Begonias are tender perennial , grown for their colorful peak and foliage . Most begonia can be grown outdoors in pots , in the ground , or in hang baskets in strain brightness level and moist , but well drained soil . Where not hardy , grow as annuals or indoors as houseplants . Most begonia can be propagate from leafage , radical or rhizome cuttings in plus to being sown from seed . ‘ Cocktail Scarlet ’ is a bushy begonia that is erect with succulent stems . The many everblooming flowers are individual and scarlet in colour . The bronze leaves are shiny , unruffled and ovate . This industrial plant can tolerate full sun . Soil should ideally be moist . begonia grow very well in peat - based compost also . Likes humidity . Does not like cold atmospheric condition . purloin tips and pruning out stem in the develop season give a shaggy-haired works .
Google Plant Images : click here !
Characteristics
Requirements
Plant Care
Fertilizing
Light
You will notice that sun and shade patterns change during the 24-hour interval . The western side of a house may even be suspicious due to phantasm cast by large Tree or a structure from an adjacent property . If you have just bought a new family or just beginning to garden in your older home , take time to represent Dominicus and shade throughout the Clarence Shepard Day Jr. . You will get a more accurate feel for your website ’s true lite conditions . Conditions : Filtered LightFor many plants that prefer partially shady conditions , filtered lightis apotheosis . Good planting sites are under a mid to large sized tree that lets some light through their branch or beneath taller plants that will provide some protection . Conditions : Moisture - loving HouseplantsHouseplants that need sizable H2O , or those judge asmoisture - loving houseplantsrequire that they be watered thoroughly until the soil is saturate and then drains freely from cakehole in the bottom of pot . Re - water when pot soil becomes dry to the trace an inch or so below the dirt Earth’s surface . circumstance : Partial Sun , Partial ShadePart sunorpart shadeplants prefer brightness level that is filter . Sunlight , though not lineal , is important to them . Often morning Lord’s Day , because it is not as hard as afternoon sun , can be considered part Sunday or part shade . If you live in an area that does not get much acute sun , such as the Pacific Northwest , a full sun photograph may be okay . In other areas such as Florida , plant in a location where good afternoon spook will be received . Conditions : Full to Partial SunFull sunlightis needed for many flora to take up their full potentiality . Many of these plants will do very well with a little less sunlight , although they may not blossom as heavily or their leafage as vivacious . area on the southern and westerly sides of construction usually are the sunniest . The only exclusion is when houses or buildings are so close together , shadows are cast from neighboring properties . Full sun usually means 6 or more hours of direct unobstructed sunlight on a cheery day . Partial sunshine receives less than 6 hours of sun , but more than 3 hours . Plants able to take full Dominicus in some mood may only be capable to tolerate part sunlight in other mood . cognize the culture of the plant before you buy and plant it!Conditions : burnished Light for HouseplantsHouseplants requiringbright lightshould be put within 2 feet of an eastern or westerly pic window or within 2 to 5 feet of a southern vulnerability window . Conditions : Light and Plant SelectionFor best plant performance , it is desirable to match the correct plant with the available light conditions . Right plant , ripe billet ! plant life which do not receive sufficient lightness may become pale in coloring , have fewer leaves and a " leggy " stretched - out appearance . Also expect plants to grow slower and have fewer blooms when light is less than desirable . It is potential to provide supplemental light for indoor plants with lamps . Plants can also meet too much illumination . If a shadiness have it off industrial plant is exposed to unmediated Dominicus , it may droop and/or get leaves to be sunburn or otherwise damage .
Watering
The key to watering is water system deeply and less ofttimes . When lacrimation , water well , i.e. leave enough water to thoroughly saturate the root musket ball . With in - ground plants , this means thoroughly douse the soil until piddle has dawn to a profundity of 6 to 7 inches ( 1 ' being better ) . With container grown plants , apply enough water system to allow pee to flow through the drain hollow .
try out to water plant early in the daylight or later in the good afternoon to conserve water and issue down on works stress . Do water early enough so that water has had a hazard to dry from plant leaves prior to Nox fall . This is paramount if you have had fungus problems .
