How to properly care for Elatior begonia at home?

Live plants strewn with lush flowers are an excellent substitute for short-lived bouquets. The amazingly beautiful houseplant begonia Elatior is capable of blooming luxuriantly twice a year, creating an atmosphere of comfort and joyful mood in the house. You can grow such a "green decoration" at home. To do this, you need to know a few rules for planting and caring for these delicate representatives of the flora.

Description of the Elatior variety group

Begonia elatior (Latin), which means flowering Begonia, is a medium-sized shrub with fleshy sturdy stems and rounded leaves with jagged edges. Under this name, a whole series of hybrid varieties is united, which appeared due to selective crossing of a cold-resistant Socotran species from the coast of Africa and a tuberous hybrid begonia. This improved cultivar group differs from other hybrid cultivars by almost year-round flowering and high resistance to fungal infections. Begonia Elatior was originally intended for mass breeding, so it is relatively easy to grow several strong young plants from one shrub.

For the unique ability to knock out flowers before the end of February, this group of varieties is called winter. The color of the foliage is rather unusual - the top is a dark green shiny surface, the bottom is matte, light herbal shade, with thick veins. Small, beautiful flowers ranging in size from 2 to 5 cm, lush, often with double petals, always sprout in inflorescences.

All varieties united in the Elatior hybrid group are perennials. They do not die off with the onset of winter cold, but they are not prone to tuber formation either. If you provide the begonia bush with suitable conditions, a healthy plant can live and continue to flourish for about 5-7 years.

Varieties and varieties of Begonia elatior

Thanks to the variety of Elatior begonias, you can choose a plant that fits perfectly into any home or office interior. The color of the petals of a flowering bush, like the height of the stems, depends on the plant variety.

All varieties are divided into three varieties:

• tall - begonia shrubs belonging to this category grow up to 40 cm;
• medium-sized - their maximum height is 30 cm.
• undersized - grow in a small rosette up to 15-25 cm in height.

Shades, shape and size of petals and inflorescences are the main external difference between one variety of this group from another.

In flower shops you can find the following varieties of Elatior begonias:

• Borias. The unpretentious medium-sized variety is valued for its unusual white-pink color of the petals and beautiful rich green leaves.
• Baladin. A real record holder for the number of flowers - up to 70 of them can be knocked out on one shrub at a time. The multi-layered inflorescences of this variety can be white, scarlet or pink.
• Renaissance. A tall "giant", which is recommended over time to be transplanted into an outdoor planter. With proper care, its height can reach 60 cm. The color of the buds is deep red, and the petals are corrugated along the edge.
• Kyoto. A medium-sized shrub with the most lush white double flowers.
• Annabelle. The flowers are rounded, yellow, unusual for Elatior. Medium-sized.
• Bellona. Differs in hanging peduncles. Inflorescences are bright red.
• Schwabenland - another famous "giant". The flowers are bright, medium-sized, smooth. The color of the inflorescences is red.
• Azotus. Large-flowered variety, inflorescences of pink shades.
• Charisma. A find for lovers of the unusual - a variety with dark salmon-pink flowers. The leaves of this begonia are "cut", bright green.

Of course, this list is far from complete. There are several dozen varieties of the Elatior group. But regardless of the variety for begonias, it is necessary to create a comfortable environment and provide proper care.

What conditions do you need to create for a flower?

Begonia Elatior is a plant that is very sensitive to the environment. Improper lighting, too low air temperature or excessive dryness can cause vegetative diseases and provoke the death of the plant. Therefore, you should carefully consider the choice of the room where the flower will be located.

Begonia will live and bloom for many years if the following conditions are met.

