Question
Hello I am wondering what I am doing wrong. I bought this little African Violet from the Grocery store and I am trying to save it. I read that you have to replant them because they come in cheap soil. So I went out and bought African Violet soil from a garden center near here. I was watering it too much before I repotted it. Not I am waiting for it to dry out. The leaves one by one keep turning brown and going limp or just going limp. All of the flowers died on it. I have it hanging by my patio door. So it gets light all day and at night it doesn't. Please help. I even bought african violet food for it. But it says not to use it right away after repotting. I also just went out and bought stuff to kill bugs and stuff, you know thinking that it might have mites or something. Well if you could help that would be great. Thanks alot, Dawn..

Answer
I think your first mistake was to repot it as soon as you bought it.  The nurseries grow the violets in a good grade of potting mix, else they wouldn't grow well, wouldn't put out blooms, and then they couldn't sell them.  Another thing, sounds as if it got too wet and might have root rot.  That is what causes the stems and leaves to turn soft and mushy.  It is questionable whether your plant will make it.  I can't say without seeing it.  But, root rot is a hard one to bounce back from.  Also, watch the light.  Although violets need a lot of light, they cannot tolerate full sun.  The type of light they need is filtered light, like through a sheer curtain.  In wintertime they can tolerate full sun, but never in summer.  You could try taking the plant out of the soil mix and setting it on some layers of paper towels and newspapers for a day to get rid of the extra water.  If it survives this, then repot it, and give it filtered sunlight, NO plant food yet. Keep in mind that African violets do better when slightly pot-bound.  Otherwise, most of their energy goes to growing a root system instead of blooms.  That's why you'll never see a flowering violet in a large, over-sized pot.  I would have to look at your plant, but from your description the outlook doesn't sound very good.  Don't be too hard on yourself, though.  We have all had plants to die from different reasons.  That's how we learn.  Don't hesitate to write back if I can help further.