Hi there -

I agree with you - these double clay pots are not that wonderful.

Let's say - your African Violets are living breathing things - and if you want them to be pretty - you need to think how make these plants happy. It is not an issue - how to preserve the blooms for longer. The happy plant will bloom and bloom and bloom, replacing old flowers with new for 10 months in a year.

My uneducated guess would be - overwatering for sure - that's why your white one got the root rot - that's why it is wilting and dying. Leathery leaves - are they still alive? Because you can get brown spots from too much light, while the leaves are alive.

If your plants are still in a soil that they came in from the store - it is so easy to overwater them. They need much lighter soil.

Can you look through the FAQ on the top of this site? And there is excellent FAQ on AVSA.org site as well. I am thinking that there could be more than one thing that needs adjustment. As long as you meet the basic requirements of AVs they are really not hard and very rewarding.

Good Luck

irina

HI,
I agree that the self watering pots are terrible also. I would repot the plants into a plastic squat pot using a light soil mix. Most of us here use a mix that is 1-1-1. Equal parts of peat, coarse vermiculite and coarse perlite. The size pot should be 1/3 the diameter of the crown of the plant. If your plant is 9 inches across the pot that you use should be 3inches in diameter. I would remove all the wilted and dying leaves and bring it down to a healthy crown. I would also remove any blossoms and bloomstalks.
If you need more help I have three sheets that I distribute to novice growers at talks that I gave. Email me and I can send them to you.
Fred in NJ