Wick violet watering - how to do it yourself

In home floriculture, violets, or senpolia, are some of the most popular plants. About 8500 varieties have been created, and breeders regularly work on new hybrids. These flowers are picky enough to care for. For successful growth, they need wick watering, so it is important to master this method of moisturizing the flower.

The essence of the method of irrigation violets wick way

Wick watering is a method that greatly facilitates the life of gardeners, since these plants do not really like overhead watering. Using the traditional method, you can fill the flower, and water will fall on the leaves, and this violets categorically do not tolerate. Therefore, wick watering suits them perfectly. Its essence lies in the fact that with the help of a special wick or cord, which leaves the soil at the bottom of the pot, plants immediately receive moisture from the vessel from below. So they can take only the amount of water that they need.

Violets on wicks

Pros and cons of switching senpolia to wick irrigation

Advantages of switching violets to wick irrigation:

• Providing the best conditions for the growth and development of violets - flowering will begin earlier and continue longer.
• No need for individual watering.
• If you choose the right proportions of water and fertilizer, there will be no oversaturation or lack of necessary substances.
• The florist may not have to worry about the state of the senpolia for quite some time and calmly go on vacation.
• The plant cannot be re-poured, because it will itself take the necessary amount of water.
• Mini- and micro-violets grow well only on the wick.
• The smaller the diameter of the pot, the more intensively the violet develops.

Reasons why you should not transfer plants to wick watering:

• If the wick is incorrectly selected, the root system can become saturated with moisture, as a result of which the roots will rot.
• With this method of irrigation, leaf sockets become larger, therefore, take up more space.
• In winter, violets watered in this way are best not to be kept on the windowsill, as the water may become too cold.

Wick watering of violets: how to make - preparation

To organize the correct wick watering for violets, you will need: properly prepared soil, a pot, a water tank and the wick itself.

Soil preparation

With wick watering, loose, moisture- and breathable soil will be needed. In addition to peat, it must include baking powder - sand, perlite, moss. A good layer of drainage, located under a layer of soil, is also needed.

The composition of the soil for violets

Capacity selection

The flower pot should be small but not too small. It is better if it is plastic - this is the lightest material that will not add weight to the watering container. The container itself can be one for several pots or individual for each violet.

One container for several flowers

What to make a wick for violets

As a wick, it is most convenient to use a synthetic cord, since natural fabrics quickly rot. The selected material should absorb water well. The thickness of the wick varies, and for each pot is selected individually. As a rule, a 5 mm thick cord is selected on a pot with a diameter of 5-8 cm.

How to transfer violets to wick watering: step-by-step instructions

Obviously, wick watering for senpolia is preferable to usual. But you need to translate it, observing certain rules, so as not to harm fragile plants.

Adult plants

Adult flowers can be quite safely transferred to wick watering. To do this, you need:

1. Prepare all the necessary components for the implementation of the process.
2. Pour the previously prepared soil mixture into the pot, transplant the violet by transshipment, spill it with water so that the soil gets wet and donkey.
3. Drain the remaining water, which is not absorbed, and put the pot in a container with prepared warm water.
4. The distance between the pot and the liquid level should be 1-2 cm.

Now violets do not need top watering, they will receive water through the wick. Therefore, you can not worry about getting water on the leaves, sunburn and overflow of flowers. By experimenting with different types of containers, you can find an option that will be more convenient and beautiful.

Preparation of materials for wick irrigation

Sockets

1. Prepare the necessary materials that will be used in the process of bottom irrigation.
2. Check for a hole in the flower pot.
3. Prepare the wick. For one pot, you will need a length of about 20 cm, one end of which is placed in a spiral on the bottom of the pot, and the other is placed in a vessel with water.
4. A layer of sphagnum is laid out on a circle laid with a spiral, which will further contribute to the potential separation of the children. A layer of prepared substrate is poured over the moss.
5. Violet cuttings are planted. Each stalk in a separate container.
6. So that young plants are saturated with moisture, the pot must be completely immersed in a solution with a growth stimulator.
7. Glasses are placed on vessels with water so that they are a couple of centimeters above the liquid level.

If everything is done correctly, then in a few days the cuttings will take root. Evidence of this will be green leaves rising up.

What top dressing to add when wick watering

For watering violets with a wick method, it is recommended to use complex mineral fertilizers, which are sold in liquid form. They are mixed with water in the required proportions and poured into the vessel itself, from which the senpolia receives water. During the flowering period, it is better to use potash and phosphorus fertilizers, which will provide more magnificent and longer flowering. You can use different compounds and watch how violets react to them.

How often to add water to the container, so as not to pour violets

Water is added to the container as it is consumed. The lace must always be in the water. It is better not to let the liquid level drop more than 2 cm from the bottom of the pot.

In hot summers, you will have to add water more often than in autumn or spring. In winter, it all depends on where the flowers will be located. If they stand next to the central heating battery, you will have to monitor the moisture level.

Wick watering of violets is a system that you should not be afraid of. Plants watered in this way grow faster, bloom more luxuriantly and longer. For senpolia, this type of irrigation is most useful, since they can consume exactly the amount of moisture and nutrients that they need. As a result, you can not be afraid of either overflow or underfilling. The composition of the liquid in the container can be adjusted by checking the reaction of the flowers to various types of fertilizers.