Begonias are beautiful and easy to grow

Bounteous begonias deserve a featured place in our landscaping. Their sheer variety, adaptability and ease of care make them suitable for subtropical gardens. In South Florida, they are a gardener’s best friend.

Begonias always make me think of a stereotypical grandma’s garden — nice, but not exactly hip. Like most stereotypes, we sustain this one at our loss. Here are some begonia basics for growing and appreciating this amazing genus of plants.

Identifying species and cultivated varieties can be impossible outside a botany laboratory. Their forms can vary from miniature terrarium plants to tall cane begonias, with leaves that range in color from shiny solid green to pebbled silver and black, or even with an iron-cross pattern. There’s just indescribable variety.

In fact, there are so many kinds that begonia experts, to aid in classification, place them into botanical

sections — 66 of them. Horticulturists place them into eight groups. These include Rex, a group grown for its variety and foliage.

Rex begonias all grow from rhizomes, as does another: the Rhizomatous group. However, Rex begonias are all descended from the species Begonia rex.

Tuberous begonias can go dormant to survive cooler temperatures and are known for grander flowers.

Rhizomes and tubers are quite similar — underground, modified plant stems that store nutrients. However, rhizomes grow horizontally.

Semperflorens are “wax” begonias with thick, waxy foliage.

Cane begonias grow tall, bamboo-like stems. Angelwing begonias are one example.

Shrub begonias grow, well, shrubby with multiple stems reaching out from the soil. Trailing begonias climb philodendron-like or hang from pots. Thickstemmed begonias have, predictably, thick stems. They drop lower leaves to look almost arborescent, or tree-like.

These groups are fairly flexible with many plants overarching into multiple groups.

Begonias are native to both the Old and New World tropics, and even those from different continents can be interbred, which is a factor in the thousands of varieties and hybrids available. Most prefer heat and humidity.

Some make great landscaping cover, like Begonia popenoei, with gigantic, smooth green leaves a few feet off the ground. It is demure enough to be filler between taller plants and

KENNETH SETZER/COURTESY Flowers of the Begonia maculata, an angel-wing begonia with whitespotted foliage.