Oh my gosh - that pot is way too big for that plant. And if it was that wet, I am afraid you may have root rot. That plant should be in a 4" diameter pot at most when mature. African violets like to be slightly root bound. You could try cutting away the wilted outer leaves and the rotten roots and put in the smaller pot with a light mix of 1/3 spaghnum peat moss, 1/3 perlite and 1/3 vermiculite. Then cover with a plstic baggie for a few days. Keep out of direct sun. Good luck. I am sorry to say that it might just be easier to buy a new violet.

Hi, Lexie,

Ok, major rescue is in order. First of all, you need a better pot. The largest this should be repotted in is a 4" pot, and it may need to be smaller. The rule of thumb is the diameter of the pot is 1/3 the diameter of the plant. A 'squatty' pot is best, as violets have a very shallow root system. The potting mix is way too heavy, meaning it holds too much moisture, and will rot the roots. Get some perlite and some vermiculite, and mix it with your potting mix in equal amounts, meaning one part of each. If your mix is 'african violet potting mix', still do a 1-1-1 mix to repot.

This is a fairly old plant. I can tell by the way the stem has laid over and then grown up. I would cut off the stem so that you have just straight stem. When you cut it, the stem should be all green inside. If there are any mushy brown spots, that is the sign of root rot. Cut higher, until it is all green inside (with some little tiny red dots around the very edge). Scrape the outside of the stem like you would a carrot. This removes the outer layer, and exposes the layer from which new roots will come. Fill the pot with dampened mix, make a hole with a pencil that is just deep enough and around enough to hold the stem. Place the whole shebang inside a clear plastic bag, and blow it up like you would a ballon. Tie off the bag and set in bright light. You can use chopsticks to hold the bag off the plant. Do NOT set it in the sun, it will cook. The moisture from your breath will provide humidity. Check every five days or so and see if the soil mix needs to be dampened. In about 3 weeks, new roots should have formed, and you can then acclimate the plant by opening the bag a little, and a little more every few days.

Good luck.

Barbara

I would do what Barbara says. I just did that with some of my old violets too. They seem to be adjusting pretty well.

Hi everyone!
Thanks for your advice. I have tried what barbara said, with one small adjustment. I had to use a plastic container the same diameter of the top of my (new) pot rather than a plastic bag, because I only have plastic grocery bags and ziplocks. I couldn't get the grocery bag to seal well enough to keep it ballooned up, and a ziplock is just too small/wrong shape.

One strange thing, when I cut the big rooty stem, there was no green. It wasn't brown or blackish and it wasn't mushy, but it wasn't green. It seemed to be more grey or just dense clear. it did have the fibrous reddish-purple ring about half way in toward the center.

We'll see how it goes. Any more advice is always appreciated!

lexie

hello!
now i'm no where near as much as an expert as these guys, but i do have african violets that are growing absolutely brilliantly, and now its getting warmer, they are even growing new bulbs (as in flowers :P)
i dont know much about reviving them from their "illness", but i can tell you what it is that i do to make sure that they stay healthy. so, once your plants are revived, and you have followed the advice that dragonfly, barbra and cindee have given you, follow these tips to keeping your plant healthy and happy :)
firstly, these violets like heat, as they're from africa, so make sure you put them somewhere hot and sunny (once they have revived). mine are on the windowsill that faces west where the sun sets. this way they are as close as possible to their natural enviroment.
it doesnt rain much in south africa, where these violets are from, and the hairy leaves hate getting wet, and they will catch a disease and get yellow spots if you wet them. so when you're watering them, avoid getting them wet. if you accidentally do get them wet, just wipe it with a tissue- then they should be fine.
they don't like much water- you are right about that. so heres how much to water them: during the winter- once a month. early spring/ autumn- once a firtnight. during growing season (late spring/summer) once a week.
i cheated because i brought african violet fertilizer and used it with every watering, even during the winter. the plant does not flower during the winter, but late spring it does, as i have discovered, so dont worry if its december and your plant isnt flowering - its natural.
also, make sure that you cut off with sharp scissors any dying blooms and any leaves that look dodgy - you don't want them to spread a disease.
it is also helpfull to rotate your pots about 90 degrees every week, so that all of your plant gets equal sunlight.
good luck, and i hope that you enjoy your violets with many years to come
christie
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Not to be nitpicky, but to be nitpicky, African violets are not found in South Africa, but in a region of eastern Africa in the current country of Tanzania near the Kenya border, in a coastal mountain range called the Usambara Mountains. True they like warmth, as their natural habitat is less than 100 miles soiuth of the equator, and the tempurature seldom varies from 83-85 degrees F. throught the year. The humidity is usually about 90% most of the year. They do not grow in full sun, but in shaded pockets under the tree canopy, so they receive an abundance of bright indirect light but not direct sunlight in any great quantity. The area receives a lot of rain, hence the humidy, but the plants are under the tree canopy, and growing in well draining soil pockets, so they quickly shed water.

