Remember how I love my African Violets? I really do but they’ve kind of gotten away from me. UGH. It’s a problem when I have so many hobbies….and work to much.
Part of the problem was that I was having trouble finding good “medium” sized pots. I have great large pots. I have great small pots…but no medium pots.
Finally I decided somewhere on the internet someone has to have a good medium sized self watering African Violet pot.
I prefer self watering pots like this….
See how the inner pot fits into the outer pot? I put water in the outer pot and a wick brings the water to the plant ensuring that the plant has the right amount of water. 
You can see that the little plant above needs to be moved up a pot size. It really shouldn’t bloom in this small pot but this one has bloomed TWICE. It was time to do something.
In my search Mason jars were suggested to make “DIY” pots.
I had a 3″ pot here at my house. I got them from Amazon. Here’s a link…..and I had a small 4 oz jelly jar. I later went on to find a case of this size at the thrift store.
They worked perfectly together. See?
It’s not pretty but it’s a fine pot to get the plants up to the next size.
I went through every plant. Every one got new soil…an updated pot if needed and some much needed love. 
I feel so much better about them all now. I’m so embarassed that I didn’t attend to these better. Thankfully they are a good hearty plant and can handle a little neglect on my part. They aren’t really pretty now as leaves had to be pruned and blossoms had to be clipped.
If I give them a month or two they will look so much better.
Here’s my tip when repotting…Work in a pizza box. I repot in the spot where the pizza goes. I throw the dead leaves and stuff on the lid. They to clean up I close the lid an it all stays contained.
I’m so happy to have this done. I typically do a bit session like this about twice a year. In between I do weekly maintenance but the bit redo happens about twice a year.
They are looking better already.
Yahoo…I’m so happy to have that off my list…I don’t feel like a crappy plant mom anymore either!!
Way to go! I’m sure your violets are thanking you for revitalizing them! You are so inspiring – between you and the nice weather we are having here today, I should repot my plants!
Of course you noticed those little jelly jars are called “Quilted Crystal”, LOL! We use them all the time for drinking glasses … they’re perfect for a small glass of juice or anything you like. But I only have 1 that says “Quilted Crystal” on the bottom, so I make sure it’s always mine! I only have 1 African violet … it sits on my kitchen counter and always looks perfect … it’s artificial … LOL!
I bought a violet and put it where it would get afternoon light and it has really taken off growing, and has been blooming with at least 30 or more blooms. It has been blooming at least 3 weeks! How long do they normally bloom? And I need to report it as it has outgrown its pot and it’s tight in the pot and I’m scared i will break off a lot of the leaves. Should I wait until the blooms end to repot and hope for the best with repotting? Thanks for your help!
Wait until the bloom end before repotting.
Your violets are going to love the new pots and the idea of re potting in a pizza box is a wonderful idea.
Violets bloom best when they are a bit root-bound in the pot. They’ll bloom continuously if conditions are right.
I love violets and Orchids. My orchids seem to do better when left in a smaller than you would think it needs pot. I’ve been taking the same attitude w my violets. But they have not re-bloomed yet. I think I need to watch the watering more
I love Violets, but seem to kill them somehow. Any suggestions on a good book to learn more about caring for them? Thanks!
I have one violent that I’ve had for year’s didn’t bloom for many years .i moved to where I live now almost two year’s ago .To my surprise my Violent bloomed last year I was so happy and praised God for helping my Violent to bloom again it bloomed twice last year and has been in bloom this year has a new bloom coming in now .I plan on reporting it sometime this year .Thank You for the tips you share
What do you use for the wick? Have you ever used the cut off leaves to grow a new plant? Not hard to do.
I used jute. Yes…I propagate them WAY too much.
Thanks for the quick response. I will have to try the jute. I really enjoy your blog.