Brand new member. Love the site.
I love begonias but have never had any luck with any of them. Any hints for growing them in Florida: where to grown them (I'm assuming shade), watering, trimming, food, etc. I saw a beautiful Rex begonia. I did not buy it because I did not want to be the one responsible for killing it ;) Any help would be appreciated.
Growing begonias in Florida
Hi Wanda! Welcome to DG and the begonia forum. ;) I'm sort of new to begonias too. I've had the kind you buy from Wal Mart and been able to keep those alive for many years. I have mine in pots and overwinter them each winter. Mine are the fibrous kind so they don't need a lot of water. I think a lot of people over water their begonias and that's why they die. I trim them up a little in spring and add new soil and feed them with liquid Miracle Grow. They bloom nicely clear on till first frost.
I am interested in broadening my horizons regarding begonias. I have seen some beautiful ones here on this forum that I would like to have. Some I've never even heard of. I love the angel leafs. The Rex begonias would be new for me. Would love to have some of those. My begonias get morning sun and then shade for the rest of the day. It gets too hot here in Tx. for them to be in the sun very long.
Are you planning to put some in pots? Just delve in and get started. ;) Some of the more experienced begonia gardeners will probably have lots of tips to help you out too.
Lin
Wanda,
Welcome to the wonderful (wacky) world of begonias. You are in a perfect place for growing begonias because you can grow them outside year round in pots, in the ground, on a wall (Erica Glasener of "Gardener's Diary" that used to be a regular on HGTV had one episode of a grower in Tampa Bay (if my memory serves me right) who grew her begonias on a fence or wall and left them outside year round and said she never lost any.
Anyway you should have plenty of helpful growers in your area. Check out your local chapter of the ABS for a contact. A great place to go is PHOE (Palm Hammock Orchid Estates) in Miami. Great selection of begonias and they should be able to give you good advice on growing.
Laurie posted a link to the local chapters from the ABS (American Begonia Society) site. I could've sworn I sent a response to this earlier but it doesn't appear so, so hopefully this one will go.
Here is the link to the local chapters.
http://begonias.org/abs/branchDir.asp
HI Wanda and Dancey, welcome!
Wanda you're in a great place to grow all kinds of begonias. You shouldnt need to do much, as stated above!
Dancey - not sure where midway is, but when we lived in Houston, my mom used to grow all kinds of Begonias. Houston of course has plenty of humidity so they did well for her. Hang out here a while, wont be long before your collection is growing!
welcome again, put your feet up and get comfy on the begonia forum couch!
I have my Begonias inside and out. A few I've had for a few years , most are between2-6 months old lots were just unrooted cuttings now couple feet tall !
Wether my husband grows them in the shade morning sun garden they grow happly grow like weeds . They love it !
From the ones on our kitchen sinks shelf to living room plant shelves,
I have them in light soil-less mix. I feed light. Indirect light . Don't over water and everyone is happy !
Have fun in Sunny Humid Florida ! I can grow mine outside in the ground year round !
Midway is about halfway between Houston and Dallas by way I-45. Lots of humidity here too.
Thank you for the welcome. I've been lurking here for a while. ;) I love begonias and would love to have different kinds. There may even be a few that I could leave in the garden bed through winter. ?
Lin
I'm a newbie to begonias also. I've raised african violets for years but I needed a challenge. Rob's Violets sent me a small one as a gift plant with an order and I was hooked. When I found this forum and saw the pictures of the large gorgeous plants everyone was growing, I instantly joined. I've been haunting all of the Lowe's, Home Depots and Ace Hardwares looking for plants. I finally found a Ace that carries begonias and a local, small nursery that had a few. But, they are so few you have to get them early or they get gone. I can't imagine having a local nursery like some of the posts show in Calif.
Susan,
Come and join us at the local Atlanta chapter (late September is the next meeting and is the best one of the year) and see some exciting begonias up close and personal. Florida is a lot closer for us and has a bunch of beauties too.
