190 African Violet species are in trouble (Clark, 1998; Eastwood et al. 1998; Johansson, 1978) especially in the Teita Hills, the Usambara and Uluguru Mountains; where there is extreme pressure on the remaining rain forest patches. When the forest is cleared for logging, cash crops or local cultivation, the habitats dry out and the African violet populations dry out and die. These plants need the trees for shade protection from the hot tropical sun. The increased light on the forest floor after the trees have been removed may also permit the growth of other plant species which compete with African violets for water and space.
It has also been noted by Martins (2008) that pollination of at least some species seems dependent on a particular genus of bee, Amegilla and that the bees feed on a variety of nectar and pollen from plants in other families. As these food plants become increasingly scarce, the bees too become scarce — reducing the likelihood of pollination and seed production in the African violet species.
A reproductive ecology study of three African violet species by Kolehaminen and Mutikainen (2006) found that not all species flowered at the same time, but some overlap in flowering time was observed allowing potential hybridization. Plants did not seem to spontaneously self-pollinate, but required pollen vectors to set seed. The results suggested that African violet populations were likely to suffer from the negative effects of inbreeding, if they become small and isolated. Given the reported fragmentation of habitat due to human efforts, the conservation of many different clones would seem important in order to maintain sufficient genetic diversity for conservation efforts.