Begoniaceae family. There are about 1,400 species of begonia and a huge number of hybrids. Their homeland is the tropical and subtropical regions of mainly South America, East and West Africa, Asia.
Begonias are beautiful houseplants with juicy leaves, fleshy but fragile stems. The leaves of most begonias have an asymmetric shape, whole or pinnately dissected. Often the underside has a reddish, brown or dark purple color, and the upper side has a mixture of various colors, a pattern of several colors and shades in the form of geometric patterns, strokes, speckles. Leaves, petioles and stems of begonia are covered with hairs, sometimes unusual, for example, star-shaped.
Among begonias there are many shrubs or shrubs, with erect or drooping shoots, there are herbs and creepers (ampel begonias), epiphytes and succulents, caudex forms.
The root system of begonia is well developed, is a creeping or tuberous-thickened rhizome. There is a separate group of tuberous begonias.
The inflorescence is a complex panicle; there are both male and female flowers on the pedicels. In female flowers, a trihedral seed box is formed above the petals. Most begonias bloom all summer, but when they create good conditions, they can bloom in autumn and even winter.
In nature, begonias grow in moist tropical forests and mountain meadows at an altitude of 3000-4000 m above sea level. Much less common are some species in drier conditions. Most begonias are demanding on high air humidity, but in natural conditions they are enveloped in fogs, and the soil is very loose and drained. Therefore, begonias, especially those with velvet leaves, of the Lorrain group are never sprayed. And Bauer's begonia is not only not sprayed, but also tried to water so that water does not fall on the leaves.
From the point of view of biology, all begonias are divided into three groups:
- tuberous begonias (e.g., Lorrain begonia),
- rhizomatous begonia (e.g. Bauer begonia),
- begonia having a superficial root system (for example, begonia eternally flowering).
Types of begonias
This classification is not entirely convenient for a common flower grower, so more often we divide begonia above deciduous-deciduous and decorative-flowering. Read more about the different groups of begonias in our articles:
Ornamental-flowering begonias
Some of the most spectacular flowering begonias are tuberous begonias, these are potted crops, such as, for example, Lorrain begonia hybrids and Elatior begonia hybrids. At home, both species begonia are grown: Begonia coccinea, Begonia glaucophylla, etc., and hybrids obtained by crossing two or more species of begonia, many of which have very beautiful leaves and bloom beautifully and abundantly.
The most famous indoor begonia is omnipotent, it is an ampelous plant. It is unpretentious, but justifies its name, blooms constantly and very abundantly.
Ornamental-deciduous begonias
Deciduous begonias are distinguished by having spectacular greenery, beautiful shape and pattern. The flowers of decorative deciduous begonias are not as colorful and abundant as, for example, in tuberous begonias, but in some the flowering is very abundant and long. In the world of biologists, there is no single classification of the genus begonia, more precisely, there are several classifications and everyone uses the one that is more convenient and understandable to him...
Cane begonias are very beautiful - a group of bush hybrid begonias, mainly with erect stems and an underground rhizome (rhizome). Or Begonia Bauer - short, compact - she has a corner on every windowsill!
Care for deciduous begonias
There are a lot of deciduous begonias, they differ not only in structure, some species are completely unpretentious, others are considered capricious. But their general care requirements are the same.
Most deciduous begonias love high humidity, with quite large specimens growing among them. I.e. there may not be enough space on the windowsill. Do not place the pot on the floor or on a stand near the battery. If it is impossible to put the plant near the window, put it further from the batteries, but organize lighting with fluorescent lamps, since it will be dark already 1 m from the window.
Begonia Rex
In the classification of all types of begonias, the Rex group belongs to root (rhizome) begonias, but due to some features (initially - origin, later due to the peculiarities of care) they are distinguished separately, separately. Most plants are low, the maximum reaches 1-1.5 m, with a lying, creeping, with a temporarily hanging pseudostem. More precisely, the stem is taken to be the aerial part of the rhizome - the rhizome. Traces of old, already dead leaves are clearly visible on it. Leaves on long petioles. The form can be: simple rounded, oblong, oblique, snail-shaped, cirrus (slightly dissected or deeply dissected, star-shaped ).
Begonium family
The Begonia family includes 2 genera, of which only the genus Begonia is of interest and at home. There are many types of begonia - according to various sources from 1000 to 1400. Interestingly, begoniaceae do not grow in Australia and Polynesia.
Some species live in dry undergrowth, on rocky terrain, settling in crevices of stones, but most are natives of moist shady forests, valleys and mountain slopes. Among them are medicinal and edible species.