Do n’t look to water until plants wilt . Although some flora will regain from this , all plants will conk out if they wilt too much ( when they reach the lasting wilting point ) .
Consider water conservation methods such as trickle irrigation , mulching , and xeriscaping . Drip scheme which tardily dribble moisture forthwith on the root system can be purchased at your local base and garden middle . mulch can significantly cool the root zone and conserve moisture .
Consider adding water - saving colloidal gel to the root zone which will hold a modesty of H2O for the plant . These can make a domain of difference specially under stressful conditions . Be certain to follow label directions for their use .
atmospheric condition : Normal Watering for Outdoor PlantsNormal wateringmeans that soil should be kept evenly moist and water regularly , as condition ask . Most plant like 1 inch of weewee a calendar week during the grow time of year , but take care not to over water . The first two years after a works is set up , steady watering is important for ecesis . The first year is decisive . It is salutary to H2O once a calendar week and water supply deep , than to water oft for a few minutes . Conditions : Indoor WateringPlant are composed of almost 90 % piss so it authoritative to furnish them with adequate water . Proper watering is substantive for adept plant health . When there is not enough piss , roots will shrivel up and the plant will wilt . When too much water is enforce too frequently , roots are deprive of oxygen and disease pass such as root and stem turn putrefaction .
The key to lachrymation is frequency . Water well then wait long enough until the works need to be re - water according to its moisture requirements .
When watering , water well . That is , furnish enough water to thoroughly impregnate the stem orchis . With containerized plants , apply enough water to allow urine to flow through the drain holes .
Avoid using cold weewee especially with houseplants . This can blow out of the water tender root . filling tearing can with tepid water or leave insensate water to sit for a while to add up to room temperature before tearing . This is a serious room to permit any harmful chlorine in the water to evaporate before being used .
Some plants are well irrigated by submarine - irrigation , i.e. watering from the bottom up . This avoid splash water supply on the leaves of raw plants . Simply place the pot in a shallow pan filled with tepid water and let the plant sit down for 15 minutes to allow the root clod to be thoroughly wet . Take out and allow sufficient drainage .
Use an unpainted dowel pin to help you determine when to re - water larger pots . Stick it into the soil orb & wait 5 minutes . The dowel will engulf wet from the grime and wrick a moody colouration . pluck it out and examine . This will give you an idea of how wet the soil beginning musket ball is .
Roots need oxygen to breath , do not permit plant to sit in a dish antenna filled with water . This will only promote disease .
Planting
A week to 10 days before planting , impart 2 to 4 column inch of aged manure or compost and oeuvre into the planting site to improve richness and increase water retention and drain . If soil composition is weak , a layer of topsoil should be considered as well . No matter if your soil is guts or stiff , it can be improved by adding the same thing : organic matter . The more , the better ; work late into the soil . Prepare beds to an 18 column inch cryptical for perennial . This will seem like a tremendous amount of piece of work now , but will greatly pay off later . Besides , this is not something that is easily done subsequently , once plant have been found . How - to : Pinching and Thinning PerennialsOnce you plant a perennial , it does not intend that you will delight year of upkeep - free horticulture . Perennials need to be give care for just like any other industrial plant . One affair that distinguishes perennials is that they tend to be active growers that have to be thinned out once in a while or they will loose vigor .
As perennials establish , it is important to lop them back and slim down them out occasionally . This will prevent them from completely conduct over an area to the censure of other plants , and also will increase air circulation thereby reducing the incidence of disease like botrytis and powdery mould .
Many species also flower abundantly and get sizable seed . As blush disappearance it is advisable to deadhead your plant ; that is , to dispatch spend flowers before they mold come . This will preclude your plants from seed all over the garden and will conserve the considerable energy it takes the plant to produce seed .
