Tuberous Begonia
Begonia genus name honors Michel Bégon (1638-1710), a governor of the French colony Saint-Domingue. Richard Pearce discovered tuberous begonias in 1864. Tuberous Begonias are part of the Begoniaceae family of plants.
There are many categories of Tuberous Begonias including single-flowering, doubles, daffodil-like, pendulous, single-frilled, and camellia-like. The color of flowers ranges from white to yellow, orange, pink, and red. Some are fragrant. There are also bi-colored flowers. Tuberous Begonia is a phototropic plant whose active season is regulated by day length.
How to grow Tuberous Begonia:
Grow Tuberous Begonia in filtered sun or light shade. Too much sunlight burns the flowers. Plant it in organic, fertile, humus-rich, evenly moist but well-drained soil. Tuberous plants store food in the tubers and the Tuberous Begonia is a heavy flowering plant so it is important to regularly fertilize them.
They will go dormant in autumn when days grow shorter. If planted outdoors they should be dug out before frost. Propagate by seed or by cutting the tubers with a sharp knife. You can start the tubers indoors in late winter and then move the pots or plant them outdoors after the danger of frost has passed. When you are starting the plants water them when they are drying and do not overwater. When they flower remove the single female flowers which usually grow on the sides of the male flowers.
