The African violet, which originally comes from the mountainous regions of Tanzania, is considered a demanding houseplant. It forgives mistakes when it comes to care. But if these are not remedied, it will become ill and, with bad luck, will soon die.
What diseases occur in African violets?
The most common disease in African violets is mosaic disease, recognizable by light green-yellow discoloration on the leaves. The causes are often care errors such as water that is too cold or direct sunlight. The plant usually regenerates itself if the errors are corrected.
Mosaic disease – the most common disease in African violets
You can recognize mosaic disease by mosaic-like discoloration on the leaves. As a rule, these are light green to yellow in color. These symptoms of your African violet indicate chlorophyll damage.
But how does chloropyll damage occur? This usually occurs due to care errors. Watering water that is too cold in particular makes African violets react sensitively. Direct sunlight can also cause such symptoms. If you correct the care errors, the African violet will usually regenerate itself.
Other unusual features of the African violet
Otherwise, owners of African violets sometimes notice the following unusual features:
- yellow leaves: location too dark and cool
- falling leaves: root rot; Earth is too wet
- missing flowers: lack of nutrients, location too cool
- wilted, yellowish leaves: too little water
How to prevent illness?
In order not to see sick African violets in the first place, these plants should have the best location conditions. This includes, among other things, not putting them on the balcony. You don't get any drafts or direct sunlight at all. On the other hand, they love the constant temperature in the apartment.
The African violets should also be watered regularly and thoroughly. Room temperature water is used for watering. It should be low to lime-free. If you don't have access to rainwater, you should leave the water in the watering can for two days. This causes the lime to settle at the bottom.
Last but not least, it is important not to over-fertilize the plants or to provide them with too little fertilizer. Especially during their main growing season between March and September, they should receive a portion of liquid fertilizer (€8.00 on Amazon) every 2 weeks.
Tips & Tricks
Also remember to repot your African violets regularly and divide them if necessary. Such measures also strengthen the plants and prevent diseases. Only a weakened plant can be affected by diseases.
