Hi, Joan,

Amusing anecdote! Perhaps you would post a photo of Miss Bengal Kitty? I don't think I have ever seen one!

Perhaps a trip to your garden shop will reveal some pottery choices.

Some considerations are humidity. I live in Calif near the ocean where it is dry and warm so plastic works best. If MN is humid, or rainy, clay might work better.

AVs have tiny roots and no stems. The water balance is critical. They need small amounts frequently. When blooming, they need more frequent watering. About every two days. When not blooming, about every 3 or 4 days.

There is a video on the Epsoma You Tube channel where a young lady demonstrates potting methods and types of pots and reasons for choosing.

Epsoma is a brand name of high quality products. (It might be spelled Espoma.)

A potting method called Texas potting gives good results. That is more for advanced stages.

However, keep in mind, the Optimara is bred for longevity and performance. It will do well in a variety of either pottery or plastic.

(The plants you get from growers typically come in 2" or 2.5" square pots. They can normally stay in that size for a few months, from 3 to 6. )

For many years, I lived in a damp, dark climate and insisted on using standard clay. I planted the AVs directly. But the leaves would get torn on the rough edges of the pot.

Also, they take up space. They discolor and need more frequent watering. They are fragile.

When I moved to Calif., a violet collector friend, and Irina on this forum, convinced me to use plastic. I bought sturdier plastic that look exactly like traditional reddish-orange clay and are made in the U.S.A. They are my favorite. But hard to find lately.

For weight so that Kitty does not wreak havoc, and for nice display, garden shops have many decorative pots.

My current preferred pot is a classic flower pot shape in glazed pottery with a plastic interior liner and matching saucer. The glaze prevents discoloration but does not aerate like natural clay. It comes in several colors. I use it as a cache pot.

The store-bought AV in the standard flimsy plastic pot fits perfectly inside. I do not remove the AV from the 4" pot.

Many here use a wick method. That really is ideal for larger collections. If you get a chance to watch one of the All About African Violets podcast, Annie shows that method. However, it is not kitty or toddler-proof.

Joanne

Joanne, almost every time you write you supply some new tidbit that I have never seen before! What, water every couple days when in bloom?? Apparently I don't understand AV watering even after all this reading. I have always been taught to "water through the pot," and only when necessary for the given plant; moreover, the standard AV advice seems to be "moist but not soggy." My 'Rebecca,' now beginning a new flush of bloom, was repotted about 10 days ago, and the soil surface still seems moist enough, though the pot is getting noticeably lighter. I also haven't fertilized since the repotting, on the hypothesis that after the stress of repotting I should just let it settle for a couple weeks. Are you saying that every two days I need to allow it to wick up whatever it wants? Should there be weak fertilizer in there? Oh my goodness. I'm a little worried now.

How do you give a "small amount frequently" without only watering the surface of the soil? Or - is that all that is required? Color me confused. My practice is to water from the bottom of the pot: stand it in a dish of water and let it wick up whatever it wants. Do you mean to tell me I need to do this every other day during blooming, and every 4-5 days otherwise? I'm not unwilling, but I'm so much more acquainted with plants that simply can't stand that level of saturation.

Re the topic of this thread: there's a decent garden shop in Fargo, about 75 miles west of me, but I'm reluctant to go there because Fargo has been a recent C19 hot spot, and there are a LOT of people there who won't wear masks. Ugh. It's not that I don't have time to drive. But to do so would be irresponsible in a number of ways, unless I have no other option.

Could you send me a link for your "current preferred pot"? I've been searching and searching but these things aren't that easy to find.

I have no intention whatsoever of planting directly into ceramic, clay, or stoneware. Plastic all the way. It gets extremely dry here in the winter, and summer humidity is controlled with AC. What I am quite sure of is that I need the anti-knock-over insurance that a pot of that kind could supply. I know nothing is perfectly cat/toddler-proof; but I must do the best I can and accept the consequences of Izzy. She's worth it.

Last but not least (and last, in ceremonial processions for instance, is the position of greatest honor): THANK YOU. Again. :)

P.S. You asked for a picture. Izzy does not look Bengal (search images with your preferred agent), and no Bengal-fancier site would call her anything other than "tabby." She came to me as a stray kitten, about four months old.

The best cats are always strays, and I'd been waiting about 14 years for a stray to show up. It was my daughter who, months later, having formerly had a boyfriend who had purebred Bengals, told me Izzy sure looked and acted like one. I checked it out, especially re personality, and bingo. Anyway, here she is. Attitude and all. On the launchpad.

Izzy is beautiful! Thanks for sharing!

No, do not water a wet AV!

The test is to touch the top of the potting mix. When it is dry, put about 1/2" water in the saucer. Then wait til it is absorbed. If the top is still dry, add another 1/2". Then repeat as needed.

If you accidentally over-water, let the pot sit on paper towels until the excess is drawn out.

The potting mix contains fertilizer. The repotted AV does not need fertilizer for 3 or more months.

They prefer bottom watering.

Av care is counter-intuitive.

