Begonia Rex Care (Don't Make These Mistakes!) 

Thank you for this!!!

Mines name is "Rex." I'm so unoriginal 😂

Update: Rex died 😭

​@@kona702😭 why'd he die tho so I don't kill mine

@@chelseaschlais3822 I don't know I had him outside he was nice and full and healthy and then he started getting all this brown around and all over his leaves and I couldn't figure out why. I think I may have overwatered him and rotted his roots away, so then I had to keep giving him so much water just to keep water in the plant and the leaves. not positive but eventually it just all wilted. And I'm usually pretty good with plants it's the only one that I killed this year.

@@chelseaschlais3822 but he has children now. I managed to save a few of his leaves and make little babies out of them. 🥰

oh no, the humidity level i have is legit 3%, im so screwwweeedd

i just bought a small begonia rex a few weeks ago and the lighter color leaves are getting crisp/dead along the edges. I didn't water it much after i bought it because it was pretty moist already. I did a thorough watering today. you think it was from being underwatered? The darker red leaves look fine. My humidity sits between 50-60%

@@nicvallecillo7557if is it getting crispy might be the air is too dry for rex begonia but you can find balance by pulvericing clean water on early mornings, just as much to avoid dehidratation, but just as little to not moistering soil at all. Like Erica, I was on the same odyssey finding those fine lines between healthy routines you have to switch gently in every season and fatal error, so the best advice I can share is to be patience and trying different combination of these factors: water frequence, light and ventilation.

I keep wondering why mine keep getting crispy edges! 😣

Lol, that's pretty much it. 🤣

There is no way to win with Rex Begonias. Everything you do is wrong and you are a murderer 😅

@@tarakennedy707 I'm afraid you're right.

@@tarakennedy707 spot on. they love humidity and to be moist. Yet in a 70% humidity room with indirect light and on top of a tray of pebbles, it still gets brown crispy edges. meanwhile, non rex begonia is totally loving it and thriving

@@smartgardenguide2550 I have a begonia and it’s soil hasn’t dried up yet, I haven’t given it water because I’ve been waiting for it to dry. Is my issue overwatering or underwatering? Maybe low humidity but is there anything I can do to help it? It’s droopy and it lost almost all its leaves.

Rightly said

I agree! 💯👍

I like all the categories he touches on

Hi Charlie Glad you enjoyed the video. I'd definitely agree with you about them thriving on neglect. I always find they do best when I take a hands off approach. :)

Good luck with your plant, I hope it is thriving again before too long :)

Glad you enjoyed the video. :)

Thanks for the suggestion. That's a great idea for a video. So many wonderful cultivars to discuss. 🙂

Agreed. I just discovered begonias recently and they are so beautiful and interesting. Mine are small still so interested in their care.

Hi Jerry Thanks for the encouragement. I really appreciate it. :)

How do u know ur homes humidity percentage

@@AK-706 You can buy humidity meters. Very handy to have.

Brought none from Lowes today

Second this. I wish I can read the roots of begonias. Leaves curling/crisping cause of overwatering? Underwatering? Too much light? Not enough? Humidity? I try. They have inspired me to be more persistent and hopeful as a person and plant owner ;)

Also I was careless in unboxing a special Angel wing cane begonia to wear only one leaf was left and even that drooped and dropped. I’m just left with buds... I look at it and surround it with other begonias hoping their energies channel that Lil guy back to life :/

Hi Melody A great suggestion. I'll see if I can get a video made on this topic :)

@Melody Hale.. I tend to do the same, I just can't help it.. I had one like yours and I just gently removed about half the soaked soil and added new well drained soil instead, then I kept the plant in my bedroom window (west side) and waited until the soil was almost dry, then I gave it a bit of water, not too much but a bit just to keep it a wee moist.. I did that until I could see new growt showing.. It is still in my bedroom window big, strong and very much alive, with the same care and blooming.. Now I've got 3 different, but same family, in the same window with the same care, more or less.. Give it time, be patient and you'll be just fine..

Hi Deck An east-facing window would be perfect, and your begonia will love humidity of 65-70%. I find begonias very hit or miss. Some seem to love my home, and others are determined to be a challenge! :)

Your begonias are beautiful!! Thanks for sharing!

Hi edagdwg love these bagona a forever love of these plants Linda j. Peace

Worm castings make a great fertilizer for begonias. Mixing 10% into the potting mix or top dressing the soil works well. Worm wee is definitely a new one to me! Glad you liked the video.

Sorry i should explain a bit better( worm wee) as I i call it, is the water underneath the worm casting, it is all the water at the bottom of the worm farm. I have a three layer one. I hope this has explain a bit better. Sorry, have a great day,

I find it easiest and most effective to bottom water, I don't risk excess water on the leaves and the plant will only take up the water it needs but it thoroughly saturates the root mass at the same time. I just leave it until the top soil begins to feel moist and then allow it to drip before placing back where it belongs

@@hollypuckett3931 thank you so much!!! 👏🤗♥️

I have the same issue! Except they’re in a bathroom, but in a lower light situation. Just moved next to an east facing window but I haven’t seen improvement yet. Not sure what else to try at this point.

