Begonia Forum???

Is there enough interest & is Dave willing to add a Begonia Forum,too ??


Thanks,
MsC

Yes... I would really enjoy having a begonia forum.

Deb

Yes...yes , we need this forum also.
Kaleem

I would love to see this as well!
Mary Ev.

me too

I'd love to see a Begonia forum!

Add my vote, too.

Yes! I can always use help from other gardeners with my begonia problems and id's.

I guess by the davesgarden name I use, you can figure I'd LOVE to see a forum JUST for begonias! WOO HOO!

I must admit I have a secret love affair going on with begonias. I cannot pass by one without lust in my heart.

Terry recently gave Begonias their own category http://davesgarden.com/forums/t/548473/. That sounds like a positive note for Begonias to have their own forum!

I vote NO......I don't want to feed another addiction.....lol

This would be perfect. With a Begonia Forum, I definitely will have no time to garden.....ROTFL...


I'm in....

Hap

well, I got my first ever begonia from MsC so I'm in. (I have a few more now... of course... who would've guessed?)

w e l l....I vote yes!

I think that aside from the fact that we'd all 'love' to have the forum, a more valid argument might be the shear diversity of this plant family. Because of the enormous variety, they can be put in the following forums , houseplant, tropical, bulb (well,technically tuber), annual, terrarium or greenhouse, shady gardens, shrubs, bonsai, and who knows what else. Because begonias are spread all over the forums, it makes sense to consolidate them into their own forum. I present this not just because of the fact that this is my plant addiction of choice, but also because of the disappointment of not finding this forum in the first place. I’ve not been a member long, but have found a wealth of information and a plethora of like minded plant addicts. When I joined, I assumed that I had just ‘missed’ the forum somehow and that I would eventually find it after rooting around long enough. I was pretty shocked to see that a plant family of this size and range of diversity didn’t have it’s own forum.

I’ll keep plugging it! C’mon Admin, let’s give it a whirl.
Happy Gardening!
Laurie




This message was edited Oct 4, 2005 1:53 PM

Laurie, I think that you should run for congress........

Hap

Hmmm...Congress....? No, I'll stick with plants. As difficult as growing some of them can be...I imagine no where near as difficult as being a politician. But thank you for the vote of confidence!

Hi everyone , this would be fantastic to have a begonia forum ,
for sure this would be by prefered one , i have nearly 40 begonias and keep searching and buying new ones so as things get bigger a begonia forum would be great ; this group of plants is so diverse , so if we regroup all of us begonia lovers we will be able to help each other more efficiently . like Laurie said , i also was surprised to see that no begonia forum was listed when i joined the DG about a month ago . This is a must needed forum .

Arlette

I love all kinds of begonias too and would definitely enjoy a begonia forum....especially now that winter is almost here and I have had no luck getting my Rex begonias to survive winter in the house. :^(

I absolutely love Begonia's and am starting a collection. I have about 10 now that overwintered fine in the greenhouse. But of course, I am in zone 9 so it doesn't get as cold as some of you do.

My most wanted begonia is the escargot. I bought two off ebay and received tiny plants in 2" pots that only lived for a week after I got them.

I just love the foliage on these plants. And I do agree, we do need a Begonia forum on Daves garden.

Patricia

Do you think that Dave even knows about this little thread?


Hap

Rest assured, Dave keeps track of the Dave's Garden forum...

Just seeing if anyone was awake....hehe

Hap

Oh Patricia, I saw some big ones early in the season and now for the life of me I can't remember which nursery. I will keep my eye out for you. I bought one at that time. You know HD has lots of the brightly colored ones, I love them because they will come up again the next year. I too am collecting them. I LOVE THEM!! LOL

Navlets in Fremont gets some real interesting ones in the summer. I wonder if that is where I saw the escargot.

Patricia, Trader Joe's was selling the Escargot this summer in 3- or 4-inch pots. I bought a couple of them, and I'm sure I didn't pay more than $3.50 apiece. They might still have them.