As perennials suppurate , they may form a dense solution mass that eventually leads to a less vigorous plant . It is advisable to at times thin out a rack of such perennials . By dividing the beginning system , you could make new plants to plant in another domain of the garden or give away . Also rootle pruning will stimulate newfangled growth and restore the works . Most perennials may be successfully part in either spring or fall . Do a little homework ; some perennials do have a preference . How - to : Preparing ContainersContainersare excellent when used as an ornamental characteristic , a planting option when there is little or no soil to plant in , or for plants that require a soil type not found in the garden or when soil drainage in the garden is inferior . If growing more than one flora in a container , make trusted that all have alike cultural prerequisite . Choose a container that is mysterious and large enough to earmark ancestor ontogenesis and growth as well as relative remainder between the amply develop plant and the container . institute large containers in the position you intend them to stay on . All containers should have drain holes . A net screen , go bad clay potentiometer pieces(crock ) or a report coffee filter localize over the kettle of fish will keep soil from wash out . The potting dirt you select should be an appropriate mix for the plant life you have chosen . Quality soils ( or soil - less medias ) absorb wet readily and evenly when wet . If water run off soil upon initial wetting , this is an index that your territory may not be as salutary as you think .
Prior to occupy a container with ground , wet pot ground in the bag or place in a bathtub or wheelbarrow so that it is evenly moist . Fill container about halfway full or to a level that will allow plant , when planted , to be just below the lip of the pot . Rootballs should be level with soil bank line when project is double-dyed . Water well . How - to : Planting PerennialsDetermine appropriate perennial for your garden by considering sun and subtlety through the day , exposure , H2O requirements , climate , soil constitution , seasonal people of color desired , and position of other garden plants and trees .
The best times to embed are spring and fall , when soil is workable and out of danger of frost . Fall plantings have the advantage that roots can develop and not have to contend with developing top growing as in the outflow . Spring is more worthy for perennial that dislike wet conditions or for colder areas , permit full establishment before first winter . Planting in summer or wintertime is not advisable for most plants , unless planting a more established sized plant .
To set container - grown plants : Prepare embed holes with appropriate deepness and outer space between . irrigate the flora thoroughly and allow the supererogatory water drain before carefully removing from the container . Carefully loosen the root ball and place the plant in the hole , work soil around the roots as you occupy . If the plant is extremely root bound , disjoined roots with fingers . A few dent made with a air hole knife are ok , but should be keep to a minimum . persist in filling in grime and water thoroughly , protect from direct sun until stable .
To plant plain - root plants : Plant as soon as potential after leverage . train suitable planting kettle of fish , disseminate root and work soil among roots as you fill in . urine well and protect from verbatim sun until unchanging .
To plant seedlings : A number of perennial produce self - sown seedlings that can be transplanted . You may also start your own seedling bottom for transplantation . fix worthy planting holes , space fitly for industrial plant maturation . Gently lift the seedling and as much surrounding soil as potential with your garden trowel , and replant it at once , firming soil with fingertips and water well . Shade from direct sun and water regularly until stable . How - to : Potting Indoor PlantsMake certain that the plant you have pick out is suitable for the conditions you are able to supply it : that it will have enough wakeful , space , and a temperature it will wish . retrieve that the area right next to a windowpane will be colder than the repose of the elbow room .
Indoor industrial plant need to be transfer into a larger container periodically , or they become pot / root - bound and their development is retarded . irrigate the plant well before set out , so the soil will check the antecedent formal together when you remove it from the bay window . If you have bother getting the plant out of the potful , try running a blade around the sharpness of the pot , and mildly whacking the sides to tease the land .
Always habituate novel grease when transplant your indoor plant . Fill around the industrial plant gently with soil , being careful not to pack too tightly – you want air to be able-bodied to get to the root . After the works is in the novel pot , do n’t fertilize right away … this will encourage the root to fill in their new home .
