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Species library › Streptocarpus › Streptocarpus ionanthus
Other Well documented

Streptocarpus ionanthus

The wild African violet, formerly Saintpaulia ionantha, which grows on shaded, moist rocks in forest in coastal Kenya and the Usambara and other eastern Tanzanian mountains. It wants low to moderate light, warm stable temperatures, humid air and a light, airy mix that never fully dries.

Streptocarpus ionanthus
Photo: Clyde Charles Brown, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
At home, aim for
Day Warm-growingTargets in Plantistry
Night Close to the dayTargets in Plantistry
Humidity Ordinary room humidityBand in Plantistry
Light ShadeDLI and PPFD in Plantistry
No rest periodGrows on rock (lithophyte)

Where it grows wild

Shaded rock faces, boulders and banks in moist forest, often near streams, rooted in thin humus in crevices.

Recorded at 85–1600 m, median about 720 m; the upland populations get cooler nights.

KenyaTanzania

🔒 Growing it like that

The wild conditions above, turned into targets for a shelf, a tent or a greenhouse. The full profile has:

✓ Day and night temperature targets, and the limits it tolerates
✓ Humidity band, and how to hold it
✓ Light as DLI and PPFD for a grow light
✓ Wet and dry seasons, and whether to rest it
✓ Substrate and airflow
✓ A step-by-step setup to grow it like the wild

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Profiles are drafts built from measured range and climate and from published sources; each section carries its own confidence in the app. Photo from Wikimedia Commons, used under its CC BY-SA 4.0 licence, unmodified.