It is Jolly Dear. Have one blooming for me right now.

the bell shaped one - is it a Standard?

I believe it's a semiminiature.

And they are all simply gorgeously grown. Thank you for sharing with us!

Very nice. Velleta

Beautifully displayed! Love the violets. Rosie

Thanks! I am dealing with a little powdery mildew, but I think I can beat it. I'm trying to get ahead of all disease before I invest in a couple of violets I've been lusting after. :)

Heather

I love AV's :) The first time I grew them I actually did very well. I miss having them and was thinking of starting up again. What do you feed yours? I used to use a food that came in recycled soda bottles but don't think they sell it in stores anymore. It worked very well.

Personally I like the darker purple AV's but all of yours are absolutely gorgeous. :)

I hope you'll get back into it!

Right now I'm using liquid Miracle-Gro Houseplant food. A long time ago I used an African violet food, but I think my plants bloom just as well using a more balanced food. This one is 8-7-6. And I only use about half strength.

I'm very fond of the dark blooms too. I have my eye on a couple! :)

I just went to the store and bought 2 lol :D I also got a bag of AV soil that feeds up to 6 months. They are purple and white but different markings. When I get a chance I'll post pictures :)

I have a question. On another post someone mentioned how many people on the AV forum are against self watering pots. I have a handful of AV pots and never had any problems with them. They did very well. If they do well does it matter?

If ain't broke... Since you know how to work with them - use them. Try the regular pots as well and see what works better for your conditions. Get a small bag of perlite - and add it to your store bought AV soil - at least 30%. It is important to have good aeration, especially in the double ceramic pots.

You do not need to repot immediately - because you usually need to remove quite a lot of the peat based soil your plants are sitting in now - and usuallly it means - you need to remove the bloom too, because it will wilt anyway from disturbing the roots. So - enjoy your blossoms as long as they last - and do the potting later. What I know for sure - the peaty soil is not good for double ceramic pots.

Have fun

I.

Thank you so much for your advice :)

There's perlite in the mix do I still need to add more? And does it matter if I use perlite or vermiculite? Thanks! :)

Hi - vermiculite is for water retention, perlite is for aeration. IMHO you need to have at least 1/3 of perlite in a soil, especially in double ceramics.

Ok I just wanted to make sure. Thank you so much! :)