Spring Violets

I bought a pink and white violet plant at Publix.  It's called chimera, which means "a mixture of tissues of different genetic constitution in the same part of an organism."  When it comes to violets, think of a chimera plant as a candy cane. The chimera flower is two totally different plants twisted and melted together to make one, yet each retains its distinctive color. 

I've heard if you try to root a chimera violet, the flowers will be one solid color or the other, and therefore it's not a true chimera violet.  I haven't done this to see if it's true. 

On my blooms, though, things look a little more unique than just striped.  On a single bloom, there are 2 white petals and the others are pink with some white.  Another has a stripe on one or two petals, and the others are all pink.  I've been babying them a lot, and it looks like it's paying off.  I love the look of them.

With flash--  

Without flash--