Harawlins & westerly pacific, Thanks for the kind words. This is not a new idea, I posted the whole building process with the first one back during the winter. You might try doing a search of GW for"

Announcing the "germination" of my "Miniature African Violet Tree

Have fun.

Bill

Love all of these ideas! I use the Kcups for all size african violet leaves! Just love 'em!!!! Rosie

thanks Bill :)

This ? is for everyone. What about using a re-usable generic k-cup that has the mesh all around? Also, do you let the k-cup sit in water at all times so that the plant never dries? Thanks...Mona

Mona - hello =

1. The used K-cups are trash - and we are giving them new life - so it is recycling. And they are free. Reusable K-cup will be $1.50 a piece cheapest. We can get regular small pots much cheaper.

2. The miniatures sitting on a top of jars are not touching the water. They are wicked = there is an acrylic wick hanging from each pot and sucking up water from reservoir. The idea - is to keep soil moist, but not too wet. Keeping the pot with soil partialy in the water all the time - will make it wet - and AVs die very fast if the soil is too wet.

irina

For my home conditions I have had to adapt. Here is how I do it. I mix 1/2 MiracleGro and 1/2 Perlite. I fill my little Kcup, add my cutting and I do NOT water it! There is enough moisture in the Miracle Gro to sustain it in the baggie til it is rooted!!!! I put it in a baggie on the short side, zip it almost all the way up, blow air into it and quickly zip it the rest of the way to pouf out the baggie. Once a week or so I open the baggie, check everything out, and zip it up and blow air into it.

I have never heard of the mesh Kcups. I just have the normal ones you use every day. I have about 600 of them, so if I have to throw one out it is ok.

And I use this method for all types of cuttings! I used it for Strep leaves and WOW. I have babies of streps! Works well for me. Especially in the winter I can't keep up with watering when the furnace dries things out! This method is perfect for me. Good luck. Rosie

Rosie - hi -

my guess Mona is new to African Violets. Hopefully we will give her some input and her plants will grow and bloom. And she already gave you an input on K-cups, so now you know what to do when you are out of 600 K-cups - you get yourself a reusable one and will start grinding coffee again to pack into the mesh K-cup.

SInce I developed a habit of drinking coffee before drip coffee makers ... I drink Turkish...the problem is with a coffee grinder. I need the one that makes the grounds very fine...

Anyway... I digress from the topic - besides the fact that coffee grounds should be fed to the worms and worm tea should be used on AVs. So to be totally in recycling mood - we need to have a worm farm under the sink in the kitchen.

it is cool to see this thread resurface …. I HAVE to leave my worm farm elsewhere, per da boss ...

dave

Dave -

you need to keep the worms warm. Better under the sink than under the bed. They have a smell. it is not bad - or especially strong - so if you have a trash can under the sink in the kitchen - da boss won't even know if anything else is there.

i.

Ok, now that we are talking worms,,,,, My grandma was from the old country. She always kept some earthworms in containers in the bottom of her fridge. Yep. It was normal for us to see those containers. She may have used some castings for her plants, but by crackey!, when we wanted to go fishing we never had to scrounge for bait! She fed them the peels from her vegetables that she cleaned for meals etc. Wow, what wonderful compost! I miss my gramma!!!! Rosie

Ok so I came up with a small pot solution. Can be used wicked or non wicked and is cost effective and recycled. I used a empty water bottle. 16 oz. cut the top off about 2 inches down then remove about a 2 inch section of the bottle that leaves you with a bottom and a top. Flip the top into the bottom after removing the cap tada new pot. What about the large whole you drink out of? Not a problem I used a small piece of netting recycled form a bag my oranges came in. Wicking can be ran straight into the bottle mouth and to the plant or if not wicked have a tray to keep stable the pot stable and catch any liquid that escapes the plant. You could easily bag or use another bottle parts to make a personal greenhouse.

That's the works of a true repurposer and recycler! Looks someway strange - but will work nicely for semi-minis and minis! Bigger bottles will work for standards - but they are much more awkward to cut.

And again - if the little one is in bloom - get a small cachepot, hide the contraption inside and decorate the top with a sheet moss or something to hide the mechanics - and voila - you have a precious blooming centerpiece.

Julia! You and I think alike!!! I have a couple of those made and they work great! The only thing I do different is I put the cap back on after I use a nail and hammer to make a hole for my string/wick. I just like it better that way. And you can put a small amount of aquarium gravel in the bottom part and that will give enough weight so it is not tippy. Rosie

Rosie -

I got myself a saudering iron for $20. And I burn the holes outside on my back porch to reduce the stink. Solo cups, all kind of plastic food containers work well for starting leaves and suckers.