Yes, 75 miles is way too far. The store where I get my planters is called Sloat's. They are a small, privately owned chain in northern California.

AVs like bathrooms. The door can be shut.

Joanne

Thanks as always, Joanne.

Let's be honest, Izzy is not particularly beautiful. But her looks were never what made her my Favorite Feline Ever. It is her character. Even when she knocks orchids on their heads.

My potting mix did not contain fertilizer. I made the mix myself, by feel, from elements on hand. No slow-release anything on hand and all old fertilizers flushed out and used up. It's loose and airy, about one part peat and/or coconut coir to one part perlite. The fertilizer I've been using, and that seems to work well enough so far, is Schultz's liquid 10-15-10. The label indicates 7 drops per quart for every watering. Advice I have read is to "follow label directions." So that's my practice and plan.

The bathroom is no option here: it's interior, no windows. (Besides, it would be the *bathroom.* Who wants to go there just to visit one's violets?? But we all gotta do what we gotta do.)

Further re exposure: my house has deep 4' eaves on the sunny sides, and all of those have dappled shade from mature trees. Obviously more in the summer and less in the winter, when the leaves are gone. Thus even south-facing windows are fairly shady on the longest and most intense days of the year, when the sun is high. During the winter the sun is super low and streams into the farthest reaches of the house, but is far less intense and the day lengths are much shorter. In future I'll probably have to add artificial light during that time of year. We'll see.

Meanwhile, re watering: I still don't see how any AV is going to need watering every couple of days, at any time, since as far as I've observed the soil seems to be moist enough even at surface level for at least a week. Seriously, you do this?? Offer water every two days? SO counter-intuitive! But then you said that's the way they are: counter-intuitive. I'm interested to hear more. Do your violets actually get dry enough after two days? I don't think mine would, even in winter at 25% ambient humidity. Present (summer) ambient conditions are 50-60% humidity at 71F. (IMO, human paradise, and probably pretty good for lots of plants too.)

Gosh I wish I could come and visit your collection and have you talk about your decisions re particular plants: that's the best way to be educated. I do have capillary mat on hand, from my (glorious) automated greenhouse days. Wouldn't that be a gentler, airier way? But capillary mat plus fertilizer water plus light inevitably equals algae. Then you gotta add HPO3 or wash-and-bleach/etc, uff da, lots of messing with chemicals. Surely there is a more sustainable way.

Many thanks for all. :D

Joan in Minnesota

Hi, Oh, I forgot you made your own

mix! The mix of ingredients is what determines how frequently watering is needed. I never used coir and I use a higher amount of perlite.

Anyway, sounds like what you are doing works well.

Yes, my AVs dry out with the formula I use and desert-like conditions and intense light for more hours than other parts of the country, even though curtained.

The Schultz is for flowering. If it is not ready to flower, then you can use a formula for foliage. The middle number is the floweing number. The foliage number is the first one, for Ni, and should be higher in a foliage boosting formula.

Actually, the capillary matting system is used by many serious growers. It is possible to search on this forum in archives for discussions and photos.

Joanne

Oh, Joanne, that makes total sense: it's the soil! (Plus ambient humidity. Dew points here are in the 50's and 60's and sometimes - UGH - over 70 in the summer. But into the single digits in winter. That changes things.) And Rosie, I can see where with that 3-1 ratio your soil too is going to dry out faster. I can see where you really need to do that wicking. Well, I think I will have few enough plants that I can do regular pot-lifting and hopefully make them happy. So far so good! We'll see how things go after the next equinox, when we go into the dark and dry months in Minnesota. One step at a time. Thanks again, everybody.

Northern Gardener I only use the 3-1 ratio when I went to wicking. Before that winter time is when I struggled. Things dried out far too fast even with a heavier mix. I had too many plants and I would no sooner get done watering and I would have to start again. I still do have larger plant pots (floor plants and such) that I have to water the old way. And that is ok. I can handle that. So all is well now! Good luck to you and don't forget to show pix and let us know. Rosie

Rosie, I can sure imagine getting into that situation, in a low-humidity situation and given a larger collection. I'm maintaining a round dozen of phalaenopsis orchids, which require about 10-15 minutes, EACH, of soaking in weak fertilizer, per event. ("Alexa, set a timer for X minutes.") From December up to May I add another 12-15 amaryllises to the collection. While these are not particularly demanding of frequent watering, knowing when to do it, and for which bulbs (always with weak fertilizer), requires careful observance. And now I'm throwing in violets. I still think I can do it without resorting to a wicking system. I'm so much trained with regard to pot weights and soil structure and general observance of health, that I think it will work out. It will be an interesting year. :)

"NG"/Joan

Seems like you got this under control!!! Keep us posted and good luck! Rosie

Joan, A while back, many serious growers on this forum had many discussions and most moved to wicking. It is the preferred method for a variety of technical reasons duch as regilation of growth, feeding, symmetry. What Rosie showed is an ideal growing set-up. However, for a small collection, it is not necessary. Joanne