Species · genus Streptocarpus · Gesneriaceae

African Violet

Streptocarpus ionanthus (H.Wendl.) Christenh.

Also known as: Usambara-violet

Growth habit

lithophyte

Native range

Kenya, Tanzania

Reference · S. ionanthus

Cultivars of S. ionanthus

The named forms growers keep — each with its own page, each honest about how much we know.

No named cultivars catalogued under S. ionanthus yet. When growers document a stable, named form, it earns its own page here.

Guide

The species-level account. Cultivar pages build on this and say where they differ.

Better known as the African violet, this is a lithophyte from the shaded rocky outcrops and forest floors of coastal Kenya and Tanzania, so it wants warmth, gentle bright indirect light, and steady but not soggy moisture. Water when the top inch of mix is just dry, taking care to keep water off the fuzzy leaves to avoid spotting and crown rot. Its roots sit in thin pockets of grit and leaf litter in the wild, so a fast-draining mix and emptied saucer matter more than frequent watering.

Care recipe

The species record — the baseline every cultivar inherits unless it says otherwise.

Care notes are early — not yet verified

Light: ai:claude-opus-4-8
Water: ai:claude-opus-4-8 (range 5-10d)
Humidity: ai:claude-opus-4-8
Soil: ai:claude-fable-5
Care: ai:claude-fable-5

Light

Bright, indirect

Water

≈ every 10 days

Humidity

Medium

Temperature

16–27 °C

Soil mix

Light, airy African violet mix

Propagation

Leaf cuttings rooted in moist mix

Fertilizing

Dilute high-potash feed every two weeks while in growth

Growth rate

Moderate

Flowering

Reblooms readily in bright, indirect light with steady warmth

ToxicityAuthoritative · species

Non-toxic to cats & dogs

African violet (current name Streptocarpus ionanthus) — ASPCA non-toxic. This is where toxicity lives: every cultivar of this species inherits it and none can override it.

Reference images

Every image credited. Licenses link to their deeds.

No reference gallery yet

A few clear photos — habit, a mature leaf, a flower if it blooms — would give this page its eyes.

Add images

Sources: ai:claude-opus-4-8 · ai:claude-opus-4-8 (range 5-10d) · ai:claude-fable-5 · ASPCA

Kept true by its growers

Every fact here carries its source. Grow African Violet yourself? What you’ve observed — how it drinks, how it holds its color, a name that’s off — is exactly what keeps this page honest. Contributions are reviewed before anything changes.