Saturday, July 24, 2010

Begonias...sweet n delicate

As far as I know, BEGONIAS (local name - RESAM BATU) have no other uses besides being appreciated for its ornamental value for both its flowers and foliage. They have so many species and many more hybrids known today. I have seen them around my parents house since I was a child. My mom used to grow a few species in pots at wherever police barracks we called home and even at that young age, I came to appreciate their beauty. I remember chewing their tiny pink flowers which tasted like green apples actually...sweet sourish! They are delicate plants, so not too much sun for their beautiful shiny velvety leaves and enough water to make them grow healthy and beautiful. But I see nowadays, some hybrids are tougher, can withstand full sunshine, longer stems, smaller foliage with more flowers! I love begonias and I have started to grow 4 species in my garden though I dont really know their names yet.





my mom used to grow a few pots of these
though those days they were bigger foliage, tiny pink flowers
which I loved to chew on...Now they are petite and
can be potted as hanging plants with full sun on them everyday!
they have more tougher flowers which can withstand a heavy
onslaught of the rain anytime!

my auntie gave this specie taken originally from my
grandma's house in Sitiawan..shiny pinkish
leaves



I got this from a nursery...like I said, they used to be
huge leaves, velvety n a bit hairy with tiny red flowers
but this hybrid is much smaller n look good on a
garden table under the shade. I placed this under
my mengkudu plant which is very shady...


this is also very tiny with delicate foliage though
not shiny but they are hairy at the edges, no flowers yet...
soon I will transplant them in bigger pots
and see if I can make them bigger by doing that...
Im in the process of re-organising my small garden which have been neglected for quite a while now. Re-planting and transplanting old plants into bigger pots or making new flower beds to accomodate new seeds and plants. I love COLOURS in my garden whether they are from flowers or foliage and have yet to include a vegetable garden except for the compulsory pandan, curry leaves and kafir lemon tree you can find in every house nowadays. So maybe if time permitted...and my gardening mood dont fizzle anytime soon...I would like to have one in the near future...a little vegetable garden in my backyard!

8 comments:

Bangchik and Kakdah said...

Nice begonias, such wide variety. You are not alone in taking a bite at the flowers... haha. Kakdah keeps a couple of pots of resam batu, but I miss their presence, because they are always tucked somewhere for shade.... ~bangchik and kakdah.

p3chandan said...

Hahaha..indeed Bangchik we are the flower eaters! Begonias are sensitive plants n shy too..

James David said...

Hey!
Thanks for the comment and dropping by at my garden blog. Really enjoy seeing your garden pictures.
Just few matters:
Cane begonias grows better when they are planted on ground level. They tend to grow tall, so if you are planting them on hanging pots - chances are they will look funny when its long and leggy.

The first picture of the red flowered plant is known as a cane begonia.
My suggestion is take a cutting and plant it on the ground - you will see that this one grows faster and sturdier compared to hanging pots.

The second one is looking glass begonia. They do better in hanging pot.

Im not sure of the other two names, chances are they might be velvet begonias.

Thanks for adding my blog by your bloglist. Appreciate it very much. Hope to hear from you more often in my comment box.

p3chandan said...

Thanks James..I really appreciate your advice abt the begonias n letting me know their names.Hope to have as many varieties as yours..

James David said...

Im very sure you will slowly will able to collect more begonias over time.
Just few more tips again about begonias
1) See you can get begonias from friends and family then buying them. The ones that lasted in the tropical garden can grow and thrive compared to the ones from the nursery.
And chances are - those might have come from Cameron Highlands and they might not be so suitable in the lowland climate.

p3chandan said...

ok James will do that...thank u for yr advice I really appreciate it

Autumn Belle said...

I have a hairy begonia. I too have fallen in love with these plants with pretty leaves and plan to add on my collection.

Sunray Gardens said...

Interesting looking plant.

Cher
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