I use an inexpensive wood burning tool from the craft store. I sit on the back step and can do a whole package of cups in a few minutes. I put 4 holes around the bottm of each cup, (but not in the bottom) at 12, 3, 6, and 9 o'clock. They drain well and usually don't crack around the holes because they are melted in. I also do this for 20oz beverage cups to start seed of almost any kind, 15 fit in a flat and they are nice and deep giving me nice root systems before they get plated outside. I have some that I have used for 4 years now, and at about 5 cents a cup you can't beat that.

I've tried cups that are not "solo" and they jut don't work the same. I used to get them at either Giant or Kings (part of Weis chain) but both stores now carry only Dixie in the small cups. Tried calling 2 Walmarts and both said they have only Dixie. Solo was no help! There is no WalGreens or Kroeger in this area. BUT, yesterday we were in a small town at the other end of the county. Ran in to pick up a few things and there on the shelf were Solo cups. So, problem solved ! Thanks for your help.

leesouthern, of course this is going to be dependant a lot on your media and how much water it will retain. I was curious to the answer to your question so I tested it. I mainly use Pro Mix BX which is peat based and when completely dry a full 16 oz cup of media absorbed about 7 or 8 oz of water. I tested the "gritty" mix and it absorbed about half that, probably the reason I have to water twice as much when using it :) I also happened to have a bag of Miracle Grow Potting Mix (also peat based) and it held the same amount of water as the Pro Mix. Hope this helps. peps22, I am curious to your zone and what size your plants where the beginning of May? I am trying to get an idea of how fast they grow so I can avoid having to set up more lights lol. FWIW, I only bottom water until I pot up which is why I rarely have to bottom water solo cups. Once they are in solo cups I would still set them in a tray of water, like shown, but would also water from the top. The reason I do this is that peat is hydrophobic when dry and doing it this way speeds the watering process up and ensures the media is evenly watered. Take my advice with a grain of salt as I have never grown peppers but this method works for everything else I have grown. Thanks. SCG

If you do a search for "coarse perlite" you will get lots of hits. I bought my last bags on Ebay from the Violet Showcase and there are several offers for it right now from various vendors. You're looking for a #3 or #4 grade. I don't mix this with my potting mix; I use it in the bottom of my pots for modified Texas-style watering. There is still some dust/small particles in the bags because the stuff just naturally sheds, but mostly you will get pieces that are about 1/2" in size. I still use the small perlite (available at most big box stores) to add to my soil mix, but the larger grade is what I need for drainage in the bottoms of the pots because I use capillary mats to water my AV's. Be careful if you use the Miracle Gro brand perlite; last time I checked it they are now adding fertilizer to it...so, if you have fertilizer in your potting soil (which it is hard to find any without these days,) fertilizer in your perlite and then you add more fertilizer when you water - it could spell trouble for your violets. Trust me, you do not want to find out about over-fertilization (micro-nutrient toxicity) first hand. If using these charged products, I would withhold any additional fertilizer for the first 2 or 3 months after re-potting. And I re-pot my violets at least once (aiming for twice) a year. I will admit that the larger my collection grows (now well over 100 - yikes!) the less I get to that second time for the entire group. But it is worth making the effort because it is simply amazing how they respond to fresh soil and take off with new growth and bloom. Alternately, if you can't re-pot that often, even adding a bit of fresh soil to the top of the pot (thereby burying any neck) can also perk them up, I've found. IME, after a year most AV's are getting a neck on them anyway, and lowering them in the pot is much easier if you catch it before you are left with no other solution than to re-start the crown because the stem has gotten so long that even cutting off the bottom of the root ball won't make them short enough to sit down inside the pot as they should.