Zuzu, you beat me to the punch. I bought a 6" FULL 'Escargo' and a Rex 'Omaha Beefsteak' for $4.99, oh yes, and an 'Iron Cross' (second one, because one is never enough for an addict.) You can see them in my blog (which no one reads, I just started writing it to amuse myself! )

http://begoniaceae.blogspot.com/

Also for bay area residents, Sloat Garden Centers has some or perhaps can special order for you. I know they order from a wholesale grower who has a pretty good selection. Just cant seem to access that file in my brain of who the supplier is. Give me a minute... Ah yes.. I believe it is Ades & Gish Nursery in Encinitas. They deliver to Sloats.

Our own Fulton Nursery, California Flora sells b. sutherlandii and two b. grandis if you are up this way. ($3.50? for a 4"?)

I'm usually up for a good trade of a cutting, but can't do much until I return from Maui on the 16th, well really, leaving on the 20th for Kentucky then can do a trade around the 24th if necessary, but perhaps dmail me, I'd say that I'll post it in the 'Begonia' forum, but we're homeless at the present time. (hint hint admin )

Cool blog, Begoniacrazii. Why do you bring your Rex Begonias inside for winter? I don't, and Sebastopol's colder than Calistoga. They do melt away, but then they come up cuter than ever in spring.

I didn't realize Calistoga was 9B. How hot can it get in summer, Begoniacrazii?? We are looking for a less congested place but with the same weather as the East Bay! Good luck to us.

Zuzu, how hot does it get where you are?

Here too, they usualy die down in winter and come back up in spring.

It can get over 100, Kell, but not that often. Today it was 83, but tonight it'll be down in the 40's. That's the great thing about Sebastopol: no hot nights.

The house around the corner from me is on the market right now. One full acre. Tempting, huh?

I have had a couple different begonias for years. Just recently got 3 Rex. I had to ask for help to keep them going. A Begonia forum would be a real help.

Dont know for sure if Calistoga is 9a/9b – I know what the USDA map says- however we are in a unique microclimate that keeps us (meaning this area of about .5 sq. mile) in a bit more of an extreme temp. pattern. Our house/land lies in a unique pocket. We get down to 26-28 in the winter (at least at my house, and when it's the coldest, I'm usually asleep, but hear the wind machines come on about 2am-4am -so it could be getting colder, I'm just too busy catching zzz's to check the thermometer) and Calistoga can get hot as Heck, I've seen it hit 114, but our general temps run in the 105-108's during late July-Sept. We just don’t get the coastal influence that Sebastopol does, there is a small range that keeps us warmer in the summer and cooler in the winter. I think overall your temps are just a bit more mild. Oddly enough, St. Helena, just 10 minutes south, has citrus growing on Main St. - I have to cover mine or they melt too.

My Brugs melt away, but have returned for 3 years now from the base -so long as they go in the greenhouse (really a hoop house with 6ml plastic). I'm just now getting a bud on my 4 ry old plant, and just about the time they flower, they'll have to go back in the greenhouse!

I think that our place is just a wee bit colder too due to the shadow of a hill. I have a greenhouse for most of my tenders, and this year, I'll be using heating coils to keep the temp up at night. As it is, we are in the 40's in the a.m. this week. I can really feel the fall weather coming on, and we have 7 acres of mature walnuts that are starting to fall. (that means 7 acres of leaves too! ARRRGHHH!)

Ha!, one acre in Sonoma county runs a small fortune (DH is a real estate agent for Sonoma, Lake and Napa counties, so I stay abreast of the market. ) It is a buyers market right now. Lots out there, prices will begin to settle down. Anything over here (read 2 br fixer on a tiny lot) goes for a big bag of dough.

Our other place is out in Night's Valley (nearest is Jim Town) but there we're up in the hills and get snow in the winter and is only 18 miles away. And a TON of rain too. Hoping to build there soon (including a commercial greenhouse! Have numerous artesian year round springs –plenty of agua!).
I better get going, have to pack for Maui and I'm running out of time. Have four trays of rooting begonias that need to get moved to the greenhouse as DH hasn’t a clue what to do for them. I’m hoping that they do ok. I’ve had them inside (south window with pleated shade) on a heating mat. Have lots of roots getting started. Just worried they will dry out. I did install an automatic sprinkler system (really and upside down drip irrigation system hanging from the roof of the greenhouse, with 360 degree spray heads) so at least I know that everyone will get watered.