Hi Rachael If your begonias look fairly healthy, but just aren't growing, it is most likely due to low lighting, although lack of fertilizer could also be an issue. I don't think humidity is the problem. Low humidity can cause brown leaf edges, and very high humidity without any ventilation can make disease more likely, but it wont impact the growth rate much. Sometimes when you repot a begonia, or change its location, it can sit doing nothing, just getting used to its new home, before finanlly starting to produce new growth. Fingers crossed your begonias start to behave themselves. :) Best wishes Andrew

Rachel, If I may, this is what I think from my experiences: as the video above said, don't overwater your rex begonias, let them go dry till the top layer of soil feels dry to the touch - seriously - I lived in the northern outer area of London UK, so not a country with high humidity levels, especially not in the summer in a heat wave, I'm not sure a terrarium is the answer, I think better light might be more useful. having said that, I have done plenty a mistake in the past. I'm now 2 weeks into my new home ca.80 miles SE from where I lived, my rex begonias are fine, its one of the cane begonias that took a massive sulk and dropped all its leaves in the last few days... go figure lol Also Monty Don swears by seaweed fertiliser, I started using that too, give it some consideration, but don't feed your houseplants if you think they are ill, it can make it worst. Another tip I was given from an expert is to read lots about what you are growing to help you reach an informed decision. I hope you can sort it, Rex begonias are truly worth the bother (or in my case - the lack of) :-)

Crispy leaf edges is typically an indication of either poor humidity or poor water conditions which may be that it had been allowed to dry out too much at one point or the water quality is poor. They can be sensitive to salts and minerals in tap water so using distilled may help

Hey Ms Wing, if I may suggest that you consider boiling your water and let it cool down over night... this will get rid of chlorine in the water, chlorine can sometimes cause brown tips on some plants, see if it makes a difference. Also if you can collect and use rain water. I don't have a watering schedule, I go by looks and if I'm uncertain I touch it, I let the surface go seriously dry on pretty much most of my houseplants, in the winter I'm less at it, in the summer I'm going around with the water every day to see who needs a drink...

@@charliebrown9188 many thanks! will try the boiled water treatment. I figured it’s the water effecting my begonias and even other types too. Seems my cane begonias are generally hardier and doing better...I won’t give up on little escargot though. Just too cute to lose.

@@MsWing-ij9nb Ms Wing, I have to share this with someone: today I was tidying up around my home and when I picked the stand (chair) where my begonia 'merry christmas' is sitting on to clean under it, I got an enormous surprise, its producing its very first flowers :-) I had it at least 4 years, its been in so many different locations in my previous home, and now that I moved house and have less space and less light, I'm presented with flowers as a house warming gift, I'm not even 2 weeks here. I was so happy I cried with joy ... I wonder if it has anything to do with the fact that I also water my plants a little less, I do let the top layer go dry, as in you touch it and it feels dry. I'm not too worried as it is in a 2ltr plastic pot and this begonia has been so dry before that i found it practically flat on the window ledge... I often wonder (but not enough to care) what normal people think of me and my obsession with plants (well, I know, they tell me, I'm crazy lol) And I will agree with you, my canes seem to be easier as well. I want to try propagation next.

Escargot are beautiful, it sounds like you are doing very well with it :)

Fantastic, that's awesome that you got it to bloom after 4 years. I definitely share your plant obsession :)

I don’t think so, cause the stems are a bit succulent like, but clover are the same way, and deer love clovers, so I’m not entirely sure

Same

I would recommend getting a humidity sensor, then, if you're in the range of 50 to 60 percent, you're good, if its below 50 you can do several different things, you could put it on a pebble tray, you could put it in a terrarium, or you could get a humidifier.

@@maddhappy2286 thanks for this advise 🙂

Hopefully you got an answer by now but on the chance you didn't, I'll recommend removing it as it isn't really serving the plant and will take but a bit of energy until it falls away on its own. And, they're a bit unsightly 😅

@@hollypuckett3931 thanks!! That is pretty much what I did. This poor thing only has one leaf and I was so tempted to get rid of it until I uprooted and and saw that it had grown new feeder roots. Soo... I stuck the ugly thing back in the soil and it now has 2 new babies. Hoping they don't die 🙏 It has taken months but I'll keep caring for it lol

@@WifeOfTheBeast I didnt have much luck with mine until I pulled out the corms and grew them in my conditions and now the babies are super strong and healthy 👌 Happy to hear it's still with us ❤️

Same issue

Moving a plant into your home is stressful, repotting it is stressful and when you do those both at the same time it is more so. The plant is diverting all of it's energy into the root system now, reestablishing itself to feel strong and secure. During this time the plant will look sad but it's best to treat it as if it's healthy and allow it to recover. If it doesn't bounce back or continues to decline, then there's a bigger issue to resolve somewhere. Be mindful the size of the pot you've moved it into and if it's MUCH larger than the last pot, keep in mind that all that soil is holding much more moisture than the plant can take in and if it stays too dry for too long, it will rot.

@@hollypuckett3931 sadly this word of advice came way too late. My plant has already died.😭

@@DoveyTheWriter I'm sorry to hear that! Try again ❤️