I am thrilled with these new plantlets I have been seperating from mama leaves. Just had to show two pictures. This is the dome lid I got early this spring. It is high enough for the plant to have a chance to grow and not be squashed.
I did two thing differently this year:
1. I used the dome cover.
2. I used the cap mat.
Both help keep the moisture more even.
Here are the little (big) guys without the dome.
On the right are a few cups with mama and babies still attached. Some are still a little small and others still don't have enough green in the leaves to seperate.
Edited to say: This is the first time I set leaves in March. I understand that is the month they do best. It sure has worked for me so far.
This message was edited Jul 5, 2006 4:36 AM
Fantastic set up! Great growing!
Those look very healthy.
MsC
Thanks MsC. How are you doing?
Doing good:) Thanks for asking.
I've been culling out sad lil plants that need to go & repotting some that might live. I've lost a full tray of AV babies. I just can't get to everything lately. The bigger plants can hold their own but those poor babies really suffered. Ah, such is life. I have plenty for now.
I love your full try they look great!
MsC
Most of the leaves from this try I got at a club meeting in Baltimore. There are some Buckeyes and Black Magic, High Jinks, Pirates Gold, and an Apache. The other leaves I set in April and May are taking their sweet time.
I hear you about getting to everything. I keep trying to thin out my plants so they don't become a "chore". When I throw things away, I don't feel as bad as I did before. I figure if this one doesn't grow for me another one will. I have thousands to choose from.
Beautiful plantlets, nanna! They look so healthy!
Regarding your comment about March being the best month to put down leaves, I noticed just this morning that leaves which were put down in March have babies that are twice as large or more than the leaves from the same plant put down in January. Very interesting!
I have three books on avs and all three say to put leaves down in March. I find it very interesting as well.
I know the VG puts leaves down in March and October.
Yes Spring is best ! I posted then to get you all to get leaves down even though it's hard you want to be out in the sun but setting leaves, re-potting plants will give you great Fall shares/trades and blooming plants all Winter long !
Nanna I love your babies ! Their wonderful ! Look at all those cute varigated babies ! I have several that lost Mom and so far they are doing well.
I hope the leaves I sent you from Contest and other boxes are giving you babies too !
You do excellent growing ! Thanks for sharing them !
They are, Allison. A. Grandma Rose is doing very well as well as Black Ace. Thanks, again.
Morning Nanna...
They all look so healthy! What is a cap mat?
TFS!
Joanne
Its a capilary matting. Like a heavy felt material that absorbs water. You put it on the bottom of plant trays. You can put water in the tray to the level of the matting and the plants set on top of it. The plants draw the water from the matting. It also keeps humidity in the tray for leaves and young plants. It it about 40 inch wide and you buy it by the foot. I think I got mine at Violet Gallery. Can't remember the price, but it is on their web site. www.violetgallery.com
I really like it for leafing and my young plantlets are better this year than ever before.
Wow, those are coming along beautifully!!! Congratulations!
I just got some Vattex matting but haven't set up the trays with it yet.... did you put in on top of a grid with an end hanging into a water reservoir, or did you just set the matting down into the bottom of the tray?
I just set the matting in the tray and wet it. I placed the set leaves in watered cups on top of the wet map. I check it a couple time a week to make sure the mat is moist. When I use the dome or the covered trays I don't need to add water for a couple of weeks.
It really is great, Jill.
Such pretty babies! I like your setup as well, it sure beats my ziploc baggies! I find the MArch thing very interesting as well.
Hey, zip lock baggies are great. I found this dome in February at a garden center and my mind clicked. It was 5.00 and well worth the purchase.
I found a bunch of plastic cake plates with clear covers at the dollar store...they work great for leaves and babies...nice and tall..
Sharon
Sharon that is wonderful. I think it would be better to have smaller containers. That way you can make better use of space. I have some cookie cartons that I am planning to use. They are about 5 inches tall.
Nanna, you really like the capillary matting? I think I want to give that a try. I put my leaves in an under the bed storage bin. Could I just put the matting down in it and set my leaves on it? And instead of watering the leaves I just keep the mat moist?
