Check your water source for Chloramine.

In the meantime, switch to bottled spring water.

Isn't that from like city water?

It's possible from any municipal water supplier.

Ah ok..I knew I read something on it but couldn't totally remember all that was said..I have well water

Kinda difficult to think..type on phone while on a treadmill lol

Aegis would chloramine be in well water?

Heather, does your well water have a lot of sulphur in it, or is it good well water? Ours is full of sulphur and unusable except for outdoor watering, chickens & peacocks and the horse (before he died of old age).

If it is good well water then I guess it will be ok for indoor plants, but I don't know much about well water & plants. Unless there would be chloramine in it I don't see why it would hurt the violets.

Did you give the leaves a fresh razor cut before planting? Some people just break them off and plant. May or may not work.

What is your process for rooting? In baggies? On wicks not in baggies? Just in soil and you water when it feels dry? Let us know and maybe we can figure it out.

But just know,,,,sometimes you just lose leaves for reasons not known. Rosie

rosie..not that i'm aware of or can smell lol..if i did..wouldnt my other av's and plants be affected??

yes i cut the stems before planting them..i dont bag them..or use wick (yet)..i've just stick them in dirt and made out fine until now..lol the only new thing is the dirt...i'm using av soil with perlite..which it is a bit different for me..normally my av's dry out some..and i will bottom soak them..this is what i do for my succulents..and started with the av's and seems to work for them all..

i wasnt expecting all the leaves to be 100%..so the one right off the bat didnt bother me none...but after the 3rd one..i started to worry...i tend to kill plants...which is odd for a number of plants i have now..and manage to keep alive lol

i kinda love my plants too much..and usually overwater them..i've learned that with my succulents..and have them in a special medium..its kinda why i've been transferring my av's to a better draining soil..

Heather - could it be that they are just do not get enough water? Your new mix is quite loose and dries fast.

Spray your leaves with water. Cover with something - baggie, saran wrap - just drape it. Keep spraying 3 times a day. When they root - and provide their own roots - you can open them up.

They sure do better if you keep them covered - keep them humid but not wet.

not sure..i keep checking them everyday because that soil is new to me..the third leaf the stem is mushy..so i wondered if it was too wet.

i have a hard time with plants..if something is wrong..i have to know what it is..shame they dont talk to me

Heather, they are talking, it is just a language we don't always understand. I have a feeling there may be just enough inconsistency in watering to make a difference in some of the leaves surviving. It happens to all of us at one time or another,

Irina has great suggestions.

As far as me, I would recommend either switch to wick system or try the baggie system. Either one takes care of watering problem.

Baggie system: Recut and replant the stem in fresh soil (1/2 potting soil & 1/2 perlite) that is BARELY damp. And I DO mean barely!!!! Otherwise it will rot.

Here is what I do: Put about 1 1/2Tblsp. soil mix in the short end of the baggie and zip up enough so it holds in the soil. Cut the stem about an inch down from the leaf and put it into the soil. Add an ID plant tag, or write with sharpie on the outside of the bag so you know date and name of plant. Zip up the baggie and before you finish closing it blow some air into the baggie and zip all the way up. You shouldn't have to water it until it has babies. If too much condensation gets on the inside of the baggie, open it and wipe it with a napkin, cloth etc. and reseal. I have very good luck doing the baggie method.

If you want a wick system, use a kcup, put wick (acrylic yarn, one ply is good) same soil mix, cut stem and insert into soil. Set kcup on a container (make a small hole large enough for wick to drop into) with a lid that can hold water, and set on the reservoir. Don't fertilize yet.

Hope I didn't forget any steps. Let us know how it works for you. Good Luck! Rosie

Hmm now I'm at a loss on what to do..I've never done either..or thought I needed to..usually I'm an overwaterer. .I've not attempted wicking..usually it's very humid where I live or a lot of moisture in the house.

If I lose all these leaves I might have a cow or two lol..I'm very big in debt..so this was a huge splurge..that I'm still feeling guilty about

If your home is humid and you over water, you have just made your own diagnosis! Your plants are talking to you.

I would opt for the wick if I were you BUT something just occurred to me. Not too long ago someone posted here about the same problem. She lives where the humidity is very high all the time. We advised wicks and a fan or two. She took our advice and now she is successful!!! Try to find her back posts and read them, her name is Velleta Tardiel.

