Violet Chimera: Description, Reproduction, Cultivation and Varieties

Lovers of home colors appreciate the violet for touching beauty and tenderness. But among a huge variety of flowers, there is a special emphasis on the city of Senpolia, or the umbrella of the violet, the unique sub-species of which is the violet chimera. What kind of miracle is this and why do flower growers all over the world collect this plant?

Senpolia, who are you?

Senpolia is a representative of the tropical family of Gesneria. It belongs to the genus of flowering flowers and is considered one of the most common indoor flowers. Although one of the names of this species is the Umburian violet, the flower has nothing to do with ordinary room violets. They are completely different plants. Violet, or pansies, - a representative of the family of violet and is a garden, not a tropical flower.

What flower is called a chimera?

Not every city is a chimera. This is the name of the plant, in which the cells of the senpolia of different varieties intertwined, merged together. The unique is that cells of primary plants do not mix with each other. Each petal consists of two genetic layers, differing in color. The main cell layer gives the background color of the petals, and the additional layer creates a clear band or spot. If you make a cross-section of the petal, the background (main) and additional cells are clearly distinguishable.

Meaning of the word

Why some kinds of saintpolies are called "violet chimera", now it is clear. And what exactly does this name mean?

The word "chimera" came from Greek mythology. This was the name of a mythological monster with a lion's head, a goat's body and a dragon's tail. If biologists told about this being, they would emphasize that the organism consists of three groups of cellular tissue with different genetic characteristics. Agree that the existence of such an organism is hard to believe, it was the reason for the appearance of the second meaning of the word. So began to call fanciful fantasies, which are hard to believe. The violet of a chimera is the most bizarre fantasy created by a man of natural material. Probably, for it it is appreciated.

How chimeras appear

No matter how hard scientists try, they do not get the chimera out of the lab yet. For the first time such a flower was the result of a partial mutation. There was it approximately so: the big group of cells has received in the inheritance maternal attributes, and the smaller part of cages - signs of other kind. This mutation happened more than a hundred years ago, just at the time when the city was cultivated and became popular in home floriculture.

Chimeric mutations were at first completely random. The fact is that different types of tissues simply fit together, but did not mix, so the mutation was unstable and rarely reproduced during reproduction. So the pink violet of a chimera with a violet stripe at reproduction gave one-color plants.

First difficulties

Official communities did not immediately agree that chimeras can be considered a separate sort of senpolia. The American community of flower growers - lovers of violets, motivated their refusal by saying that it is impossible to achieve a repeat of the color of plants during the Cherenkov breeding. It took a long time to prove that the flowering and leafy chimeras of violet (senpolia) give in other ways of reproduction.

Today it is proved that the instability of reproduction can be overcome, and there are no problems with registering new varieties. However, the methods of obtaining such plants are very laborious, which could not but affect the price of chimeras. So, in America, the baby of a vixen chimaera costs from 5 to 30 dollars.

Types of chimeras

Despite the fact that the color gamut of chimeras is very diverse, plants are divided into only 2 types of color:

1. Straight. In this case, the petals have a lighter color than the central band.
2. Back. In such a chimera, the central band is lighter than the base of the petal.

But even with this separation there are plants that do not fall under any of the types. This can be leaf chimeras. Violet senpolia simply amazes with its eccentricity. For example, a leaf chimera has a one-color flower, but there are unique patterns on the leaves, which is also very beautiful.

Chimaera sorts

Varieties of the Umbra violet are quite a lot. There are more than a hundred in the official list. Some varieties are considered to be expensive collectibles, some to industrial ones. Often, industrial varieties have less decorative value, but they have a long abundant flowering.

In general, violets of chimeras, whose varieties are sometimes difficult to classify, have the following varieties:

• standard;
• mini;
• Half-mini;
• Suspended (ampel or trailer);
• Leaf.

New varieties are obtained through laborious work, but sometimes genetic failures occur, and ordinary senpolia gives chimeric flowers. The florist becomes the owner of a unique chimera, existing in a single specimen.

How to multiply a chimera

Ordinary violet is easily propagated by cuttings of leaves. With chimeras, as you have already understood, this number does not pass. To multiply the violets of a chimera is much more difficult. For the repetition of the fantasy color, 3 types of generation of offspring have been developed:

1. Rooting of peduncles. In this case, the flower spike of senpolia is used, on which there is a bract with a dormant kidney. When the peduncle is rooted, the kidney leaves the state of rest and develops into a baby. Thus, the chimeric qualities of the flower are preserved.
2. Rooting the separated apex of the plant. The upper part of the flower is cut without damage to the growth point and planted in a vase with a light substrate. Within a month, the tip is kept in greenhouses to form rootlets.
3. Violation of the point of plant growth. After the removal of the apex, the plant remains without a growth point, which leads to the formation of stepsons with new apical points. Stepchildren can be separated and rooted, preserving the fancy colors of the primary plant.

Sometimes the flower growers are lucky, and the stepchildren are formed on the plant themselves. The violet of the chimera, the reproduction of which does not require additional effort, is a great success.

Proper care

In order for the blooming beauty to feel well in the new house, it needs to provide decent care. For this you need to remember the basic rules:

• The violet of a chimera prefers windows from the east or west side.
• Placement should be well lit, but direct sunlight is unacceptable.
• The most favorable temperature in the room is + 22-24 ° С. It is interesting that when growing chimeras it is necessary to maintain the same temperature in daytime and at night. If it fluctuates, the flowers will receive a low-saturated color scheme and will differ from each other.
• When the temperature of the content is overestimated, the senpolia can darken and lose its fantasy coloring. The flower will become monophonic, but under favorable conditions the next flowering will again be chimeric.
• Sprinkle with the polish is necessary with standing water at room temperature. Watering can be done both in a pallet and on top. Excess moisture after 10-15 minutes is drained. The frequency of watering the plant depends on the temperature and humidity of the room. Usually it is 1-2 times a week.
• Frequent feeding of chimeras is not needed. But if the flower is depleted, then you can use a liquid or granular fertilizer for senpolia. Overfeed the plant can not. It is optimal to make fertilizing once a month.

Following the above recommendations, you can grow a beautiful, extraordinary plant, which will become the pride of the florist.