Jesse
Funny you should ask. I was thinking of the same thing. I don't see any reason why not. I think Keyring uses sweater storage containers.
Yes, you pour water on the matting. Check to make sure the plants are drawing water up. Sometimes the cups are not sitting square on the mat and I have to water from the top on one or two.
When I was at the Baltimore Club meeting the hostess demonstrated how to encourage sucker growth on chimera plants. She used a liquid dish detergent bottle to water the new suckers she removed from the mother plant. Since then I use a detergent bottle as well. You have more control over where the water goes. The water doesn't come out until you squeeze the bottle. You don't get leaves and crowns wet.
One important thing to remember. When the lid covering the plants gets too foggy with moisture, remove it and let the little guys get some fresh air. Don't want them to sufficate with too much humidity.
I meant to post sooner on this thread. Those look great !!!
I love those domes too - I have a few of them that I bring out from time to time. When the plants no long need it, I just pull off the lid and I have a nice packed tray already made. (space and time are always premiums)
Jesse - you can definitely just lay some capillary matting on the bottom of a plastic box, but it's even better if you can raise the mat off the bottom a bit so you can have a little reservoir underneath. Then, you can fold one end of the mat down into the reservoir. This way, you can go for longer between waterings.
This image is one way to do it, but you can have the reservoir under the mat instead as well.
http://www.bypost.ltd.uk/images/capillary-matting.gif
and yes! dish detergent bottles are great! I use plastic water bottles with a sports top. (I attach the top from a small bottle onto a bigger one so I don't have to refill as much.) For really small pots, I use squeeze bottles that are sold for condiments (like ketchup) or for cosmetics. (same idea as grout bottles, I guess... lol).
Everything said is great ! I started out with 6 quart boxes had 35 of them for leaves, then Hubby got me the larger sweater type. They are wonderful ! I slip them right on the light stands. I don't cover as it's too humid here.
I could not grow so many babies without my boxes. When I was first taught at local Av group. They layered the boxes with damp newspaper on the bottom. They also wicked. On the bottome of cup they put a layer of Verm and Perlite half and half. then soil-less mixture and then the Verm, and Perlite mix. Cut leaf stem short stick in wcked labeled 3 oz. solo cups water threw good, drain put in boxes on top of news paper cover. Put in non buring light . Forget about for a month , when the roots hit the soil stand back they go crazy. It's true. I did this for a long time then I got lazy I just use soil-less mix and I dont cover anymore mine got too humid though I know many people in Florida that do. Have to play around and see what's best for your enviroment !
Keyring the mat with a reservoir is fantastic. Leaves and plantlets would thrive under those conditions. Thank you for posting.
Allison, I had wondered about newspaper. Glad to hear that it works.
Would it work if you put the mat over the grid like I use and let it hang off of the end? And could I still leave the wicks in or would I need to pull them out?
Jesse
Gosh, I don't know. You could try it. I haven't had wick on top of mat before. Might get a little difficult to wet the mat . It likes to soak up the water. On the grid the water would just run off. When I have used the mat it sets in something not on top of something.
Jesse - it should work (although it depends on the height of the grid and the type of mat) and you can leave the wicks in. BUT, if you are already wicking then you don't need to use a mat. The capillary mat system is just an alternative method to wicking.
I agree... I think I'd use a capillary mat or wicks, but not both. Maybe you could keep your larger pots wicked on a grid tray as you've been doing, and use a mat for leaf pots and little plantlets? And the capillary mat will stay wet on a grid if you just let one end dangle into the water reservoir... like if you have a towel on the edge of your tub, and one end dangles into your bubblebath, the whole towel can end up wet as it wicks the water up.
ditto with an addendum. If pots on a capillary mat don't soak up water, adding a little wick can help - it just makes the "contact" a bit better.
For me, if I had the space (height on the shelves) to wick, I would do that over the matting. I just don't have the extra height.....
Well that is why I am asking. I am running out of space and my plants are getting too close to the light and turning brown. So I was wondering if I could put the grid down in the trap and put the mat on top of it. Or I could just put the mat in the tray alone. And I would just leave in the wicks so I would not have to repot them all again. I'm still deciding what to do to save me time and money. I don't have the space for another shelf unit. I already have 3. So I'm trying to come up with any way to make more space so they are not all so close to the lights. Any ideas other than the mats?