She posts here sometimes and her plants are now doing well !!!!! She also propagates using wicks and fans. Everything is wicks and fans.

You have to do something quick,,,,,nothing ventured,,,nothing gained!!! Rosie

hmm i've only watered the cuttings once..just a spoonful of water...when i mixed the av soil and perlite i didnt add much water to it..so it was dry ..I check them everyday and still damp from watering wednesday..

I have fans going in the room...I'll give wicking more thought..it was something I wanted to do...i've confiscated quite a few cool whip containers..they might be perfect for the wicking with so many leaves going

While you are trying to decide on wicking or not,,,,,start reading the past posts on wicking. A lot of information is there and maybe it will answer some questions you may have. Rosie

You shouldn't have to water them at all if you have bagged or domed them. They may be alternately being too wet and then drying out too much. If they aren't rotting they are probably drying too much. Keep the soil only damp, not wet, and bag or dome them and they may yet be fine.

Rosie. I've read a lot on it. I have researched every plant I have..still not good at it lol ps. Wicking is happening!

Patty. Honestly have never bagged or domed. I've read a few things about it..but I had started propagating leaves fine without it..so I never gave it a second thought

Heather I started out just sticking a leaf in a pot and it worked. Man,,,I had pots of leaves everywhere! But I have had to evolve because the old method of pots no longer worked for me. I don't know why. I tried other ways and finally settled on the baggie method.

I love my baggie method of rooting leaves. I don't have to worry about watering them. Yes, I do check each and every baggie every week or so, just to make sure all is well.

The only reason I don't wick individual leaves in kcups on reservoirs is because they take up too much room! I can stand many baggies on their short end in a pan and they don't take up much room at all! YAY!!!!! (until they get bigger! YAYHAY!!!! lol

Wicks happen once they are large enough to be potted up. Then I use the kcups and/or solo cups, depending on the size of the baby and put them on lidded condiment containers with a hole cut in the lid just big enough for the pot to go in about 1/4 inch or so, I want it to sit firmly in the lid. (if I don't do that, I tend to knock them over ! ) Then I fill the container and we are good to go!

Try both methods,,,,but make sure, as Hyn says, make sure the baggie soil is BARELY damp and don't water it again after you zip it up. It is in a small "terrarium" so it needs no additional water. Good luck! Rosie

Very well. Wicking leaves sometimes works fine but it does take up a lot more space. I think the others have covered it and you did ask for our advice.

Or as Rosie explained, individually bagged leaves. If you only have one leaf here or there to put down at a time, bagging them is easier and less tricky than constantly disturbing a flat with opening and adding more leaves. Also if you wanted to offer leaf pots, this conserves work and allows them to stay sealed against pests so that when sent to new homes you know they are bug free if everything was sterilized.

Hyn thanks for that comparison and the pix,,,,,I guess I wasn't thinking on quite that large of a scale for baggies as shown in your photos. I don't have as many as you do. I zip my baggie up about 2 inches and put the soil, leaf and tag so the baggie sits up on its short end. Sometimes I will use a kcup instead of loose soil though. Then I zip it up almost all the way and puff air into it then finish zipping. With my space at a premium (real estate, as Irina calls it! lol), this works for me. BUT,,,,when it comes to the mini leaves or even micro minis,,,I will use a small clear container with a clear lid and make a community pan. They would get "lost" in an upright baggie!

I guess there are so many adaptations to the same system a person just has to try out a few before you find one that works well. I lost a lot of leaves whether domed or baggied because I didn't understand that my soil was too damp. But I am far more successful now that I have really paid attention to what all of you are saying and making sure I understand it. And then DO it !! haha

Heather you will lose a few leaves but you will gain so much more by trying different methods with just a couple leaves at a time. Better to sacrifice a couple than do everything and lose all! Good luck!!! Rosie

PS. Hyn, Irina and Aegis thanks for all the input! Gave me a couple things to think about.

yes the wicking took up a ton of space..i had to do some maneuvering..but it solved the knocking over little cups issue lol..it was the only thing i knew i had quite a few of that i could use..

yes i did ask for advice..i wasnt trying to dismiss anyone..i'm hesitant on trying either method..i'm very very broke..very very in debt..so this was a luxury to purchase..and i'm fearful of losing all of them..I have wanted to wick I just wanted something prettier..like mason jars..And anything with moisture worries me..I had a sick orchid that I tried to bag...the only thing I got from that was mold..lol so what has been working i didnt want to mess with in a way cause it "was" working so far..

i cant quite tell if wicking my leaves is okay based on the comments or not..