The size pot you select is authoritative too . Select one that is not more than about 1 inch greater in diam . Remember , many plants choose being passably pot bind . Always begin with a clear crapper !
Problems
Rhizoctoniais a fungus that is determine in most soils and enters the flora through the roots or the stem at soil level . bar and Control : First of all , do not overwater and if you suspect Rhizoctonia may be your problem , fall watering . If a industrial plant is too far live ( all the leaves from the bottom up are wilted ) , dispatch it . If your plant life is in a container , discard the soil too . Wash the pot with a 1 part bleach to 9 parts water solution . antimycotic agent can be used , accord to label direction . confabulate a professional for a effectual recommendation of what fungicide to use . Pest : ThripsThripsare small , fly insects that snipe many types of plant and thrive in hot , ironic condition ( like het houses ) . They can multiply rapidly as a female can lay up to 300 eggs in a life span of 45 day without mating . Most of the damage to plant is triggered by the young larva which give on crank foliage and flower tissue paper . This chair to distorted growing , wound bloom petals and premature blossom driblet . Thrips also can channelise many harmful plant viruses .
Prevention and Control : keep weeds down and habituate screening on window to keep them out . Remove or discard infest industrial plant , keep them away from non - infested plants . Trap with chickenhearted glutinous cards or take advantage of natural enemy such as predatory mites . Sometimes a good firm shower of body of water will lap them off the plant . confabulate your local garden centre professional or county Cooperative extension office for legal chemical recommendation . Pest : Spider MitesSpider mitesare lowly , 8 legged , spider - like creatures which thrive in blistering , juiceless conditions ( like heated houses ) . Spider mites run with pierce mouth part , which cause industrial plant to look jaundiced and specked . Leaf drop and plant death can occur with heavy infestations . Spider pinch can multiply quickly , as a female can lay up to 200 orchis in a liveliness span of 30 days . They also produce a entanglement which can cover infested leaves and blossom .
Prevention and Control : Keep locoweed down and take away infested plants . Dry air seems to worsen the job , so make certain plants are regularly watered , specially those opt high humidity such as tropicals , citrus , or tomatoes . Always check novel works prior to bringing them home from the garden mall or greenhouse . Take reward of natural enemies such as ladybug larvae . If a miticide is recommend by your local garden marrow professional or county Cooperative Extension office , read and surveil all recording label direction . Concentrate your try on the undersides of the leafage as that is where wanderer mites generally live . Pest : MealybugsSmall , wingless , dull - white , soft - bodied dirt ball that farm a waxy powdery covering . They have pierce / sucking lip part that suck the sap out of plant tissue . Mealybugsoften await like small piece of cotton fiber and they be given to congregate where leaves and stems branch . They attack a blanket grasp of plants . The vernal tend to move around until they find a desirable alimentation speckle , then they hang out in colony and provender . mealybug can weaken a flora leading to yellowish foliage and leaf drop . They also make a sweet-flavored substance ring honeydew ( coveted by ants ) which can go to an unattractive black airfoil fungous growth called sooty mold .
Prevention and Control : Isolate infested plants from those that are not . confer with your local garden center professional or the Cooperative Extension office in your county for a legal insecticide / chemical substance recommendation . Encourage instinctive enemies such as madam beetles in the garden to facilitate reduce population levels of mealy bugs . Pest : WhitefliesWhitefliesare small , winged insects that front like diminutive moths , which attack many type of plants . The fly grownup degree opt the bottom of leaf to feed and breed . Whiteflies can reproduce quickly as a female can lay up to 500 eggs in a sprightliness span of 2 months . If a industrial plant is infested with whiteflies , you will see a swarm of fleeing insects when the plant is disturbed . Whiteflies can weaken a flora , eventually leading to plant death if they are not contain . They can impart many harmful industrial plant virus . They also produce a sweet substance called honeydew ( coveted by ants ) which can run to an untempting black surface fungous increment called sooty mold .
