Your African Violet was flowering nicely, but now its beautiful blossoms are starting to wither up and die. Or maybe the buds are turning brown and crispy without opening into blooms. You hate seeing your plant miserable, but you don’t know what’s causing it. This article will help you figure out what’s killing your African Violet flowers and how you can save them.
The flowers on an African Violet will die if the plant gets too much or too little water. Harsh sunlight or a nutrient imbalance can scorch the blooms, while dim light or dry air may stop them from opening. If you find what’s out of whack with your care routine, you’ll know why your African Violet flowers are dying.
Dying African Violet blooms may be a clue to a larger issue that’s putting your plant’s health at risk. We’ll explain how to tell if there’s a serious problem or if your Saintpaulia just needs a little extra TLC. Let’s find out why your African Violet’s flowers are withering and how you can help.
How Long Do African Violet Flowers Last?
Fading blooms aren’t always a sign of illness. It’s possible your African Violet flowers are dying because they’ve reached the end of their lifespan. The length of time a bloom sticks around can vary between African Violet cultivars. However, a few days to a few weeks is typical. If you’re only seeing one or two flowers shriveling up, ask yourself how long it’s been since they opened.
However, if most or all of the blossoms have started to shrivel up all at once, there may be a problem. And if your plant is forming flower buds but they die before they can open, something is definitely wrong.
Scenario 1: Underwatering
One common killer of African Violet flowers is dehydration. Saintpaulias need a steady supply of moisture. When their roots dry out, they get stressed and their health suffers. Flowers are typically the first things to go since they require a lot of resources to maintain.
If your African Violet flowers are dying, check the soil. Is it dry, crusty, and shrinking away from the edges of the pot? Then you’ve waited too long to water. If it doesn’t look quite that bad, test the bottom layers of the soil with a moisture meter. You want the area by the roots to be at least a little bit damp.
How to Help a Dehydrated African Violet
Give your plant a drink, pouring until you see a trickle coming from the base of the pot. Or, if you water from the bottom, make sure the water soaks up to the surface. In the future, check your African Violet’s soil every 2-3 days. Your Saintpaulia needs hydration when the top inch of the mix is dry to the touch. Read more about signs of dehydration in African Violets here.
Scenario 2: Overwatering
There’s such a thing as being too generous with the watering can. When your African Violet’s potting mix is always wet, the roots can’t get enough air to function. This can cause all the symptoms of dehydration, with the added risk of root rot from the microbes in the sludgy soil.
Does the growing medium feel damp to the touch? Has it been that way for more than 3 or 4 days? If so, this could be why your African Violet flowers are dying. Soft stems, mushy brown spots on the leaves, or nasty smells in the soil are likely indicators of root rot.
How to Help an Overwatered African Violet
Avoid watering until the upper layers of soil are dry. If your Saintpaulia remains limp and droopy, it may have root rot. Take it out of the pot and look for roots that are brown, soft, and slimy. Remove them with a disinfected pair of pruning scissors. Then repot the plant in soil with good drainage. Read more about proper watering habits for African violets here.
Scenario 3: Harsh Sunlight
African Violets can only tolerate indirect light. When they sit someplace where sunbeams can hit them head-on (like on the sill of a south-facing window) their flowers may die, turning and crispy before dropping off. The foliage will probably also die in places, creating big patches of faded brown.
How to Help an African Violet with Sun Scorch
Check whether your Saintpaulia is getting more than an hour or two of direct sunlight each day. If so, put it someplace where the light is less intense. Try moving it at least 5 feet back from the window, or into a room facing east or north. Trim off any foliage and flowers that are completely torched.
Scenario 4: Dim Lighting
What if your African Violet is never forming flowers at all? The buds appear, but they just sit there until they turn brown and die. In this case, the issue could be too little light rather than too much.
Though Saintpaulias don’t appreciate the direct rays of the sun, they do need a decent amount of indirect light. Too little light means too little energy to flower, which means buds that die without blooming.
How to Help an Under-Lit African Violet
Find a spot where your African Violet will get at least 8 hours a day of indirect light. At its brightest, it should be between 900 and 1100 foot-candles (an inexpensive illuminance meter can test this). Move your African Violet to this new location for 1-2 hours per day. Then add another hour or two every day until it’s there full-time. Read more about the ideal lighting setup for African Violets here.
Scenario 5: Low Humidity
Dry air is another possible reason why your African Violet flowers are dying. These plants evolved in high-altitude rainforests filled with mist and fog. When there’s not enough moisture in the air, their blooms can’t develop properly. The buds may refuse to open, just as they would in low-light conditions.
A hygrometer is a low-cost way to check for this problem. African Violets can usually bloom as long as the ambient humidity is above 50%. If it’s lower than that, you may have found what’s cramping your plant’s style.
How to Fix Low Humidity in African Violets
Clustering Saintpaulias together or placing them near other tropical plants will raise the humidity in that area. You can boost this effect by placing your plants on pebble trays (see the instructions here). If those options aren’t getting the job done, it may be worth investing in a humidifier. Read more about humidifiers and houseplants here.
Scenario 6: Nutrient Shortage
As we pointed out earlier, flowers represent a high investment of resources for a plant. Along with water and solar energy, your African Violet needs nutrients to maintain healthy blossoms. For an indoor plant, that means fertilizer. A Saintpaulia that goes too long without fertilizing will have misshapen, brown, dying flowers.
Most ready-made potting mix has fertilizer in it already. So if it’s been less than a year since you bought your plant, or if you’ve added some nutrients in the last few months, this probably isn’t the issue. If it’s been longer than that, there’s a chance your African Violet flowers are dying of malnutrition.
How to Help an Under-Fertilized African Violet
When it comes to fertilizer, less is more. Choose a balanced houseplant fertilizer and add ¼ of the dose the packaging calls for. Repeat this every 4-6 weeks. Stop fertilizing right away if your plant’s foliage starts getting crunchy and brown. Then flush the soil out with an extra-heavy pour from the watering can. Too much fertilizer can be even worse for your African Violet than too little. Never fertilize during the winter. Your African Violet will only be able to absorb nutrients when it is in a state of active growth.
Scenario 7: Shock
The natural environment of African Violets has a fairly stable climate. These plants aren’t used to sudden changes. A sudden heatwave or draft could cause severe stress to your plant. It will wilt and start dropping flowers.
Any abrupt change in surroundings could have similar effects. If you’ve just brought your Saintpaulia home from the nursery or moved it into a new pot, it may get stressed and lose its blooms.
How to Help an African Violet That’s in Shock
The cure for stress is the same whether it’s caused by temperature issues or a recent move: time. Make your Saintpaulia’s environment as stable as possible, moving it away from windows and making sure to water sparingly. Then wait. Water sparingly and give your African Violet some time to recover. It should be healthy again before long.
Final Thoughts
If your African Violet flowers are dying suddenly, look for an imbalance in your plant’s environment. Sunlight, water, humidity, and nutrients are common culprits, but temperature or moving stress can also play a role. Use the guidelines above to triage the problem and get your African Violet’s blooms back to vibrant health.