Butch
Wow, what a great response. That gives me encouragement to just go out and buy a couple and see what happens. I will try a few in pots first. I think I will try my back patio which gets morning and mid morning sun. I think the afternoon heat in south Florida may be too hot for them. I am lucky and have a tropical nursery a few blocks away. I just moved to this area 2 mos ago. They had some really beautiful begonias but I was afraid to buy any. Every begonia I ever bought died, and I have tried at least 7-8 times. I feel guilty when I kill a plant so I kind of gave up until I found Dave's Garden and all the wonderful people that share their successes and failures with everyone. I have a feeling I was over watering them from what I have been reading from everyone. This is our rainy season, so I worry about them getting too much rain water. I guess I just have to make sure the plant has good drainage. I will check out the ABS also. Thank you for the tip. I would love to come to Georgia, but my car would barely make it the the next town, let alone GA, but thank you for the invite...lol. Thank you again for the welcome and great response. I will go to the nursery tomorrow and at least buy one begonia. Weather permitting. We are expecting yet another tropical wave this weekend. I hate lightning so I don't want to wander around outside during a bad storm.
Hi Violet in Florida.
What is light soil-less mix? Is that something I have to mix myself or is that something that I can buy that way?
Welcome Susan! Rob's has great little begonias. I posted one, called 'Shamus' yesterday that came from them, it's a nice semi compact one. Glad you've come by! Butch (hcmcdole) may prove to be your best resource for begonia info. and growing tips!!
Wanda,
You can visit us in GA too if you want to, but Susan is on the other side of town from me so she could probably drive to our Sep. meeting in an hour or so. The more the merrier.
I would plant your begonias on elevated ground if you have standing water in your yard and under some good shade trees. Pots are probably a safer bet so you can move them from the sun, rain, and possible hurricanes (something you don't want to hear) if the situation arises. PHOE and Fairchild Tropical Gardens are excellent places to get ideas on how and where to plant. They really are tougher than a lot of folks think.
In past summers I've had to tip pots over to drain or even yank the plant out of the pot (plastic pot) and let it drain for a couple of days after a torrential rain. This summer is drought and I have to water when I can.
Laurie,
I got my Shamus from Rob's too (second one since my first one croaked after 3 years). Rob's is a great place for smaller statured begonias.
Butch
Susan,
I sent you Dmail about the Sep meeting. Hastings is out of my way unless we meet there (last Nov). Lost Mtn. Nursery is usually pretty good along with Pikes (hit or miss) and Ace Hardware (when they get a shipment in). Some of the other members have lots of places to visit but again with traffic and no guarantees, I will wait until I'm in an area before visiting.
Wanda,......
Just found you playing around on Dave's.
Come join up on the Galloping Gardener's thread for many of us grow begonias... Myself has one about 7' tall and I have no idea what it is. But if it gets any closer to my bedroom, I may have to take drastic actions....ROTFL..
.http://davesgarden.com/forums/t/650151/
This is where we are. We get together for all sorts of fun and plant ideas/swapping/exchanging seeds/ and doing a lot of lunches. After all, how can one do all these things without sustenance?????
Please come and visit us. We have such varied interests we may even get you addicted to more than you would ever know....i.e. coleus, weeds, etc.
The most important thing with us is that we have fun, no matter what we do, and as an added bonus, we all look out for one-another.
Hap
Growing Begonias in Florida WOW inside or outside year round !
Root by leaf , fast easy and fun. I just use same soil-less mix as Av's and Gesneraids and we have plenty of humidity.
Plant them in the garden and wow. Our's are growing in morning sun/shade . When we move we will take them and I will also root cuttings.
Smallers growing Begonias I enjoy growing inside, or Lania on kitchen window or living window shelf !
I have a few of this plant always been my favorite !
wanda, welcome
i am a neighbor in miami.palm hammock orchid estate is an incredible place to visit for begonias. i grow all of my rhizomes in the ground but my canes in hanging baskets.
most of my yard is all shade. the carribean queens in the front get quite a bit of sun. i have a sprinkler system so they get watered about every other day. once a month they get fertilized along with the orchids(if i remember) i haven't had much problem with pests except the occasional snails.
i am one of the sf galloping gardners with happy you should check out the thread we have some great outings and of course we share alot of plants. i have quite a few begonias to share.
cass