Heather, slow down a bit. First work on learning to raise violets. Then worry about pretty containers. Heck,,,I still use any recycle thing I can. If you just look around you will find plenty of free stuff that works just great.

And please make aquaintance with Miss Patience! She is a good friend of mine. You are not going to see instant results when you change from one method to another. It takes longer than you think! Slow down and enjoy the process.

If any of your leaves are still good and firm, give them a new cut and wick them. To do nothing as I stated previously will make them die. Just make sure you use 1/2 perlite and 1/2 potting (NOT garden) soil. Use a piece of acrylic yarn for a wick (one or two ply will be ok) and really just sit back and wait. That's all you can do at this point.

Hey,,,we all want what is in the "greener" pasture, but sometimes we just have to stay in our own pasture for a while. Good luck,,,,Rosie & Miss Patience!

Oh miss patience..my evil twin and I have become real aquanted in the last 2.5 years ..(which is a very long interesting but unbelievable story)..which is why I dove head first into plants..it's my escape from the 2.5 years of ell with my evil twin miss patience

It it what it is for now..yarn is part of my business so finding yarn isnt an issue lol...I used my thinner 4ply yarn and split in half for the leaves and smaller ones..used full for the 4inch pots..they all have the same feeling of dampness (not sure of the proper term)..but going to keep an eye on them. I have av soil with half perlite..which is what I'm slowly transitioning them into..I think I have one or two 4 inch pots still left..wanted to wait until the blooms are done first

Ok sounds like you are trying to correct the issue. Good. "A little bit of something is better than a whole lot of nothing"!!!! Rosie

Heather: FWIW, here's what I do and I have never lost a leaf yet: I burn some holes in the bottom of a small white Solo cup, fill it 1/3 with Perlite and top it with my av mix. Water thoroughly and let it sit for a day to dry out a bit. Next day I poke a hole, insert leaf stem, making sure soil is pushed back again around stem, then place it in a sandwich sized plastic bag, place on a bright windowsill and that's it. I rotate the whole thing daily so the leaf gets even light. In a month or two I get babies.

Hi Marianne! Sounds good! One more method to do the baggies!

I have a friend who uses a kcup, inserts a wick, fills it 1/3 with Perlite (she uses the big chunks of perlite) topped off with soil (1/2 soil & 1/2 perlite) and sets them on a fleece mat that is kept damp. She does pretty well with this method.

So many ways to accomplish the same goal!!! Ain't it just so much fun??? Rosie

Marianne,

I might try your method. Because I really can't gauge demp but not wet.

That's great Rosie! AVs confound me. I grow with my natural light here and bought some mats and trays, wicking some, others just on the mats, like a science experiment! I seem to have taken a step backwards in that I now have less blooms on all the matted plants, even Optimara Millenia and that one (I have 5) has always budded and bloomed for me. I still have small leaves which I though was due to too much light here in south Florida. I moved one tray 5 feet from the window and now they are stretching towards the light. At this point, I am seriously considering that the window tint is somehow filtering out the UV light that they need. I have no idea what is on the windows but do know they are tinted somewhat.

Back to the original thread, the only part of AV culture I see to do well with is starting babies from leaves!

Thanks Marianne! Natural light is about all I have too. I do have one 4ft double bulb flourescent light fixture and I switch plants around so they all benefit!

But look on the bright side! You can always have babies growing!!!!! Rosie

Rosie, you are right that there /are/ many ways to make things work. And what works for one may not work for someone else. Keep trying Heather and hopefully they'll come through for you! All we can do is share ideas and wish you luck. This is a great place that way. We are all trying to help. ;)

Well said Hyn!!!! Good Luck Heather!!! Rosie

a late question..is there a way to tell if the wick is taking too much moisture for the av?

Too heavy of a pot. Soil soggy. If your soil is on a denser side - the wick should be skinnier - otherwise the soil will get soggy. If you added enough perlite, if you put a layer of perlite on the bottom - you can get away with a thicker wick - and the skinny wick can be too skinny in this case. But if you lift a pot and it feels too hefty... you need to work on it.

i'm not sure how to reply to that...could be my crappy comprehension...i use half perlite half av mix..i used a thinner 4 ply acrylic yarn ..i split it in half for my leaves..and full for the 4 inch pots...they all have that just been watered feeling..

