questions from an AV newbie

I've had African Violets for about 3 weeks now and they're both in the original plastic pots I bought them in. Do they prefer "terra cotta" pots instead? How much light should they get? One of mine (I have two) had about 5 leaves that were starting to get crispy around the edges. I constantly keep water in the saucer and never water from the top of the plant. I've now moved them to my bathroom where it's more humid and will get more light since there's a south-facing window there. I've read that some people carefully water their AV's from the top, being careful not to get the leaves wet. My fear there is overwatering. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Those are very pretty!...
I don't know that they prefer clay pots because I use plastic ones...
There's a lot of different methods to watering your AV's...seems everyone has a way that works from them. I do little of everything because I have so many different sizes. I even water from the top and have been known to get the leaves wet intentionally with tempid water, then I dry them off with a paper towel and keep them out of the sun.
The bathroom is a great place to have them because of the humidity, but you can always set them on a little gravel in your saucer you have and keep it moist. I don't recommend keeping them constantly wet especially in the mixture they are sold in. Let them dry out a little bit, just to the touch, then water them again.

There is a lot of good info on the forum in other threads so you might want to read some of the older ones...you might like to pluck a leaf and try growing a baby from the plants you just got too....it's a lot of fun.It's also very very easy.:)

Let us know if you need any other help..

MsC

Nice violets!

Plastic is best. In terra cotta, they need very frequent watering and you tend to accumulate a lot of crud on the pots. Not pretty.

Bottom or top watering is fine, but like MsC said, let them dry slightly between waterings. In fact, mine often go completely dry for a day, so they are more tolerant of dryness than people usually assume. (But I'm not recommending that you let them go bone dry.)

Older leaves (on the outside) will die off naturally, so if that's where your 5 leaves were, it's normal. With too little light, the leaves will tend to grow upwards instead of flat. Too much light and you might see the newest leaves grow cramped and curly. Also, leaves tend to be a lighter green when the light level is higher. Where you are, a south facing window in the winter is probably fine.

Last night I read through some of the threads and I think I know what's going on with my AV. The thread that hit home was the one titled "Sick African Violet :(" I've been overwatering it. I put my finger in the soil and it was really wet. I've removed the slightly discolored leaves and emptied the dishes. I wasn't letting them dry between waterings. In fact, I was keeping water in the saucers at all times. I'm going to keep the bathroom light on during the day for a few days to add to the light level.

I've noticed mine "reaching" up a lot lately since the sun doesn't want to show itself. Now I know what to ask DH to get me for Christmas! :-)