University of Vermont Extension 
Department of Plant and Soil Science

By Dr. Leonard Perry, Extension Professor
University of Vermont
 

 
So just what do two very different plants--the African Violet and impatiens--have in common? Surprisingly, both originally came from the mountains of East Africa. These are perhaps our most common houseplant and most common bedding plant, respectively. The route each took to end up in our gardens and homes, and the connection between the two, is quite fascinating.

Anyone unfamiliar with Africa may think of it as desert or grasslands where elephants and zebras roam. The ancient Usambara Mountains of Kenya and Tanzania, however, of which the famous Mt. Kilimanjaro is a part, provide an oasis of humidity and dampness in an otherwise dry region.

It is the disappearing humid and shady conditions of this area that were home to the Africa Violet (Saintpaulia ionanatha and hybrids), a member of the Gesneriad family (Gesneriaceae). The genus name is for the family who first collected it with the species name being Greek for violet. It is not a violet at all, as the family indicates, but was called this since it looks similar to one.

Baron St. Paul-Illaire, governor of the Usambara district of then German East Africa, first discovered the African Violet. An amateur botanist, he collected seeds and specimens and sent them to his father in Germany, who also was interested in botany. He, in turn, gave these to his friend and director of Berlin's Royal Botanic Garden.

Years went by, and seeds and plants found their way around Europe. Then in 1925 the Los Angeles nursery of Armacost and Royston realized the commercial potential of this plant. They obtained seeds from Europe, grew thousands of seedlings, discarded all but the best hundred, and then later all but the best ten. It is from their ten selections that the thousands available today have been derived.

'Blue Boy' was the first main parent, followed by its red sport or mutation. Then in 1939 a double blue was developed, a year later a single pink called 'Pink Beauty,' and then a seedling with two leaf colors. Since then, flower size has increased from the one-inch size of the original species to more than three inches. Leaves now include many shapes, edges, and patterns.

During the 1960s, breeders used the species pusilla and shumensis to create miniature African Violets. The species grotei was used to create trailing cultivars.

Unfortunately, these species, the original ionantha, and others among the 20 species in this genus, are threatened with extinction in the wild. The understory of the Usambara forests has largely disappeared with the clearing of trees for timber and tea plantations, and with it many such important species of plants.

So what about impatiens?

The damp Usambara Mountains above 6,000 feet serve as the original home to most of our garden impatiens (Impatiens walleriana and hybrids), a member of the Balsam or Impatiens family (Balsaminaceae). In addition, many species are found from Africa to Asia, and, of course, the Pacific Island of New Guinea, which gives us the ever-popular New Guinea impatiens (I. hawkinsii).

The former species name for this plant was sultani, and it is sometimes still called Sultana. It was named for the Sultan of Zanzibar, from whose cool and moist lands this plant was first introduced in 1896.

From the original straggly plants with few leaves and harsh-pink flowers, breeders in Europe and the U.S. have developed the many cultivars we know today. They've also bred plants to withstand heat, as long as there is shade and moisture.

This plant may be known by the names "busy bizzie," "patience plant," or "touch-me-not" due to its "impatience" in holding its seeds. The seed capsules ripen quickly, exploding rapidly with the least touch, sending seeds far from the mother plant. This trait is not seen in many garden varieties, which are bred to not set seed.

You can learn more about the origins of these and many other plants in botanist Dr. John Grimshaw's book, The Gardener's Atlas. In this book he covers the origins, discovery, and cultivation of many of the more common garden plants of the world.