• Air temperature. From mid-spring to mid-autumn, the indoor temperature should be around 20-25 20С. The rest of the time, it is better to keep begonia in a cool room at 18-20˚С, without drafts and sudden changes in temperature. That is, when airing, the bush should be taken out to another place. The flower does not need additional lighting in the evening - begonia belongs to flowers with short daylight hours.
• Lighting. As much bright sunlight as possible is the main condition for excellent flowering and vegetation of Elatior begonia. At the same time, you should not expose the plant to direct sunlight so that the leaves and petals do not get burned. If the windows are on the west or north side, begonia will bloom well on the windowsill. Otherwise, it is better to install a pot with a bush opposite the window, where it will be well lit.
• Air humidity. Begonia does not tolerate dry air, but water spraying can cause flower rot and other flower diseases. You can constantly humidify the air by placing a flowerpot with a flower on a pallet with wet expanded clay or peat.
• The volume of the flower pot. For begonias, you need a shallow container, the diameter of which is selected in accordance with the height of the plant. For planting cuttings, pots 5-6 cm wide are suitable.A grown and rooted plant can be transplanted into a 10-12 cm container, and then the bush can be transplanted about once every 2 or 3 years into a pot, the volume of which is equal to or slightly larger than the begonia's height.

If one of these conditions turns out to be impracticable, it may be worth abandoning the cultivation of Elatior begonias and paying attention to less capricious plants. For example, if the house is not warm enough, hydrangeas or cyclamen will take root well. And shaded rooms will be a good environment for a decorative Kalanchoe or spathiphyllum.

How to care for Elatior begonia varieties?

In addition to heat and light, the flowers of this varietal group need proper care. If you do everything according to the rules, then it does not take too long. The main thing is not to forget to take care of the flower regularly, without long breaks.

Basically, begonias of any variety of the Elatior group require moderate watering, feeding and pruning.

• Watering. The soil should be moistened carefully, not before the soil in the pot dries out. Moisture should not be allowed to stagnate in a pot or in a pan - the thin and delicate roots of the plant will rot, even if they are in the water for only a few days. In winter, watering should be kept to a minimum to allow the plant to rest.
• Top dressing. During the period of active flowering, it is necessary to make mineral fertilizer complex for flowering indoor plants at least once every 7-14 days. It is not recommended to use organic matter for feeding - this will cause an excess of nitrogen and worsen the appearance of the flower.
• Trimming and pinching. It is necessary to remove infected or dried parts regularly so that the plant does not waste energy on them. The top leaves should be pinched during the growth of the begonia to maintain the beautiful shape of the bush.

Advice

Pruning begonias is best done with a sharp knife.Pruning shears or scissors can seriously injure leaves or shoots.

Proper care and watering will save the begonia bush from most diseases. But if color changes are noticeable on the leaves or stems of the plant, white or silvery bloom, spots, deformation of petals and leaves are the first signs of the appearance of infections or pests. In case of severe damage, it is recommended to discard the plant without cutting off the cuttings for planting. But if there are few damaged parts, then it is quite possible to save the flower or get material for propagation. Depending on the disease, special formulations, fungicides or folk remedies are used for treatment - soap solution, infusions of garlic and tobacco leaves.

Reproduction of begonia Elatior

Even in good conditions, begonia loses its attractive appearance by the 4th or 5th year of life. It is better to propagate such a flower to get new plants. How to do it? Getting begonia seedlings from harvested seeds for the Elatior hybrid is considered unreliable. It is faster and easier to grow begonias by cutting off the strongest adult cuttings.

There are two methods for planting cuttings.

1. Sheet. A large leaf is cut off 5-6 cm along with a handle and planted so that the leaf does not touch the soil surface.
2. Stem. A healthy area 7-8 cm long is cut off.

They need to be planted freshly cut, so containers with soil are prepared in advance. The soil for planting should be nutritious, light and loose. You can take a ready-made substrate for begonias (for violets) or prepare the soil yourself.

• Leafy (forest) land - 2 parts. Fertile land from under any trees, except for willow and oak, is suitable. Before mixing, the soil must be roasted in the oven.
• Peat or greenhouse humus - 2 parts. You can additionally loosen the soil by diluting it with perlite.
• Clean sand - 1 part.

If soil of high acidity is used for the soil, you will need to add a little lime. The finished home substrate is laid out in seedling pots and slightly moistened. A stalk of a begonia is planted and transferred to a darkened place for 1.5–2 months. After rooting, the flower is not transplanted, but transferred to a lighted room.

Following these tips, it is not difficult to grow a perennial Elatior hybrid at home. Begonia Elatior will be an excellent living decoration for a city apartment, a country house and even a workplace. And, of course, such a bright and lush flower can become an unusual gift for a loved one. Make a little effort to provide the room begonia with a comfortable environment, and it will surely thank you for your care, blooming in a whole waterfall of lush flowers.