HillibrandiaThe begonium family includes 2 genera, of which only the genus Begonia is of interest and distributed in room culture. There are many types of begonia - according to various sources from 1000 to 1400. The birthplace of these beautiful plants is the tropical and subtropical regions of America, Africa and Asia. The habitat is somewhat different - some species live in moist tropical forests, others - foggy foothills (3000-4000m above sea level). Some species live in dry undergrowth, on rocky terrain, settling in crevices of stones.
In addition to the begonia genus Begonia, the genus Hillebrandia (the only species Hillebrandia sandwicensis, homeland is Hawaii), outwardly very similar to begonia plants, with beautiful flowers, is not yet considered an endangered species, but a rare enough plant to cause concern botanists from the Wildlife Service. Hillebrandia are almost never found in culture, only in botanical gardens.
All other genera previously assigned to the Begonia family are already included in the Begonia genus Begonia.
For the first time, representatives of the begonium family were discovered in the 17th century by the French botanist Charles Plumier. But the plants were named after another name. A friend and mentor of Charles Plumier was the Frenchman Michel Begon, a former quartermaster of the French colonies in the Caribbean, and famous for his love of botany. He was engaged in the taxonomy of plants, and the development of crops. In 1685, he organized a trip by Charles Plumier to the Antilles in order to review the local flora. And on the basis of the collected herbarium publishes "Description of the plants of America with their drawings." In honor of him, one of the plants discovered by Plumier was named - begonia, while Plumier himself was appointed royal botanist.
The main work on the breeding of begonium hybrids began a little later - at the end of the 19th century, while more than 100 original species served as parental material for the production of hybrids, and then new varieties .
Among begonias there are both decorative-deciduous and decorative-flowering species. Begonias are beautiful houseplants with juicy leaves, fleshy, sometimes fragile stems.
The leaves of many begonias have an asymmetric shape, somewhat oblique: oblique or oblique. The skew-oval leaves often have a pointed tip, which is why it got its name: Angel Wing wing shape. The edge of the leaf is usually serrated, or wavy. In many begonias, the leaves are pubescent, whole, but there are species that have lobular and even palmate - leaves deeply cut into lobes. The shape of the plant itself can be bush-shaped, with erect or drooping stems, as well as ampel begonias. The root system is well developed, fibrous, but there is a separate group - tuberous begonia, having a tuber and grown seasonally.
Male begonia flower
Female begonia flowersBegoniaceae are monoecious plants: inflorescences are a complex panicle, bearing both male and female flowers. The flowers themselves are zygomorphic (very rarely of regular shape), male in female four- or five-petal flowers a trihedral seed box forms above the petals. Most begonias bloom all summer, but when they create good conditions, they can bloom in autumn or even winter.
It is believed that if more simple flowers are formed on begonia, this is due to the fact that female flowers were not removed during. In fact, the formation of male or female flowers depends on many factors, and the main ones are: genetic predisposition, nutrition of the plant, for example, it is known that planting in nutritious soil and feeding, contribute to the formation of more male terry flowers. On a less nutrient medium, more simple female ones bloom.
In general, the begonium family is characterized by the order of "sexual development" - at the beginning of flowering in the inflorescence, primarily male flowers are formed, after their flowering, female flowers bloom. Nature has thought of this development option in order to reduce pollination of the plant with its own pollen and to consolidate cross-pollination - begonium is pollinated by insects.
The fruit formed after fertilization in most species is a box, much less often - an inedible berry. After ripening, the capsule cracks without falling off the bush and many very small seeds scatter with the wind.
Of all the representatives of the begonium family, only indoor begonias have become widespread among growers. Botanists do not yet have a single strict classification of the entire variety of begonias, so they are conditionally divided into groups, in fact, who is as comfortable as possible.
The most common classification into two main groups: ornamental-deciduous begonias and ornamental-flowering begonias. In turn, bush and rhizome begonias are distinguished among leaf begonias. And from the group of flowering begonias, tuberous begonias are separately distinguished. In each group, several more subgroups with a narrower characteristic of the growth form are distinguished, for example, ampel begonia among tubers, and caudex among bushes.
Begonia care
Despite the huge variety of species and a wide range, they have common features. Firstly, almost all begonias grow in humid areas, so the optimal humidity in the apartment is about 60% (for caudiceforms and some other 40-50%, but not lower). Secondly, all begonias grow on a very loose, well-drained substrate. In rainforest, the lower tier of herbaceous plants grows on a very airy forest floor formed mainly by leafy earth, leaf litter and other woody weeds. Despite heavy rains, water on such a substrate does not linger for a long time, instantly flows into the lower layers of the soil or flows into streams. And the winds do not allow moist air to stagnate. Some begonias, as already mentioned, grow in rocky areas, where even more water does not linger on the substrate for a long time. Therefore, all begonias are very sensitive to soil waterlogging. They require good drainage and loose ground. The key to success in their cultivation is moderate soil moisture (watering only after the ground dries) and high air humidity.
In relation to light, most begonias adhere to the rule: bright scattered light is good for us, the sun and shadow are destructive. Various species of begonia are more or less tolerant of direct sun, but perceive it favorably in the morning and evening hours. Planted on the south side in apartments or burn out and degenerate. Therefore, for a time from 11 to 17 hours, begonia must be shaded. The eastern and northwestern window sills are optimal. At the same time, begonias cannot be called shade-loving, they are rather shade-tolerant. With a lack of light, begonia shoots are exposed, flowering is short and scanty, leaf color is lost. Begonias can especially suffer in winter in conditions of high temperatures and lack of light.
As for temperatures, species needs are somewhat different, but most prefer the range from 15 to 20 ° C, they do not like strong heat and cold wet weather (take into account when taking to the garden). Some begonias must have cool wintering (tuberous at 10-12 ° C), others winter well at normal room temperature (many deciduous) if there are no heating batteries nearby, and relatively high air humidity is maintained.
The reproduction of begonias is usually not difficult. Most species reproduce vegetatively - stem and leaf cuttings, leaf, part leaf, part rhizome. Artificial pollination is used to obtain new hybrids and varieties. As for leaf propagation, this method is applicable to all begonias that have pubescence on the back of the leaf (as in begonias of the Rex group), begonias that do not have such pubescence are unpromising in leaf propagation, but stem cuttings easily root in water.