Have to make DH a list of things to do while I’m gone (this is a girls only trip, no kids, no spouses! Woo hoo!)
Happy Gardening all!
What a pleasant surprise it will be when I get home from drooling on tropicals for a week to find that our plant (read addiction) of choice has it’s own forum! (Does Dave take bribes?) Until then,
Cheers!
Laurie

Hi Laurie,

I have a nice selection of begonias that I have acquired over the past year from joining the Orange County Begoina Society. I still don't know very much on how to not kill them, but I'm trying. lol

I just returned from Oahu from our 8 day vacation, last week. I had a garden neighbor watching my plants, and they looked great when I returned.

Have a good trip and I look forward to talking to you about Begonias when you return. BTW, welcome to DG. :-)

Donna

Thanks Donna, how was Oahu? did you get rain? (I've updated my blog this am - you can go see our five star hotel where we stay while in Maui)
http://begoniaceae.blogspot.com/

And to keep on topic, if you scroll down, you'll see some info on my current propagation trays full of begonias (and a few african violets)

Sure wish we had a forum so I could discuss specifically begonia propagation. I am still trying to find out some info on rooting cane leaves.
Anyone?

I don't have any neighbors, and most of my friends are 'plant people', and the one that is, is going to Maui with me, so I had to put everyone on a temporary drip system so they'll get water while I'm gone. Then all DH has to do is 'check' in on everyone to make sure they have enough water.
Gotta run, still have packing to do.
Laurie

Laurie,

I enjoyed seeing your beautiful Hotel. lol Below is a picture of mine. We were in the one with the towels hanging, that's my SIL's parents standing there. We stayed at Bellows AFS on the Windward side of Oahu. It is a military recreatation area and we've stayed there many times. I am taking this picture from our beach. We usually get one of the cabins right on the beach, but this year we took my 3 yr. old grandson and we didn't want to be that close to the water for him.

Have a wonderful time!!!!!!!
Oh, and I did take a glance at your blog, awesome, but have to go for now and will read all the good stuff later.

Aloha,
Donna

my vote is yes for this forum.

Hey Dave,
I have an idea for you. lol I just entered the foilage forum for the first time and noticed that it isn't very active. Why don't you combine that forum by labeling it Begonia's and Foliage? That way you kill 2 birds with one stone...hehe
The foliage forum will get more use and we can share our begonias and lots of information on them.

Donna

Yup, yup! Begonia forum would be great................

Please add a Begonia forum.

I love Rex Begonias and would love to be able to share more information about them. I've got several that I've brought into the house for the winter......for some of them it's their third winter with me. I don't think that I do anything special to them, but they are thriving. I don't think that they want to be fussed with too much. They really love it when I can get them outside for the summer. Just brought them into the house (we've had frost and freeze warning for the past couple of nights) and am trying to figure out what to do with them. I of course added to my collection just a bit over the summer......and they are all bigger than they were when I took them outside last spring.

I look forward to hanging-out with you all on a new Begonia forum.

Marie

Marie, please share in excruciating detail every little thing you do (or don't do) to your Rex begonias in winter. You seem to be one of the few people who is successful in keeping them alive. And for 3 winters in a row! I think that must qualify you for some kind of Olympic Gold medal. LOL

I bought 4 little Rexes at Lowe's this spring and put them in planters outside. They have done beautifully but alas...frost nears and they must come into the house. I have killed every Rex I tried to winter over (at least I think I killed them. From what I have read recently they may have just gone into a dormant state and I dumped them before they got a chance to come back.) and I really want these babies to have a fighting chance.

A Begonia Forum would be a good thing, they do tend to get lost in and among the "tropicals" and "houseplants" and "foliage".... all of which apply to this lovely and diverse group of plants. Variety is the escence of a Begonia.