I bought AV's, Streptocarpus, Episcia, and Kohleria
They're in hanging baskets and over-sink shelves I just bought at Bed bath and beyond. The shelves did not fit over my faucet, so I put one on each side of my sink.
This is my West window. I posted pics of my begonias and other plants here http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/1015310/ and now I'm out of window space for this house. (aside from bedrooms, and I don't have space in there!)
close-up of one shelf
Strep in bloom. These flowers make me so happy while I cook and do the dishes! I hope I can manage to help them live through the winter over here! All tips are welcome:)
Ellen
Great photos! I love to see how everyone places theirs around the house. Thanks:)
Pat
Nice pics , Ellen , you got some sweet plants , they will make you smile all winter , we northern people need our indoor blooms during the long cold winter , I always like to get a big order of plants and leaves before it get cold :) enjoy :)
Connie
Thank you! The Epicsia's are starting to get tiny buds; I'm excited to see those flowers!
I read that you can put cut Kohlerias into water and they'll bloom for months; have any of you ever tried that? I want a huge bouquet on my dining room table, so I bought 5 of those. My first blooms were too short to cut, only about 2 inches tall; I suppose I have to wait until the plant gets larger.
Your plants are just beautiful BUT, they don't have drainage so , of course, I am worrying about them being in so much soil and no perlite on the bottom of the vases.
Somebody else pipe in..................I am jealous you live close to Rob's Violet Barn!!
I put a bunch of river rocks at the bottom of the glasses! And I'm really careful about watering them sparingly about every four days, only when the top half of the soils looks dry.
Rob's Violet Barn is about 7 hours away!
How nice to be so close. Lovely plants you have and nice place for them.
Fantastic, raisingsouls......love that user name!!! I would drive 14 hours to get to Rob's if I could!!!
Hi Ellen ^_^,
Lovely plants!! Your Kohlerias will get very large (most cultivars).I have never tried just sticking a blooming clump in water,but I think it would work well,although they will form roots within a week and then you will have to decide whether to let them grow or make more babies.Cutting them back helps keep them bushy and they will form a lot of 'worms' in the soil.
I am glad you are cautious about watering.Your plants look great and I know you want to keep them that way!!
Lynn
7 hours? Is that all?
Which AV's do you have?
Make you jealous, too, Nichole?????
Maybe my budget will need to be enlarged for next years order!
"although they will form roots within a week and then you will have to decide whether to let them grow or make more babies"
-What do you mean by that? I'm not sure what kind of decision you are referring to?
Syrumani, I did the special where you choose 5 or 10 of a variety, and Rob chooses which exact plants you get, so I have an assortment.
I have 2 more hanging baskets over my table- they're not in the picture- and the air conditioning vent blows on them. Do you think that could hurt them? I'm not sure what to do about it; it's the kind of metal vent that can't be adjusted.
gessiegail- thanks regarding my username- I do feel like the plants have souls. I actually took that name from my site, raisingsmallsouls (but it was too long for DG) about raising kids! Plants, kids, they all need lots of love!
Ellen
Ellen,
What I meant is you can grow a top in the water for a long time,but once they form roots you can pot them up and cut off another clump to grow in water.Those in soil will make lots of little rhizomes (worms),which can be used to grow new plants.Tip cuttings root very easily too.
It just depends on how many of one variety you want to have or if you want to make more plants to trade with others.
Lynn
Hi Lynn, thanks, I didn't know Kohlerias make rhizomes- I thought just normal roots; I have a lot to learn. Would regular AV's and Streps root well in water too?
OMG- I just realized that I was right near Rob's Violets when we took a trip to Niagara Falls last week- probably a 40 minute drive out of my way, and I passed right by it! Oh well, not sure how long my sons would have let me stay there anyway, but that is a shame.
How can I find out if there are any great nurseries in Baltimore or DC? Is there a listing here on DG? Thanks.
We used to have a subscriber and friend from Maryland who used to go to Lurgan's (Amish I think) and buy the most beautiful streps and avs I have ever seen..............
Can't remember the other places she went..............
raisingsouls,
LOL,around here everyone roots AVS in different ways!! Water,soiless mixes,or more sterile mixes,like half perlite,half vermiculite.Some people dome the leaves and others don't. I would say do whatever works for you.
