Watering your African violet

The 3 big 'NEVERS':
Never water from above.
Never water without first sticking your finger in the soil.
Never water with cold water straight from the tap.

Good tricks:
After you finish watering your plants, fill up the watering can and let it sit (for a few days until you are ready to water again). Then the water is at room temperature and ready to go. Also, there has been plenty of time for the chlorine and fluoride to evaporate out of the water.

Every few days stick your finger in the soil of each plant. If the soil sticks to your finger and feels damp, the plant is O.K. If the soil crumbles away easily and doesn't feel damp, it's time to water again.

Always use a watering can with a small spout:

Two watering methods are recommended:

Individual saucer method:
If your African violet pot is sitting in a nice deep saucer, fill up the saucer until the water is well above the bottom of the pot.

Let it sit for about an hour. After an hour, if there is still water above the level of the bottom of the pot, take the pot out of the saucer, pour the water out of the saucer, and return the pot to the saucer.

Big tray method:
Find a big deep tray or rectangular roasting pan. Put all of your African violet plants in the tray. Fill the tray with water. Let the plants sit in the tray for an hour. Remove and put back in their normal spots.

How often you water depends on what Type of flower pot you are using, and how much light your plant is getting. If your plant gets very little light, and lives in a plastic pot, it will need to be watered less often than a plant getting lots of light that lives in an unglazed ceramic pot.