as a kid's paint
    brush or ladies' makeup brush. The one I did not I.D. Can probably be found on the Optimara. Com variety I.d. Poster. Relax and enjoy your plants, just keep them separated from others. That is what I do. I have brought thrips in with new Optimara plants that did spread to weaker red plants in my collection. I found them very easy to get rid of. African violets taste sweet to bugs, they have more sugar than other plants. Some people keep a Venus Fly Trap nearby for flying bugs. With other pests, if it was mealy bug, I would not keep it. But thrips are common and easy to control. In California plants are often raised organically, so some amount of bug is to be expected now and then. Joanne

  • newplanter5
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    It's all fun and games until someone gets bugs...

    Found an infestation of thrips and an aphid crawling in one of my plants last week. Sprayed the plant with insecticide soap and disbudded all my plants. So heartbreaking to lose all my beautiful blooms but would rather save the plants I have.

    However, this gave me a chance to repot and separate suckers!! Have almost 20 different babies in the solo cups growing right now. Some of them are showing signs of fertilizer burn (must be the MG soil, i cut it 50/50 with perlite but there must still be too much fertilizer for the baby plants to handle). Any ideas on what to do to prevent this burn? It's orange crystals accumulating on the babe leaves.

    Another thing is some of my leaves are curling up and others are curling down... I'm worried about mites. My baby leaves in the crown are SUPER hairy so this is a real possibility. I ordered 1/3 oz of forbid to spray my plants with. Will baby plants without developed root systems suffer from being sprayed with this?

    Put down some leaves for insurance but haven't seen any development on leaves I put down a month ago. I might be too impatient to deal with starting from leaves!

  • Karin
    9 years ago

    The slowest leaf i had to date (apart from the back of the shelf, forgotten for a year ones) took 6 months to develop one tiny little plantlet. i now appreciate anything faster than that :-)
    if you want a real exercise in patience, try growing from seed ;-p

    as for the fertilizer, MG perlite has loads in it as well, even though it claims really low numbers. i always make sure to use a potting mix that doesn't have fertilizers, because i am lazy and buy the MG perlite. you can try flushing some of the fertilizers out by running (room temperature) water through the pot for a while, but i am not sure how effective that will be on time release fertilizers....

    Karin

  • quimoi
    9 years ago

    When I buy Optimaras, I bring them into the outer room, disbud them, take them out of the pots, remove the suckers, any multiple plants, etc., and repot. I occasionally set a leaf if there's one available. Then I bag all the garbage, tie it up and discard it. The only pots I kept were the small ones with the minis. I get nearly all of them from my nearest Lowe's.

    It's generally about 3 mos. before they start blooming again which is what I consider an okay isolation time (others recommend longer). They usually stay on the windowsill in that room. I have never found thrips or mealies but it's far better to err on the side of caution.

    I brought a couple home from the grocery store and threw them out shortly afterward. I think it was just cold damage, but why risk it? I did keep leaves, but you can isolate them in ziplock bags.

    I have two Rhapsodie Michelles now. The one that came from Lowe's (Optimara, Tennessee) has much less fantasy than the one from the grocery store (Woodhill Greenhouses, Canada).

    I have read of people isolating them in cake containers or bags but I have little luck with totally sealed containers. I do put a lightweight bag over them; how much good this does re isolation, I don't know but there is a whole room between this room and any other African violets. Use separate watering containers. Wash your hands.

    Diana

  • newplanter5
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Karin,

    I love looking at pictures of growing from seed progress. I think it's good to train myself to become a little more patient but I think starting from leaves will be the perfect test for now.

    I knew that MG perlite had fertilizer so I actually went out and bought the GIANT 2 cubic ft bag from home depot to mix in. I'm guessing the MG potting soil itself has too much fertilizer. Maybe I'll try a higher ratio of perlite to the soil.

    Diane, that sounds like a perfect process. I will have to try that next time I can't stop myself from buying a grocery store plant. I'm hoping that a good portion of these plants recover so I won't have to buy any plants for a while!

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