Violas

Violas are not something I usually grow but I've bought a tray of them this year (they looked so colourful and I want to press the petals for a new craft I'm trying)
After planting them in pots (3 to a pot) I find they look lanky and I am wondering if I cut them back and feed them will they become bushy.
I know I'll lose the present flowers but I would think they'd have more when they've bushed out.
Should I do that ?

 

I never cut mine back @Michael Hewett. I have found that the best way to encourage them to bush out and produce new flowers is to deadhead them regularly, at least twice a week. It can be difficult at first to differentiate between new flowers being produced and those fading but it doesn’t matter if you make a mistake. Also, at this time of year they don’t really like too much heat and appreciate partial shade. I feed mine with tomato feed or seaweed extract. Using a general feed with high nitrogen levels does make them leggy.

 

Why not try a couple....

 

Thank you @Plantminded and @infradig
I'll take your advice

 

They look quite low in the planters as well so they may have grown up towards the light which would make them leggy.

 

I agree with @Goldenlily26 and they are also in pots which aren't very big. It would be better to line the planters with compost bags to help stop the wood from rotting, then fill the planters with compost to about an inch from the top and plant the violas in that.

 

I'm also a Viola newbie, these have certainly earned their keep since I bought them in September. They flowered until Christmas, then got a chop half way down, some liquid seaweed and now they are nicely bushy and flowering away.



The bad news is that this second flowering is far away from the original lush "raspberry cream" colour and is just wishy washy pale purple

Should I hide them somewhere for next winter or just give up? Are Violas up to second year?

Anyways I need the half pot for my Semprevivums this summer

 

I throw them on the compost heap when they are over. New ones are cheap to buy and old ones seem to get exhausted.