As far as watering, the plant should be watered when it needs it, and some plants will need it sooner than others. Try to avoid letting the plant become dry to the point of wilting. The weight of the pot is a good indication of whether or not the plant needs to be watered. Also, the potting mix will have a great amount of influence on how frequently you need to water.

What works for one grower may be a disaster for another.

A sunny west exposure can be great for violets, but the direct sun can burn the leaves, so a sheer curtain is a perfect way to dilute it.

The blooming of African violets can go on all year long. Some of my best flower displays happen in December. It all depends on providing conditions that simulate their natural conditions as closely as possible.

Barbara

What Barbara said, plus African violets *do* like an occasional shower, but you use tepid water (doesn't feel cool or warm; sort of body temp); cold water *will* damage the leaves.

Just tilt the pot under a low pressure tap and gently rub the leaves to help remove dust and accumulated gunk. Any water that gets in the crown can be blotted with a tissue, and keep it from drafts until it dries. Easy peasy. :-)

Good luck.

Korina

Thanks everyone!

It's been a couple weeks now, and my plant is still alive! I have lost quite a number of leaves, but many are starting to feel firm if touched! The plastic container atop my clay pot seems to have worked, and I never had to worry about moisture sitting on the leaves. The plant itself is still a bit wobbly in the pot so I will leave it as is for a while longer. I did manage to find a perfect space for lighting where it was protected from direct sun but had full access to all indirect light. Soon it will begin transitioning to either morning or afternoon sun with the rest of my plants. Based on some of the other posts, I think I will end up going with the east facing window that only gets full sun for a few hours each morning but is very very bright all day.

Thank you all so much for your help in this. I will be visiting my mother in law this afternoon and I think she will be happy to hear that the plant is still alive, and that I made such an effort to keep it that way! I even have a couple leaves that were forotten about in the very large pot that are now too rooted to pull out without considerable thought, so I've begun watering them a very small bit (they are afterall still in a 12" pot) and will hope for the best!

UPDATE!

Well, I guess I got impatient because I removed the plastic containter very soon after my last post. I still am not seeing any rooting. The plant is still droopy. The soil is pretty quick draining so I feel like it's always dry where the plant touches, yet when I water (even less than 1 ounce) it gets even more droopy. At one point I did get a little new growth, but then most of it turned white and crumbled away. I still have a couple new leaves that are less than 1/4 inch long.
This goofy plant has been so frustrating. Especially since I have a single leaf that got left in the original gigantic pot and forgotten about that has rooted, and is perfectly healthy. I just don't understand what I'm doing wrong!
Can anyone detail for me, how much light a vulnerable plant should have, how moist the soil should be (more accurately, how long should I let it stay dry before wetting again), etc.
At this point, I'm not confident that it's ever going to come back so I will not go out and buy a whole bunch of soils/additives. It either needs to prove itself in the soil it has, nor not at all.

You certainly have been given plenty of good advise above , but one thing I dont think was mentioned should you give the plant a bath, dont put it in direct sunlight untill the leaves are dry or yu can burn the leaves, otherwise follow the instructions of the experienced people above.

Hi, Lexie,

Without seeing pictures of your plant, it is hard to tell exactly what is going on, so I'm going to ask some questions...
What are you using for potting medium? How big across was the plant when you repotted it? What is the diameter of the pot it is in now? Clay, right?
What is left of the plant at this point?
If you can post some pictures, that would really help. But don't wait too long, your plant sounds like it is in real distress....
Barbara

Hi everyone!
I apologize for my previous message, I went into panic mode. I just can't bear to have anything die on my watch!

So... the pot I originally planted in can be seen in the photos with my first post. The target pot for my replanting was a standard 4" clay pot, not a short one. I used a combination of landscape potting soil and compost that I was given for my veggie garden (I know... a terrible mix for an AV).
NOW... I have completely restarted the rooting process. I don't have any small pots or containers so I used an egg carton, added a little bit of miracle grow potting soil, scratched the little stem stalk thing to make sure it wasn't too calloused to grow roots and popped it in there. I added less than a quarter ounce of water and covered it with the same plastic container I used the first time. (I retried the plastic bag now that my setup is smaller but they all deflated in a couple hours and sat on the leaves).

Thank you all so much for your support. If you see any mistakes besides the density of the miracle grow mix, I'd be happy to hear about them.

Here is a link that might be useful: {{gwi:363671}}

Good morning, Lexie,

Thanks for posting the picture. The plant doesn't look on death's door.

I have a concern for the egg carton. It is going to suck any moisture out of the potting mix. There is that fine line to walk with an AV of having the soil just damp enough, too wet, or too dry. I would try to get it into another container where you can control the moisture a little easier. Yogurt cups. pudding containers, solo cups, even a styrofoam coffee cup cut down would work. If you have one of these, poke some holes in the bottom for drainage, and repot it. Also, I know you don't want to invest in a bunch of stuff, so you could also crumble up some styrofoam and mix it into the soil to lighten it up.

Hang in there, girl, ya haven't killed it yet!

Barbara