How often to water African violet

The interval

An African violet is watered about every 5 days in the growing season and about every 8 days in winter, from below. Growing season means the warm, bright months from spring to early autumn, roughly March to September in the northern hemisphere and September to March in the southern. Winter is the cold, short-day part of your own year. NC State Extension says to allow the surface to dry before watering again, and calls overwatering the number one issue, so the gap should widen whenever the light is poor and the room is cool.

Check by touch and weight. Press a fingertip on the surface of the compost: if it feels dry and the pot is light in the hand, it is time. The Royal Horticultural Society says a drier pot feels lighter than a wet one, and a small pot of African violet is easy to judge this way. Wait if the compost is still cool and damp, even if the five days are up.

Bottom watering is the method. Fill a saucer with tepid water, stand the pot in it for about twenty minutes, then lift the pot out and let it drain before it goes back. NC State Extension advises watering from below and keeping the leaves dry, says the plant is intolerant of very cold water, and warns that water left sitting on the surface can cause decay. The RHS adds that cold water can kill. Humidity is medium for this plant.

Too much water rots the crown and the stems, and NC State Extension names overwatering as the main trouble. A plant left too dry wilts, and a drink from below is the cure. Water on the leaves leaves permanent pale rings, and the rings are the one mark that does not grow out.

What is particular to this plant is its leaves. They are covered in fine hairs that hold droplets, so a splash is a stain, and the crown sits low in the middle of the rosette, where standing water starts the rot. Keep the water at the roots and away from the centre.

Related guides

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The finger, the weight, the leaf and the pot. Four ways to read a plant's thirst, and what overwatering actually is.

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Watering through a southern winter

Winter in the southern hemisphere runs June to August, and houseplants drink far less then. How to read the soil, and why overwatering is the bigger risk.