A Gardeners Forum Forums Gardening Reference Gardening in 2004 African violet question...

A very dear friend of mine gave me an African Violet for Mother's day - to add to my "greenhouse", she said

It's very pretty right now and blooming, but the more I read about African Violets, the more I become convinced I'm going to do wrong by it ! There's talk about self-watering pots, special food and soil, none of which I have of course. There's also dire warnings about a whole slew of Violet problems, including their own families of pests.

Can anyone give me a few tips on how to care for it ? I'd love to keep it in bloom... at the very least, I'd want to keep it alive !

The best advice I can give is too keep the soil moist, but the leaves dry. Never get water on the foliage because it will make the plant rot. I usually bottom water mine to avoid wetting the leaves. They need indirect light. A North or East window is best.

AV's, from what I understand, bloom when they are root-bound.

I put mine in a terra cotta pot and set that in a plastic saucer (about 2 inches deep). I pour water in that saucer and let the pot and soil soak it all up. I keep doing it until it looks as though it's not soaking up anymore.

Mine grew really cool mutant leaves! It's already one of the weird ones with ruffly leaves but it grew two complete leaves on one stem. Way cool.

Thanks for the great advice !

I did read about the no water on the leaves rule, so I did figure that the best way would be to water it from the bottom. The problem is that even when the soil is very dry it doesn't seem to absorb any water at all, and I wonder if it's because of the cheap plastic pot it's in. I considered a clay pot, but I hesitate to repot it now since it's in bloom. Would I be okay to transplant it in a same size clay pot or should I wait until the blooms are spent ?

I think that would probably depend on how easily it slides out of its pot. If it doesn't come out easily, you should probably leave it.

Although, I did repot mine while it was blooming and it did fine. The blooms stayed around for a while. But it was really easy to get out of the pot so I didn't feel like I was damaging the roots.

My AV was in a little plastic pot and it seemed quite happy until my kitty knocked it over repeatedly. As long as the pot has good drainage and you can water from the bottom (sit it in a saucer) your violet will be happy. It likes indirect light but not too indirect. I had mine in a south facing window and it was very happy but when I moved it a few feet away it didn't bloom as much. They do have special violet pots and the violet food, Schulz makes it I believe, in a little dropper bottle. My sister is the AV queen, she has about 20 sitting in a west facing window, but they pull down the shade in the afternoon. Her violets are huge and bloom constantly. Good luck!

Here's more info... check out this link:

african violets tipsheet

Thanks Sachi and Gardengal !

Well tonight I gave it a try - had a ( pretty ) clay pot of the right size so I very gently slid "Vivi" out of her pot, saw that there seemed to be nothing wrong with the roots or soil, then just as gently slid her into the clay pot.

As far as lighting goes, she's with my Rex Begonias under my fluorescent set-up. I also have a south facing window in that room, but the sun is really brutal there, even with the blind closed, and I'd be afraid to bake poor Vivi !

We have an african violet in my office at work, and the only light it gets is from flourescents (we have no windows in our office!)...it's a happy little plant so I imagine your flourescent setup should suit it just fine.

Okay, so I have an African Violet question....

I've read that they need to be repotted frequently, but that they should not be put in larger pots....and expecially not in pots that are too large....So, is the repotting just a replenishing of old soil? Are you supposed to remove some of the existing soil and repot in fresh so they get some fresh clothes? I dunno~

regarding your problem getting the soil to rewet... sometimes all they need is a bit of a soak, if the peat type soil that they tend to use gets too dryed out the water just runs right through! What I do is one of two things either I put the plant in a container of water that is higher then the pot and I let it soak for about 20 minutes or so, or I poke the spout of the watering can right into to soil and let the whole can run through. Once you have given it a really good wetting try not to let it dry out too much again and the soil should be alot more absorbent!

Hope that helps!
Ali

AV's do not need to be repotted frequently when grown in the home. In the greenhouse that may be true, but not in the home environment. Completely replacing all of the soil is a drastic measure that is not a good idea except in dire circumstances.

AV's can be watered like any other plant. The only only thing to be avoided is COLD water on the leaves. Think about it: AV's do grow outside in nature and their leaves do get rained on, so room temperature water on the leaves is not a hazard.

hello,

my mother has two african violents that have been struggling for years. bloomed sometimes, but the leaves were stunted and scarred. she assumed that that was just the way av's were going to grow in this dry climate (NM) however - she got a av pot recently - they have an internal plot where you plant your av - and then an external pot that she keeps filled with shultz african violet food. the difference was unbelievable! new, beautiful leaves, gorgeous flowers - compared to the other one, it looked like a difference species. so - i think this is the way to go. you can get these pots at home depot or any biggish nursery.

i just got two african violets myself and two av pots to go with them. i wouldn't try anything else after watching my mom's av resurrection!

good luck,

slowjane

Will Is correct, I have adopted so many AV's from people, and ended up getting many more off of the ones they had given up for dead. plant em', leave em in the same pot, water as you would any, BUT, treat em like a babe, TEPID WATER ONLY