Gladware food containers, wicks and 2in pots

Containers cut up and ready. Violet patiently waiting.

Close-up!

First chop and pot!

Big root zone!

I got 4 good sized violets and a baby.

All done!! These are perfect containers for wicking although not to creative.

The aftermath. I didn't keep any, kinda wish I did just for more fun but I now have 5!

One more, a web photo of what the flowers will look like in bloom. It was fun! I like buying violets like this, with multiple crowns. I can keep some and give some away. That's just as fun. :)

Good job!

'Frilly Dilly' tends to sucker so you may have to repeat the process again soon!

Linda

Thank you for such a wonderful tutorial.
Christine

I was impressed by how organized you were when you began the process. Good job. How did you cut the holes in the lids of the Gladware, btw? Scissors?
And the blooms on Frilly Dilly are gorgeous. Lucky friends to whom you give your extra plants!

annececilia: Thank you for your kind comment! I have repotted a time or two and there is nothing like having dirty hands and needing something then having to wash your hands 5 times because you need this or that. Repotting is my 2nd favorite thing to do besides watching them grow. I used the razor in the photos to start the cut on the lids then finished with a scissors. I tried to cut one with just the razor but the hole got too big.I really like all the ideas for wicking containers everyone comes up with but I have limited space under my one little light, limited plant space for my collection and a kitty who has an appetite for violet leaves. Everything has to be on up in stands so it keeps my collection small. If I want a new plant I have to really think about it or make group plantings in a single pot, which I prefer that look anyway. I have read that maybe that's not ideal but most every container I own besides my jades and violets have 2 or more plants in it and it's been working good so far. As long as they require similar conditions why not? That's how plants grow outside!

If you were in my zone, I would ask if you make house calls, as I am about to embark on a mission to separate and pot up a bunch of babies or multi-crowns for my local AV club's meeting on Sat. But, alas, seems that you are in a very different zone! Anyway, this inspired me. Once I get going, it is fine. I just did a bund of outdoor gardening planting primroses to get in the mood! (It is 70 degrees in Zone 9 today.) Joanne

fortyseven: That sounds like fun! I would love to if we were closer and with the promise of a few leaves I'd been in! I would even bring the wine! Haha 70 degrees would be nice but we are a hardy bunch up here so all this talk about polar vortex's and wind chills makes me yawn. It's cold for everyone this year so I'm glad you are staying warm!

I have used a hole punch to make holes for wicking. It's -4 in zone 6 today. With snow. And wind. And -20 wind chills.

Linda

Zone 6 here is having -20C plus wind chill. I just nearly froze my face off walking the dog, but then I should have dressed better....

I am useless with scissors, so I'd either use an exacto-knife or one of those hobby-scalpels. Still looking for that jeweler-tool-doohickey that cuts out circles instead of drawing them. Well, not looking too hard or I'd buy one on eBay....
But I prefer finding containers that don't need to be adjusted :-)

Have to say, I admire how organized you go about it. I usually start with one plant, then end up doing three or four, depending on what I feel like. But if I get distracted...
Anyhow. I've learned surgical gloves are a great way to avoid dirt under your nails - if you care ;-) (or don't want certain people to realize you were gardening instead of doing something 'useful' ;-p )

Karin

Karin,

I like the way you think ;).

Where do you get gloves that fit well? The ones I buy are so flibbely they are useless.

Try a hole punch. Nothing sharp to worry about.

Linda

My husband manages an apartment building - I just ask him to order them along with the cleaning supplies...
They come in boxes like paper tissues and they hold 100 pairs I think. (Helps if you know your size - it's usually the same as the yellow cleaning gloves you can get, your average woman probably fits medium or small, guys are more in the large-extra large region). I like the 'powder free nitrile exam gloves' - have tried others but keep getting back to those, they aren't too thick, so you still feel what you're doing. Only drawback with the thinner gloves, some batches have a bunch of broken ones in the box.

A pharmacy would probably be able to get them, or a home health place. Maybe a cleaning or restaurant supplier. Heck, I think I've seen them in the Uline catalog, and they specialize in packaging.... Or if you have a friend who's a doctor, dentist or veterinarian...

Karin, I saw some very humorous You Tube vids on Canadians and the cold. They just refuse to admit they are cold! Stoics! I always use gloves. I wear two layers, one is clear, the other is blue. Size small fits snugly. The thin surgical kind, from drug stores, in boxes. Cheap. You are right about repotting. Once I get going, I keep going. I separated one of the Little Hopi Girl II, which made three crowns. I potted them up separately for my AV club. As Irina explained - and Linda WL - minis have trailer genes. I still have one 3-crowned mini left of that same variety. The root system was surprisingly massive for such a small plant. I donated a bunch of others today, too. The tutorial was timely because motivational. Joanne

I wear gloves and two layers but only to stay warm! Once it gets past -15 it all feels the same, it's the wind that bites! I'm one of the few that likes winter, the snow blanketing everything, mountains of it. The terrain changes and so does the sound of things. The sun is super bright and warm. I like extreme weather and the changing seasons! I'm just south of Canada but I probably see a Canadian everyday. We just opened up a Tim Hortons, which is quite wonderful. Timbits are delicious but it doesn't feel right saying so. :) I am clumsy with my hands so gloves might not work. I try wearing gloves in the garden but they eventually come off too. If you keep your nails nice I understand completely and I never thought of that at all, wonderful advice. My next garden goal is winter sowing. Looked at all the seeds I bought last fall and only have 4 packages of perennials. What was I thinking!? I'm going big on sunflowers this year, kong and an autumn mix. Last year you could see them from the second floor dining room! Ok, no more derailng the post. I think sharing violets is all part of the love of having them. I will let them grow for awhile here and come spring will have room for something new.

Hi, LL, How are your violets that you repotted doing? Did they all survive? I followed your advice and successfully "popped off" a sucker using a metal pick. I put it into a shot glass size plastic cup and under the dome. It was on a plant I grew from a leaf that grew up to be symmetrical and is now coming into bloom. It is one that suckers a lot, so I am trying to keep it a single crown. It can get quite large. It likes to propagate. It has leaves that are brittle and break off easily. So I always have a crop of leaves rooting and producing babies. Joanne

This post was edited by fortyseven on Sun, Feb 2, 14 at 13:19