An Introduction to Begonias
According to the American Begonia Society, the Begonia genus of plants includes about 1,500 named species and several thousand hybrids. From a cultivation point of view, begonias have all the ingredients for successful hybridization—they cross readily, they have striking variability in the genus, and their ranks include everything from durable landscape plants to delicate specimens. Botanically speaking, begonias are terrestrial understory herbs native to tropical regions around the world, including Central and South America, Asia, and Africa. Today, most begonias in cultivation are hybrids, so they cannot be grown from seeds. Fortunately, however, they readily reproduce from leaf cuttings or rhizome division, so it’s easy to rapidly increase your begonia collection.
7 Types of Begonias
Because of the wide variety of begonia types, enthusiasts divide the genus into different types to help keep them straight. Brad Thompson, a begonia expert, offers the following divisions for begonias:
Broad Rules for Growing
Knowing the type of begonia growing is essential for success. In general, however, three broad rules can be drawn about begonias: But even these are only the broadest of rules. The rest of this series of articles will delve more deeply into the world of begonias and hopefully offer some tips and hints on how to identify and keep your begonias thriving.
