Saintpaulia goetzeana

Saintpaulia goetzeana
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
(unranked): Angiosperms
(unranked): Eudicots
(unranked): Asterids
Order: Lamiales
Family: Gesneriaceae
Genus: Saintpaulia
Species: S. goetzeana
Binomial name
Saintpaulia goetzeana
Engler

Saintpaulia goetzeana is a subspecies of Saintpaulia, commonly known as African violet. The African violet is a small, flowering plant that is used widely in home horticulture. S. goetzeana was first collected in 1898 by W. Goetze, and it was later described as a species by Engler in 1900.[1]

Characteristics

Saintpaulia goetzeana has stems of about 40cm in length with leaves of 1.6-3.8cm long and 1.4-3.6cm wide.[2] The flower is unique to the goetzeana species. It has five petals, where the top two are violet and the bottom three are white.[1]

Distribution

Saintpaulias are native to eastern tropical Africa. There is a concentration of species in the Nguru mountains of Tanzania. This particular subspecies is only found at the higher elevations of 1300-2000 meters.[1]

Cultivation

Saintpaulia goetzeana is very hard to cultivate due to the narrow conditions it needs to grow, such as mossy rock surfaces in deep shade.[1] These conditions are hard to reproduce, making cultivation difficult.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Smith, Jeff. "Saintpaulia: Taxonomy, Ecology and Distribution". Gesneriad Reference Web. Retrieved 15 December 2013.
  2. "Entry for Saintpaulia goetzeana Engl. [family GESNERIACEAE]". JSTOR Global Plants. Retrieved 30 December 2013.
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