Let me ask this Heather. Do you THINK your wick is taking too much moisture? Or are you just asking CAN it take too much moisture thereby making your soil too damp??

If you THINK your soil is too damp even with the 1/2 to 1/2 mix then try running a small fan. Sometimes lack of air movement can alter the balance between wicking from the bottom and evaporation of the water from the top of the soil. And everything IS a balance. So try a small fan on the floor level and that will get the air moving.

If you are asking CAN it wick to much? I would say no. Provided you have a good balance of "suck water up into soil, plant uses water, air movement around plant creates evaporation of water from top of soil thereby making wick deliver more water!" All in a well orchestrated symphony!!!

And yes,,,in wicking they should always have that "just been watered feeling". If you feel the top of the soil at any given time it should be damp. Wicking is constant. With wicking you should not have a dry plant.

Does this answer the question? If not,,,ask again and I will try to figure it out.

Rosie

I am thinking is that if the soil is fluffy enough - it is OK. If it got settled and dense - probably you can do something not too drastic - take a chopstick, make several holes in a soil, squash the pot a bit to improve the air access to the roots. When I pot - I try to fill the pot - but not to press soil too much- the air access to the roots is important - especially if you wick.

Commercial soils have the wetting agent in their formula - so they tend to absorb more water.

I think you are now fine tuning your technique. I suspect the plants grow nicely as is.

True Irina, I forgot about "squeezing" the pot gently. Thanks! Rosie

i dont press the soil down much at all for any of them...its kinda hard to figure out..because its spring/summer like weather here..so the windows are often open..and during the day its warm..but at night it gets cool...so when its cooler in my room..they feel wetter..if that makes sense..but when its warm..i can tell their damp..but they dont feel as damp as when its cooler...i usually touch the top of the soil from a few pots to see..and check the water

idk something told me to remove the wicks..and redo them..so the leaves are on 1 ply...and the bigger 4 inch pots are on 2 ply. my perlite isnt as big of chunks as i've seen from other youtube videos (btw theres not much about av's there..such a shame)..mine are finer..small pieces..also when i first did the wicking..they were already planted so i had to use a needle to get them in the pots..and whatever excess yarn i pulled i stuffed it in the pot..this time around i kept the excess to a minimum..just incase it was giving too much water...

i dont technically know how wet they should be..to me i can describe it as the soil feels like after i've bottom soaked them..so its like that all the time..which my head is like this makes no sense how does this not over water them..beings you're told that they need to dry out some..

speaking of soil..its kinda funny actually...i had never worked with av soil..or perlite..i do have two leaves in just av soil..and i dont like it..so i'm glad for the perlite..i do like the fluffy look..just the av soil alone..it just looks like it packs the soil down after watering (okay i'm rambling sorry)..but with the av and perlite..its cute watering the soil like that reminds me of snow cones when you had the syrup how the ice kinda melts a little.....i know weird..thats how my brain works lol

Hope you will still have the same warm feelings when your collection quadruples... and they do ;-))!

haha..it already has..i've slowly been removing leaves so they are more symmetrical ..and any leaf i remove..i plant..i had to clean off the bottom shelf where i was using as storage for all plant stuff just to put the leaves down..and while working on the wicks..i'm looking at all the leaves etc..and i'm like..this is going to be mad crazy when all of this grows.. I need more shelves!!! lol

HAHAHAHAHA!!!! Heather you are a girl after my own heart!!! Rosie

Awww!

Just send them all to Rosie!!! Each leaf will give you 7 babies and then what?

Not all..I can't give avs up..I'm addicted..big time....I'm searching all over the house for places to put them lol

And I will trade one with this person and 6 others!!!!! haha! Too much fun! Rosie

Ah just got notification for your reply Rosie from yesterday...

Um asking if it was too wet..I guess with wicking no one really has said how wet they should be...I always have a fan going in the room...I think with me being new to it..plus the weather still being decent enough for Windows to be open..one day it can be 87 and humid..the next 62. So that's hard to kinda figure out I guess for now. The humidity fluctuates a lot..I keep an eye on it with my temp/ humidity meter

And also..I love your idea of leaf trading..I like how you think rosie!

Chuckle chuckle ! Thanks! Rosie