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Begonias potted or grown from tubers

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  • 26-02-2023 1:29pm
    #1
    OscarMIlde
    Registered Users Posts: 759 ✭✭✭


    This is probably a ridiculous question, but I'm new to gardening so rather clueless. After renting for years I recently bought a house and have a lot of garden space and want to liven it up. I love how some varieties of begonias look in pots for the summer months and want to plant some. All the resources online relate to buying tubers, cultivating them indoors before the last frost hits and them moving them outdoors. I would love to do this, but our house is old (built in the 70's) and really cold during the day when my partner and I are at work. There is no hot press to keep them in (the boiler isn't working properly) and they apparently optimally should be kept at 18C.

    I've been trying to see if it's possible to buy the varieties I like (double apricots, dinner plate begonias) later in the seasons as potted plants or alternatively whether it might still be possible to cultivate tubers in colder conditions. If any has any experience with this I would be grateful before I commit to buying tubers which may not take.



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    #2
    looksee
    Registered Users Posts: 28,429 ✭✭✭✭looksee


    Yes you can buy potted begonias later in the season but there is no guarantee you will get the exact varieties you want.

    A house built in the 70s should not be that cold - I had a 70s house, we put in attic insulation and got the walls pumped and this improved the situation to a very significant degree. You might even get a grant to do it. However this is a discussion for a different forum (try DIY).

    While they might be a bit slower, pots left indoors should be warm enough to grow, even in a cold house. You can buy cheap heat mats though I don't know whether they are recommended for begonias.



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    #3
    OscarMIlde
    Registered Users Posts: 759 ✭✭✭OscarMIlde


    https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120290233#Comment_120290233

    I'm aware our house shouldn't be that cold, I got a shock this winter during the snow. The windows and doors are very old and leaching heat, not to mention inadequate insulation. I'm not entirely certain how the previous owners lived there for years without addressing the issues. We'll get round to it when we can afford it, not certain whether the grants are available if you're not improving the energy efficiency significantly. Thanks for the hepl with the begonias.



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