As far as Streps. go Turtlechi and a few others root in water and a lot of people root in different mixes,but always with lots of extra perlite.You can root a bunch of leaves in one tray or put them in individual Solo cups.There is a ton of information in the old threads and if you have any problems,someone always comes to the rescue.There are a lot of really nice helpful members here. ^_^.
Hi Ellen,
I live in Baltimore too. There are two really good nurseries here. Watson's on York Rd.. in Lutherville and Valleyview Farms in Cockeysville. Watson's usually has a few gessies peppered about the store. They are cheaper than VVF too. I've been doing business with them for a few years now and have never been disappointed. I usually buy all my orchids at 1/2 price from them at one of their annual sales.
Nice to see someone from the area posting on DG! The people here are so nice and very helpful. You'll get some good growing advice and maybe even spark a few friendships along the way!
Are you a member of the Baltimore AV Club? If not and you are interested in more info, Dmail me.
Take care and happy growing!
Shanika
P.S. I got married in Niagara Falls a few weeks back and nearly cried when I realized I couldn't stop at Lyndon Lyons on my way back!(We were out of money at the point! LOL)
Hi Shanika,
Nice to meet you! I've been to VVF, and they are expensive. Bought a few herbs there in the middle of the summer. I heard of Watsons, but have never been there, I'll try it out. I didn't know about a Baltimore AV club- would love info, thanks!
Ellen
I have heard that Baltimore has one of the very best av clubs in the nation?
Yikes, not having drainage scares me a little, but as long as you are careful....very careful....but roots also need oxygen, which is why I poke holes in the sides as well as the bottoms of my pots. I look at the way the plant grows in the wild. Even though our cultured av's are many generations removed from their wild cousins, they still are the same type of plant. Violets grow in and on things, rocks, in crevices, etc, not with all of their roots underground. So there is most likely alot of air circulating around them and their roots, they probably dry out quickly and then get frequent drenchings from the rain. I find I have much more sucess when I try to mimic the plant's natural needs. But, we all have different home environments and have to find out what works best in them.
I also have a kitchen sink area that is covered with both hanging plants, and windowsill plants. My mama always had her kitchen window full of plants, and that is just the way it seems to look the best to me! Also makes watering very convenient!
Jmp24, that is a good point. I love the look of the little glass containers, but I'd rather my violets live long and healthy lives!
Where do you buy your containers?
I use condiment cups, you can get them at a restuarant supply place. I use 1 oz for small leaves and tiny plants, and 2 oz for the bigger leaves and then solo cups when they outgrow the others. The condiment cups do not exactly make a style statement, though!
I agree that yours look pretty, and I think you should keep them in there for a while, they should do ok short term as long as you are careful not to overwater. The thing about violets is that nothing is permanent, I repot at least once a year anyway, especially with baby or growing plants. In your case, I would wait and see how they do, this method may work well for you with the smaller plants, you never know! If they start looking bad, you will know that it isn't working, and can deal with it then - if you are too late, OH WELL!! Losing plants is part of the process. I have lost 2 that had been doing great in the past month, so there is no perfect or right way to do it.
It is harder to find small decorative pots, and sometimes they are very expensive. If I were going to order online, I would look for the basic terracotta colored plastic pots. I also use votive cander holders as cache pots. I have alot of them around, all different types, and the condiment or solo cups fit right inside them, then I don't have to look at the ugly plastic...Some people spray paint the solo cups for this reason.
Here is Ma's Winter Moon in a stained glass votive candle holder. Also, votive holders come in all different styles, colors, so you can always find something that works. This one was kinda pricey, I have them in several different colors, but you can find nice candle holders in dollar stores, walmarts, etc...and for the little mini's, expresso coffee cups make nice cache pots. You can even buy a whole set of the cups so they all match, and some they make with no handles. THis way, you can have some style, but the plant is still in its plastic pot with drainage holes.
This message was edited Sep 9, 2009 10:37 AM
Thanks so much, that's a really good idea, to put solo cups into something pretty. My glasses are from the dollar store!
Nice picture!