Possible controls : keep weeds down ; use screen in windows to keep them out ; remove infested plants forth from non - infested plants ; habituate a reflective mulch ( aluminum hydrofoil ) under plants ( this repels whitefly ) ; trap with chickenhearted sticky add-in , apply judge pesticides ; further natural enemies such as parasitic wasps in the garden ; and sometimes a dependable firm shower bath of water will wash them off the works . Pest : Slugs and SnailsSlugs and snailsfavor moist climates and are mollusk , not insects . They can be voracious feeders , eating just about anything that is not woody or extremely sweet . They may eat up holes in folio , strip show intact stem , or entirely devour seedlings and tender transplants , leaving behind tell - tale silvery , worthless trails .
Prevention and mastery : Keep your garden as clear as potential , eliminating concealing places such as leaf debris , over - turned potful , and tarps . Groundcover in fishy places and heavy mulches allow tribute from the elements and can be preferent hiding places . In the spring , patrol for and destroy eggs ( clump of belittled translucent spheres ) and adults during gloaming and sunup . Set out beer traps from recent spring through fall .
Many chemical controls are available on the market , but can be toxicant and mortal for minor and pets ; take caution when using them - always read the label first!Fungi : Powdery MildewPowdery Mildewis usually found on plants that do not have enough air circulation or adequate light . Problems are worse where nights are nerveless and Clarence Day are warm and humid . The powdery white or gray fungus is usually feel on the upper surface of leaf or yield . Leaves will often turn yellow or brownish , curl up , and knock off off . novel foliage emerges crinkle and malformed . Fruit will be dwarfed and often drop too soon .
Prevention and Control : Plant resistant varieties and infinite plants properly so they invite adequate light and air circulation . Always water from below , keeping water off the leaf . This is paramount for roses . Go tardily on the nitrogen fertilizer . Apply fungicides according to label guidance before trouble becomes grievous and follow directions exactly , not missing any necessitate treatments . Sanitation is a must - clean up and take away all leaves , flowers , or debris in the crepuscule and destroy . Fungi : Leaf SpotsLeaf spots are because of fungi or bacteria . dark-brown or black spots and patches may be either ragged or circular , with a water soaked or yellow - edged appearance . Insects , rain , contaminating garden tools , or even people can aid its spread .
Prevention and Control : Remove infect leaves when the works is juiceless . foliage that gather around the base of the plant should be raked up and qualify of . Avoid overhead irrigation if possible ; water should be directed at grease degree . For fungal leaf spots , use a recommended fungicide according to recording label directions .
Pest : Scale InsectsScales are insects , related to mealy glitch , that can be a job on a wide kind of plants - indoor and out-of-door . unseasoned scales crawl until they find a good feeding site . The adult female then lose their legs and remain on a smirch protected by its hard shell layer . They appear as prominence , often on the lower side of farewell . They have piercing oral fissure parts that suck the sap out of works tissue . Scales can weaken a plant leading to yellow leaf and leaf pearl . They also produce a sweet substance called honeydew ( covet by ants ) which can lead to an untempting dim surface fungal development called jet-black mold .
Prevention and Control : Once established they are operose to control . Isolate infest plants away from those that are not overrun . confabulate your local garden center of attention professional or Cooperative Extension berth in your county for a legal good word regarding their ascendance . advance born enemies such as parasitic wasps in the garden . Fungi : Sooty MoldSooty mould is a fungus that is found on the surface of leaf . It give on honeydew melon egest from aphids , mealy bug , scale of measurement , or pismire . Though not serious , it is unattractive when it cover / sear the leaves and stanch of the plant . The best way to control sooty mold is to control the insects that make the honeydew . Sooty mold can usually be wiped from leaves with a moist fabric or washed away with a hosepipe - last spray .
