I have a little over half a dozen african violets, each in a 10 cm
plastic pot. I know putting plants in a pot that is too large is as
risky as putting them in one that is too small. I have several large
oval shaped pots, which are about 25cm x 50 cm, and about 12 cm high.
I am wondering if they will do well planted together in one or two of
these large pots. How close together should the plants be? Putting
begonias in these pots did not work well at all, and I am not sure
why. If there is a risk that the african violets won't do well
together, then I'd just as soon leave them in individual pots and see
if I can find something else that will do well in these pots.

I have another, more general, question. I know tubers are an
adaptation to help a plant to survive times of stress. Can plants
such as Sinningia speciosa, cyclamen, and tuberous begonias, be force
into dormancy without killing them? If so, how? And can they be
forced to break dormancy without killing them? If so, how? I have
one reference that says that many modern cultivars have tubers that
are too small for there to be significant survival of dormancy, and it
claims that it isn't worth keeping them after their blooms have faded.
I am wondering if it isn't possible to trim the flowers at some point
so that production from the leaves would go to growing the tubers
instead of producing more flowers, and whether or not, if one is
successful in forcing dormancy and redireccting production to the
tubers, the tubers will retain their size if allowed to bloom freely.
Surely a more prolonged period of vegetative growth would result in
much bigger tubers and thus good survival of dormancy.

Cheers,

Ted