What's eating my saintpaulia 'mac's black pearl'?

Saintpaulia 'Mac's Black Pearl' is an indoor African violet with dark, near-black blooms that can mask pest damage. Mealybugs are the chief threat, followed by cyclamen mites and thrips. Inspect foliage carefully under bright light and treat at first sign — dark petal coloration makes thrips streaking especially easy to overlook.

White cottony masses at leaf bases and on petioles; weakened stems and sticky, sooty foliage. Remove with alcohol-dipped swabs; follow up with neem oil or insecticidal soap spray; repeat for 4 weeks.

New center leaves are distorted, thick, and hairy; flowering stops as the crown deforms. Isolate immediately; apply a houseplant miticide; discard and replace if infestation is entrenched in the crown.

On dark petals, pale silvery streaks and scarring are visible; adults leave frass dots on leaf surfaces. Prune and discard affected flowers; spray with spinosad or insecticidal soap; use blue sticky traps nearby.

Larvae chew roots in overly moist potting mix, causing unexplained wilting and yellowing lower leaves. Bottom-water only; let top of mix dry before watering; drench soil with Bti; set yellow sticky traps.