Ewwww,,,yep that does stink! I use an exacto knife blade to gently go through the plastic stuff. Works good for me. Rosie

I like accurate round holes. I was using an electric drill on stacks of solo cups - but holes are always ruggedy. Nah = I prefer to make the whole box of them ready to go. Xacto knife is not good for mass production.

Oh, you're right. Mass production not so good. I just sit and putz one at a time and I don't make round holes. I make triangles! But that is ok, we just both have are own methods to accomplish the same goal! Cool!!!!!! Rosie

And I use an old fashioned ice pick to poke several holes through a whole stack of solo cups or keurig cups at one time - that works well too, plus no "stink." ;-)

BTW, it worries me when people casually use soldering irons to burn holes in plastic. That isn't just a bad smell; that is a toxic emission (Dioxins) that is very bad for you to breathe in. Glad you do it in a ventilated area, Irina, but many people I've read of on GW do it right at their kitchen table!

Good advice. Nah - I am working on the back porch - it has roof, that's it. Kinda cold and windy in winter and takes longer to heat the soldering iron - but the vapors are very nasty, didn't know about dioxins though.

Anne! Thanks for jogging my memory! I DO have an ice pick. A really old fashioned one that would do that job a little better, faster AND safer. There have been a couple times I have "slipped" with the razor cutter thing. After all, plastic is slippery. Yep that ice pick and I are going to become good friends!!!!!

And honestly, now that you mention it, the fumes are toxic with a soldering iron. Maybe kinda like second hand smoke? Second hand toxin in the air???? Be careful Irina! And everyone else! Rosie

It is always windy - so the dioxins will be gone with the wind. '

Rosie - it is not second hand smoke - it is Agent Orange - much scarier.

Hi Robin, I love your self watering pots and plan to give them a try. I'm just wondering if I buy a potted afrcan violet plant from the store how would I get it to fit in the 2 1/2 oz condiment cup? It just seems like the plant would be too big. Thanks.. Lori

lfs222,

these pots are for mini african violets, which get around 6" in diameter. the african violets you get from a store are generally the standard variety, which get around 12".

Think about Mason jars.

it's baaack! love this ol' thread ...

I don't care how old this thread is, this is utterly brilliant.

I just wanted to thank you for this idea. I followed the directions with no problems, very easy, and my AV minis seem very happy.

Karen, that display looks soooo nice! Better than cottage cheese containers! Rosie

I love this idea! Quick question - has anyone had issues with the metal condiment cups rusting? I thought about using black plastic ones instead, but am having a hard time finding 2.5 oz black condiment cups, and I'm afraid that 2 oz cups will be too small...

I can't believe this thread I started in 2011 (!) is still going... I still have the same set-up, and no, the condiment cups have not rusted after all these years. Violets are still happy!

My newer AV have taken off with this method as well. My miniature trailers have just started blooming. I just wash the glass jars for algae occasionally and the metal parts have been fine.

Fantastic, thank you both for responding! I'm gathering materials to make my own - I couldn't find any locally, so I had to order condiment cups on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00QFRTR7O/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1. I'm still waiting for them, and hopefully they fit! I'll try to remember to update once I get them, in case anyone else is looking for some.

Are you still using a 1:1:1 soil ratio? I set up an empty trial run with a plastic condiment cup and twisted mason's twine (#15) from Lowe's, and the soil looks too wet for my liking. I tried a different ratio, like what the Violet Barn sells for wicking (https://www.violetbarn.com/cart/growing-supplies/potting-soils/wicking-potting-mix.html), and it looks and feels about the same as the 1:1:1 in terms of moisture. Maybe I just need to get used to it.

Last question, a little off topic - does anyone use LED light strips for their plants? I've seen plenty of info on fluorescent lights, but it seems to me that the new LED light strips (something like these: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005GL5UG2/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=211189&creative=373489&creativeASIN=B005GL5R56&link_code=as3&tag=myyelkit-20&th=1) might be cheaper and longer lasting. Plus, they look pretty nice compared to the traditional fluorescent shop lights, and take up less space.

Quick update: the stainless steel condiment cups fit perfectly in the jar rings, and feel like good quality. They're very slightly taller than I was expecting though, so I'm not sure how much water I'll be able to fit in the bottom of a 4 oz jar - I might have to refill them more than I'd like. I might go with 8 oz jars, though sadly they're not as cute. I did see the collector's edition 8 oz jars that Ball sells, they look shorter and rounder than the 8 oz jars, but not as short as the 4 oz jars. They might be a happy medium, though they're slightly more expensive than typical jars.

I actually found a potting mix at my local Big Lot store. It's not soil, it's a mix of 1/2 and 1/2 with vermiculite. Large bag for $2.00. I used a thick gage polyester wicking string from Amazon and I was worried about it being too thick but my local nursery told me not to worry about it, the plants will only draw what it needs. I fill the jar about 1/2"-3/4" to just under the water line and only have to add more once a week or so. At first they dried out quicker but they have slowed down now and that seems to be the time frame for adding water. I got my cups from ebay, because my Walmart didn't have them.

