Tell me all I need to know about Begonias please.

[lurkinginthebackground]

Hi,

I decided last yaer after visitng a beautiful village to try and palnt begonias in all my tubs and pots and possibly some in my garden border.

I have been in a local garden centre and they seem quite expensive. also you don't get many for the price. Does one bulb-if that's the right word-spread and how many would I need to fill a tub approx 30cm long?

Do they flower every year?

Which are the best type for both flowering and easy to grow?

Thanks.

Check online for small plug plants, generally the cheapest way to buy them. You won't need many to fill a 30cm tub as they will fill out quite a bit but they won't spread sideways. I would say three plants max would fill that with ease, but I'm not big on begonias.

begonias here

I don't know much about begonias either - except there are big showy ones and then little ones used as bedding plants. I would guess you mean the former as it's too early for the latter (not frost hardy I think). Though some garden centres do offer tender plants ridiculously early.

The big ones I've seen have a spread of about 20cm so a couple of tubers per tub might do it.

You can get them to flower every year (MIL had some which were reputedly decades old) but I think the tubers have to be lifted and stored somewhere frost free overwinter - I'm sure there's loads of details online. If you can do that then the expense isn't so bad.

Double headed begonias are the nicest.

Thanks for the replies.

Yes it is the big showy ones that caught my eye.

Will go on line to investigate.