BTW, how often do you wet the mat and how much water do you add to it?
Jesse
The trick is to keep the mat continually moist so the plants will be the same. It's a matter of giving more water when water is needed. If the mat is just damp chances are the plants are still moist and you can add water. If the mat is dry you add water but you should also check the plants individually to make sure they are not dry. Sometimes if the plants are dry and you water the mat, the capilary action doesn't begin unless the soil in the plant is wet as well.
Hope this wasn't too confusing. It is true especially if you have wicks in the plant. If the wick drys out on some plants I need to water from the top to start the wicking action to begin again.
You'll get the hand of it. It is really a trial and error thing.
About making room for plants with no room to make. This is a quote from my favorite av book "Growing to Show": "One of the biggest mistakes new growers make is in adding more light stands to keep up with the number of plants they accumulate. This only postpones the inevitable, because eventually the saturation point is reached through the limitations of your budget and your time. Set your limit from the beginning and stick to it no matter how great the temptation is to expand. Make the plants fit the space; don't expand the space to accomodate the plants. If your life style changes, retirement for example, you can rethink your position."
Allison has a great plan. She gives plants away to make space for more plants. Because she love giving plants away, most of her space is used to grow babies and her mature plants are displayed in the "living areas" of her home. (This is what it appears to be from her pictures and her comments on line)
I like to grow plants so most of my space is used for mature plants. I keep only the ones that grow well for me. I set leaves and grow babies to share and to add one or two to my collection. I think you are getting to the point that you need to make some decision about your collection and what it is you really want to do with your plants.
Sorry for the lecture. I really struggled with this last year. It's hard to be "in charge" of your plants.
This message was edited Jul 10, 2006 7:07 AM
This message was edited Jul 10, 2006 7:08 AM
absolutely everything nanna said.
But since I can't seem to stop expanding my growing space, I can't speak to that, LOL. (I have reduced my orchid collection by quite a bit, though.)
My mats are on the bottom of trays with no reservoir. I find I water my cap mat trays about every 5 -7 days - BUT, my plants are potted in non-wicking soil, so I let the mat go dry between waterings for a few days. I pour a gallon or a bit more of water into there so it puddles - between the pots and the mat, it all gets soaked up and then the clock starts again.
I would imagine if you use a lighter wicking mix, you would need to add water more often.
Are you sure the plants are browning because of the lights? Are the centers tight? Other things can cause burn, such as too much fertilizer.
Good questions, Keyring
Well I think they are browning because of the lights. Mine are usually about 4" from the lights. I've tried to rearrange them so that the minis are on a shelf that is not as far from the lights as the others are. But they average is 4". Here is a photo of B-Man's Cosimo sent to me from Allison in March. It is flowring really pretty but look at the leaves. The front one is all brown and the ones on each side are half way brown. What do you all think is causing this?
Jesse
Oh my goodness that plant grows pretty big , probaly would bloom more if not so close to the lights ? I think 4 inch is to close for standard size plants ?
I have a couple of plants (larger plantlets, really, not mature plants) that are showing the same thing this month... a few leaves gradually darkening & turning brown. At first I thought it was some sort of birthmarking thing, but now I'm seeing it in maybe 4 plants. They look healthy otherwise, and even the reddish-brown leaves aren't softening or shriveling or anything. I don't think it's a problem with too much light, as they are 6 inches from the light tube, and they aren't getting tight centers or turning their leaves down etc. I'm only fertilizing (lightly) maybe every 3rd watering now, so I don't think that's the culprit. I thought it might be getting too warm for them, so I'm running the lights at night now and have turned off half the tubes.
??
There are some pictures here of leaves with problems.
http://www.steverd.com/violets/leaves/leaf-id.htm
Those leaves look just like the ones my sister-in-law has on her avs. She keeps them in a west window and they get lots of afternoon sun. It also looks like one of my plants that had a reaction to lysol bathing.
Does any of this help?
well, I haven't used any lysol for months... maybe it is a light thing after all... I'll try moving them to natural light & see how they do. thanks!
