Beguiling begonias! O
nce upon a time, begonias were what your granny planted in tidy rows along the shady garden walk. They had big, soft leaves and huge, blowsy flowers of a particularly fluorescent hue in red, yellow, orange or maybe pink, sometimes even white. They might have had ruffled petals edged in brilliant contrasting colours or blossoms that could be six inches in diameter, and they were spectacular! These rewarding tuberous begonias also occurred in a pendulous or cascading form that can be relied on to pleasingly fill and spill over a shaded pot. They came in several varieties; ‘Illumination’ was widely sold (and still is). The Non-stop tuberous hybrids were all the rage a few years ago because as long as they were faithfully deadheaded, they would put forth copious numbers of small but double blooms in many shades of pink and rose. The begonias bloomed from mid summer to late fall. You carefully preserved the tubers and overwintered them in a cool dry space in the basement. Those paragons of yesteryear are still here, but they have amazing rivals. And I am not talking about the fibrous, well-behaved wax begonias with their single flowers and uninspiring habits. I am speaking of the begonia revolution, much of it occurring in the fibrous category which includes those waxy ones but have eclipsed them. These begonias can be grown from seeds rather than tubers and have fine, fibrous roots. They have been bred to explode into bloom in sunny spots or in shade, depending on the variety. Dragon wing Let’s look at the wonderful dragon wings, so called for their shiny, wingshaped leaves. They are perfectly happy in shade and they simply never stop. The flowers are not that showy alone, but when you put hundreds together, they put on quite a display with their bell-shaped red flowers and dark green leaves. They are easy care, not fussy about watering habits (watering on the light side is better than overwatering) and grow in a 6 • 2021
By Dorothy Dobbie
The fabulous, reliable dragon wing begonia.
pleasing bushy mound perfect for a hanging basket. They don’t mind heat or humidity. Dragon wings can handle sun or shade, but light shade is preferable, and they do well in full shade. If you fall in love, take it inside and overwinter it. It will continue to bloom in bright indirect sunlight. They need no deadheading or pruning and don’t drop branches. If you don’t want to take a big, oversized plant indoors, you can propagate from stem cuttings. Dragon Issue 4
wing begonias are truly one of the container garden workhorses. ‘Sunsation’ Sexier and just about as reliable are the new sun-loving begonias, particularly ‘Sunsation’, absolutely amazing double-flowered begonias with smaller rose-shaped blossoms that just keep on giving. A small plant will be smothered in blooms and happy as a lark in the brightest sunshine. They bloom all summer until freeze up. The famous fluorescence is still there in stunning shades of pink and coral localgardener.net
