Begonias I Love...

Back in the early days , before I was completely plant obsessed, I discovered  begonias. I was living at the time in Glen Cove, NY,  and there was a arboretum a few miles from the apartment that my wife and I shared. We would go visit on weekends, exploring the grounds and expansive greenhouses. The greenhouses were arranged by plant collections. The Bromeliad room, the Fern room, the Camilia house, etc. It was upon entering the begonia room, however, that I new I was done for. You see, Begonias are one of the more diverse plant groups on the planet, with a dizzying array of leaf sizes and shapes, plant forms and growth habits. I was hooked and returned over and over to marvel at the variety of forms that I understood evolved from a common ancestor. It was a decisive moment in my plant-centric life. From that point forward, there was no turning back, and my focus and obsessive plant collecting of certain plant groups began.




To this day I still put Begonia varieties at the top of my plant list. Following are a sampling of some from my collection, many dating back to the early days.