Checking in here too.. so curious to see if there was any interest in a swap. I've been super busy combined- with unpredictable weather, it's dropping in the 30's again tonight- May 4th! Most of you are from the facebook RR- anyway. :) So, I'll see you over there... If things lighten up for me, I'll do a RR in the Fall. I'm kind of overloaded right now with boxes/trades, running swaps. You have to plan the swap according to the weather, and if you start too soon your going to be replacing boxes/mushy leaves. Which isn't fun. I've already done so- twice. And replacing the box contents (usually 25) to start- is a lot when you do a lot of trades. Sometimes by the end of Fall, I have new leaves down with babies, but my collection of parent/original plants looks awful from being plucked too much/trading too much! People don't realize that- with 2 boxes, that's 50 leaves/50 varieties.. Still, doing postage for boxes of violets is the best way to trade. Ebay is also good if your trying to expand your collection quick. I've ordered MANY times leaves from there, just remember to isolate. Isolate- the stuff from boxes too, as a precaution. ANYTHING new.. Bagging new stuff too helps isolate if your growing area isn't huge. Just open the bag if you see moisture buildup. See you in the Fall, if things settle down for me. I still love this forum too. It's sad to see it- not the way it once was. I hope violets keep going- and the forum picks up with RR's/trades again. If someone else wants to start a RR- I'll join. Just right now- I can't spare the 25 leaves. I have too many already promised- for the swap boxes.

Thanks for sharing the information. All your AVs look very happy. I had hard time finding the right jar coz the mouth is not wide enough. I end up using a 13 Oz jar which is quiet tall for a mini.

Oldtimers will say - 8-12 inches distance from the crown of the plant to the T12 tube for standards, 6 for minis. But we have new more efficient fluorescents now and moving towards LEDs. So while I agree with Jeff - some plants will need more space, some - less - you still need to provide enough and not too much light at the crown level. I am a believer in the proper tools. I cannot eyeball the light level. So - upload an APP 'Lightmeter" or similar app on your cell phone - or if you do not have an android or iPhone - ask a friend or relative do it for you. I find 250-400fc on a crown level to be a good range. Dark leaf violets will like higher number - under the tubes - and light color violets will be happy on the edges. Since you purchased the LEDs from Amazon - and they are different from mine, Jeff's and everybody else - you need to take one measurement before you mount them. Hang the fixture 20 inches above the horizontal surface - and find the sweet spot - 400 fc under the center - lets say it will be 10 inches. You will add the height of the plant and the reservoir, space that the light fixture will take - and it is your distance between the shelves. The light level diminishes away from the center - so if you put your plants higher in a back of the shelf for better presentation - it will work too. And you can always mobe your plants around to accommodate higher and lower light requirements, If you are not comfortable to do the measurements right now - you can start with 20 inches between the shelves and move them farther apart if the leaves start bleaching and hugging the pots. The low light is not damaging - so start from more - and gradually reduce the height until you see that it is too much. More light - the plants will bloom more but the bloomstalks and petioles will be short. When you are close to a sweet spot - you can play with the time.

Plastic extrusion products usually vary in weight. No two pieces of glass of identical size weighs the same. No two cars, equally equipped weigh the same. Try this. Weigh two dinner plates and compare.