Hmm, thanks for the info! Do you happen to have the Ebay link still? Your cups look a little more shallow than mine, so I think you can fit more water under them. That's good you only need to water once a week-ish!

Has anyone tried this with the plastic cups that Motts Applesauce comes in?

I have some AV cutting that are finally sprouting leaves after about 6 months. Our house is normally pretty dry so they have been living in plastic bag hot houses all this time. I think it it time to get them in some cute little pots.

I haven't used applesauce cups, but I have used 2.5 oz plastic condiment cups (I got them from either Walmart or a dollar store, can't remember which), and those were fine.

Happystamps,,,if they have been enclosed in baggies all this time, remember to acclimate them first,,no matter what container you transplant them to.

I am sure you can experiment and find lots of containers that will fit just fine in the reservoir you choose. Good Luck! Rosie

Thanks skysong4. I will keep those on mind if these do not work.

Rosie1949 - Thanks for the advice...I am so new to AV's. I managed to kill a really old one we inherited from a friend. And I felt terrible... These are cuttings from my very first AV that I purchased at a Church plant sale. When you say acclimate, does that mean to open the bags a little bit more each day?

Yes, and I almost would be inclined to "acclimate" before I transplant. It won't take that long and I think if your plantlings are nicely used to the real atmosphere they won't have to adapt to two process at one time. Just my thoughts on it.

Seems as though your "pot" fits nicely in the jar! Is there still enough room at the bottom for enough water? Good luck and let us know. Rosie

I think there is enough room for water.

As for the babies...should I let them grow more before replanting them? In the baggies or out? Will there be more than one baby in each of these?

Sorry for all the questions...there is so much to learn!

Never apologize for asking questions. Your babies are far to small to be taken from mama. They should have 2 good sets of leaves before you pot them on their own. Yes there usually is more than one baby. And they look good !!!!

As far as soooo much to learn you are right. Go into the previous posts and just start reading the threads. You won't believe how much information is in this forum! You won't learn it all in this thread. Read the back posts while you are waiting for the little ones to mature. Good luck!!! Rosie

Thanks...I will leave them grow longer!

And...I will check out some of the back threads. I found this board when looking for images of AV pots. The little mason jars caught my eye and led me here.

Thank you for your help!

I love it how this post periodically resurfaces. :D

Great happystamps! Glad you found us and glad you are here!!!! Good growing! Look forward to seeing the end result! Rosie

I decided to decorate the coffee table. Also found article about terrariums. Fortunately I had an empty aquarium. Bought mix of the earth and a plant, made here such beauty

Do not forget - they need light... so - sooner or later - they will stretch and stop being that attractive...Terrarium is the whole different set of know-hows... Second - do not drown them... you do not have any drainage on the bottom - so water --- in moderation.

Otherwise it is a very cute table decoration and the glass container is absolutely cool, the plants inside make a very good design. Contrast, proportion, balance.. everything is there...

I think every month or about - you would need another trip to Home Depot to replace a plant material.. and keep going.

Thanks, Irina. I already understood that I chose an unsuccessful option. I look narrowly at others, for example as here https://theplantsgarden.com/terrariums/20-the-best-plants-for-a-terrarium-in-your-house.html

Andrei Scherbak I understand your option. I think your creation is lovely. It is only unsuccessful if you don't keep taking care of it.

My problem with terrariums is that they are created to look beautiful for the moment,,,,they are not long term beauties once they start growing and one plant outgrows the other! lol I do have about 12 terrariums going. Each one holds only one plant because they are miniatures and cannot survive in my dry house without the added humidity. I use no moss, no pretty landscaping to accent their beauty, these are strictly functional. I don't want to plant them all together in one container such as a very large aquarium. This way I can address one plant at a time.

All of my containers are very large clear glass jars that I have turned upside down, put the little plant on the inside of the lid and screwed the glass part on. The containers will not win a blue ribbon but the little plants are growing fantastically and that is my goal.

Keep experimenting!!!! You will figure out what works for you eventually! Your terrarium looks good for display,,,,,,mine is strictly functional and would not look good as a single display. Different strokes for different folks!!!! Good luck. Rosie

The full size state of the art terrarium includes a little fan, lights.. landscaping, poisonous frogs.. hundreds dollars worth of plants from Guyana...

What Andrei made - is an alternative to the cut flowers arrangement. It is inexpensive, attractive and long lasting. A lovely centerpiece. And since he used $6 worth of plants - he can chip for more when these start looking sad - more of it - he can put the used ones on the windowsill to pick up some light and come back to normal. May be. Returning to AVs - we can put blooming plants as a centerpiece on the table to enjoy = and put them back to their normal growng place week later..