Common Name: Wax Begonia

Scientific Name: Begonia semperflorens

Wax Begonia - Rounded, Mounding Growth Habit

Physiological Growth Cycle: Perennial        USDA Hardiness Zone: 10-11

Dicot

Size:

• 6" to 12" height

Growth Habit:

• Rounded
• Mounding

Wax Begonia Swollen Node at Leaf Base	Wax Begonia Alternate Leaf Arrangement	Wax Begonia Ovate Leaf Shape and Serrate Margins	Wax Begonia Oblique Leaf Base

Foliage:

• Alternate leaf arrangement
• 2" to 4" long
• Swollen node at leaf base
• Ovate leaf shape
• Oblique leaf base
• Serrate leaf margins
• Waxy leaf blade
• Glossy-green to reddish-bronze or green variegated with white 

Wax Begonia Cluster of Closed Flowers	Wax Begonia Open Flowers

Inflorescence:

• Borne in clusters
• White, pink, and red
• About 1/2" diameter
• Blooms profusely

Wax Begonia - Container Plant

Use:

• Container plants
• Interior plants
• Edging plants
• Mass plantings

Problems: 

• Mealybugs
• Thrips
• Botrytis
• Leaf spot
• Stem rot
• Root rot

Culture:

• Shade to partial shade
• High humidity may cause
  • Stem rot
  • Root rot

Propagation:

• Leaf cuttings
• Tip cuttings

Notes:

• May be treated as a perennial in frost free winters
• Origin of scientific name:
  • semperflorens: ever-flowering
• The genus, Begonia, is divided into three groups according to rooting habits.
  • Tuberous
  • Rhizomatious
  • Fibrous