I brought my huge tuberous begonia in and Im wondering if I can take cuttings off it...Judy
Tuberous begonia cuttings
I poked around some and the information I saw said you could start stem cuttings, so give it a go :-)
Sharon
Hiya Judy, take a look at Brad's page on propagating tuberous http://www.bradsbegoniaworld.com/tuber2.htm (also check out the tuberous links in the sticky)
I may be mistaken here so other begonia heads correct me if I'm wrong, i understand that this is not the best time of year to take cuttings (spring to early summer would be) as the bulbs are starting to go dormant with the shorter days and cooler temps. When you do start a tuberous cutting, it's also my understanding that the cutting needs enough time to form the new tuber just before it goes dormant. Otherwise it will not recoup from the root system alone. I know with B. boliviensis, that's what we do at the Arboretum.
I have a book somewhere on just tuberous propagation. I'll try to hunt it down and see what I can find for you.
I'd also like to add that if you have grow lights/shelves, what have you got to loose? I say if the plant is starting to decline, start some cuttings and give it a try! Once you do, you may want to bag your newly potted cuttings until they root. Just a thought. Since they are so 'fleshy' cutting may cause them to go limp.
Anyway, I'll look for my book and see if I can find anything ....
Well... not much more than what i found here. I went to 4 different begonia books to find info. According to the Thompson's book, they only mention taking cuttings during the 'growing' season (which I assume is lengthened when you bring your begonia indoors) and Mike Stevens' book has lots of propagation info (as in where to make the cuts and what method to root, but not a whole lot on the timing of taking your cuttings. If you have his book, It's worth taking a look at the propagation section. It's not a bad book for general info and has a lot more than my others on tuberous http://www.amazon.com/Begonias-Mike-Stevens/dp/1552975517/ref=sr_11_1/002-1242836-0868808
Looks like you can pick it up used for under $3.
Most do recommend adding ambient humidity to the area around the cutting (bagging or putting cuttings under a dome etc, Stevens recommends using empty soda liter bottles as mini terrariums, he also suggests rooting in milled sphagnum)
okee dokee, hope this helps. I dont know why the sage begonia growers on the yahoo list didn't answer you. Some of those folks in So-Cal grow a lot of tuberous!!
Thanks for the info..I knew I should have posted here first anyway...and the reason I want to take cuttings is this tuberous is massive and not looking like its going dormant...I had planted it in a hanging basket and when I brough it in I snapped a limp..the stems are almost as thick as a dime and its still blooming...Im heading to amazon right now and see if I can pick up that boom...Judy