Violet is very popular with professional and novice florists. This beautifully flowering culture is collected and exchanged, shown at exhibitions and used to decorate premises. Many lovers of indoor plants want to see her in their home, but sometimes instead of the expected beauty they get a sea of disappointments. The problems lie in the poor flowering and the appearance of yellowness on the leaves of the violet, the appearance of the plants does not live up to expectations. In order to prevent such problems, it is necessary to know the reasons for the yellowing of the sheet part and prevent them. After all, yellow leaves can not only affect the general appearance, but sometimes lead to the death of violets.
Wrong watering regime
Violets need regular and abundant watering. They do not tolerate a lack of moisture and overdrying of an earthen coma. The leaves on the plant first wither, then acquire a yellowish tint and dry out. Flowering crops also react negatively to overflow of irrigation water. The soft, juicy stems and roots begin to rot. The first sign of improper watering is pale and yellowing leaves. With an excess of moisture in the soil, the plant dies very quickly, starting from the root system and the lower part of the stem and capturing the entire aerial part of the flower.
Since violets are very sensitive to a lack and excess of water, experienced flower growers recommend using wick irrigation instead of the usual moisturizing and drainage. To do this, you need a thick cord made of moisture-retaining material, which passes through the container with the plant and through the drainage hole at the bottom is taken out into the container with water. It is important that the water in this vessel is constant, and then the violet will take as much water as it needs. This method will eliminate the usual soil moisture and save the grower's time.
Insufficient or excessive lighting
Too bright lighting can also cause the leaves of violets to turn yellow. This applies to both natural and artificial light source. Its excess and high level of illumination (more than 3000 lux) leads to a gradual loss of leaf color and a decrease in their decorative effect. First, the greenish tint changes to yellowish, then unhealthy external signs appear, the petioles stretch out, and the edges of the leaves begin to curl. By the way, low illumination level (below 2600 lux) stops flowering or makes it very scarce.
Preventive measures include the correct selection of phytolamps and their power, as well as the installation of artificial lighting in the autumn-winter period at an optimal distance and height from indoor plants. In the spring-summer period, violets are recommended to be kept in partial shade conditions and shaded from direct sunlight, especially in the hot midday hours.
Direct sunlight
The delicate leaves of violets react negatively to the direct rays of the sun.Scorching sunlight leaves sunburn on their surface, which can appear as slight yellowing or turn into dry, dark brown spots. Succulent leaf plates in a short period acquire a painful appearance and completely die.
Water spraying
It is a paradox, but moisture-loving violets do not like water procedures in the form of spraying. When water drops hit the leaf plates, the color of the leaf surface begins to change in the place where moisture accumulates. Such burn spots can be of various shapes, but the rest of the leaf remains in its original healthy state. Conclusion - you cannot spray violets!
Incorrect content temperature
The room temperature favorable for growing violets is in the range of 20-26 degrees Celsius. With a decrease or increase in the permissible temperature norm, the color of the leaves changes, watery or yellowish spots may appear on the surface, which will eventually lead to the death of the entire plant. Such temperature changes often occur when a container with a flower is transferred from a mini-greenhouse to a windowsill. Leaves accustomed to warm air come into contact with cold window glass or fall under a stream of cold air flow when ventilated and react with such changes in appearance. At the same time, nothing threatens the health of the plant, only the general appearance of the culture worsens. When normal temperature conditions are created, the plant will continue to develop fully, and the damaged parts can be carefully trimmed.
When the air temperature in the room rises above 28-30 degrees, there is a great danger to the life of the entire plant. In such a situation, it is necessary to increase the level of humidity in the room with plants using a steam generator, pallets with wet expanded clay or containers with water next to flowers, but not by spraying. This kind of support for the flora is especially recommended in the summer.
Unsuitable composition or depletion of soil
The most suitable substrate, favorable for growing violets, should be light, loose, breathable and slightly acidic in composition. When the soil is alkalized, which is often due to the use of hard water for irrigation, the leaf plates begin to turn yellow and discolor, and later acquire a brown tint and dry out at the tips. As a preventive measure, it is recommended to acidify irrigation water with citric acid or vinegar. The sourness shouldn't taste too much. If the water for irrigation settles in a container, then a small amount of high-moor peat can be added to it, which also reduces the hardness of the water. Florists claim that 1 gram of peat can reduce water hardness by 1 degree.
Even with proper watering, the nutrient medium in the flower pot becomes depleted over time, with missing nutrients. Yellow leaves may indicate exactly these problems. You can solve it by replacing the soil mixture in a flower pot and applying fertilizers. Young violets require feeding with a high content of nitrogen and potassium, and when forming buds, phosphorus-containing fertilizers are required.
Natural causes
In the second year of life of violets, the natural dying off of the lower leaves occurs. This process should not be massive. Yellowed 1-2 leaves are not a cause for concern and do not threaten the life and health of the flower culture.
Variegated forms of violets
Among the huge number of varieties and varieties of violets, many variegated forms have been bred, the distinguishing features of which are the yellow edges of the leaf plates, spots on the leaf surface of a yellow shade of various shapes and configurations. At first glance, such plants (and especially their leaves) look like diseased, but their surface remains strong, juicy and undamaged. Variegation is of several types - crown, spontaneous and mosaic.Each species has its own characteristics and distinctive features.
Crown variegation appears only on young leaf plates, coloring them in pink, cream, light green and yellow shades. Spontaneous - can be on any part of the violet, suddenly appearing and just as suddenly disappearing. After a while, a yellowed leaf can turn back to a rich green. Mosaic - distributed in the form of a mosaic over the surface of all leaves in a leaf rosette.
