Thank you for sharing! I cannot find Dragon Wing begonias anywhere so I'm going to attempt to grow from seed. Your video is extremely helpful! Wish me luck! Also, a tip for those plastic plant tags, you can use a Magic Eraser to erase black permanent marker to reuse the plant tags.
Hi Carrie, thank you for your video. I'm very VERY new at gardening. The first thing I grew from seed were Heavenly Blue morning glories. It still hasn't bloomed, but I'm thrilled it grew at all. I've since then learned my whole back yard is "partial shade". So, now I will try my novice hand at begonias. (Finding partial shade flowers is a hunt!) I appreciate your step by step instructions. I'm in zone 9a and I will be container planting Dragon Wing begonias (some red and some pink) from seed. I like your use of the peat pelts (I hadn't thought of that - I was going to ise a flat tray) and will be making my own indoor starter box with grow light similar to your setup. I'm so nervous. I'm watching videos and digging all over the internet for advice. Question: I have six containers that are about 10.5" tall x 12" diameter. How many sprouts can I plant in one container? Also, maybe this is dumb, I was thinking of doing a mix of pink and red in the same pot. Is that weird? Honest opinion appreciated
Hi Keri, Your welcome! I am happy to hear that the video helped you. I would say try 6-7 plants for your container. I did complete playlists on starting begonias from seed - feeding the seedlings everything is in the playlists. I think that would be a pretty mix. I mix flowers all the time. Another flower that does well in the shade is impatiens. I have videos on starting those from seed too.
Your welcome, I am happy to hear that you found the video helpful. I did a few playlists on starting begonias from seed. You can see all of the update videos there. For the maturity of the plant that can vary depending on the variety. The sooner you get the seeds planted the better. I hope that answers your question.
I bought the Bossa Nova Orange seeds and the Bossa Nova red seeds. they came in a little clear tube as they are so tiny. They didn't come in the pelleted disc as you show in your video. I sprinkled the seeds on top of good compost soil in a plastic container and have it on a heating mat. They haven't germinated yet and I make sure if the soil gets a little dry, I just spray the top. What am I doing wrong? Should I have the container in a sunny window?
You want to keep your soil moist but not soggy. You don't want your soil to get dry, if your seeds are germinating and they dry out you will loose them. Seed starting mix is good to start them in not compost. You also need a light set up begonia seeds need light to germinate.
Hi, I've never tried growing that begonia from seed and I don't know if chilling the seeds would work or not. I looked it up and it seems to be a very expensive begonia. I'm sorry I honestly don't know what to tell you. Carrie
I start begonias basically the same way. The only things I do differently are a.) I use boiling water on the jiffy pellets to sterilize them as much as possible and second I rub the capsule that holds the seeds with a dryer sheet. It helps deionize the charge on the seeds so they don’t fly around when you open the capsule.
Hi, Thank you for the tips. Do you have any issues with green alage on your peat pellets when you use the boiling water on them to sterilize them? I just planted some wax begonia seeds yesterday. Happy Gardening! Carrie
Carrie's Gardening Channel I usually get algae on a couple of pellets. It hasn’t affected my begonias. But I have less dampening off with the boiling water. I just planted some of the yellow illumination series yesterday. I really really enjoy the satisfaction of growing begonias from seed kinda geeky I know it’s just cool to see the go from tiny seeds to big plants.
Hi Gabriel, Thank you for the information. The yellow illumination begonias are pretty. I enjoy growing plants from seed and yes it is fun watching your little seedlings grow into this big plants! I save myself a lot of money by growing begonias from seed. Begonias can be expensive to buy especially if you want a lot of them. Happy Gardening! Carrie
Hi Carrie, i have followed your instructions on how to start begonia seeds and i got a grow box with a grow light after 17days i can see little green shoots, How should i water them i dont want to ruin them with to much water. I got my begonia seeds from highsun seeds brisbane. I am still waiting for some from swallowtail seeds.
Hi Tony, That's great that your begonia seeds sprouted! Here is a video on watering and when to start feeding your begonia seedlings ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-S2A2rFaCIwk.html Also an eye dropper works great for watering very tiny seedlings. I did 3 playlists on my channel for growing begonias from seed that have all of the video updates in them. I've never heard of highsun seeds brisbace but I do order from swallowtail garden seeds. Happy Gardening! Carrie
the little shoots that are growing seem thin and leggy is this normal for begonia illumination. I have just took of the top of the seed container so it is now open. how far should i hang the light from the seeds.
Not normally. They could have been covered for too long. In the playlist for growing begonias from seed, you can see how close I have mine to the light when I grew mine from seed.
Hi Carrie, I have the swallowtail seeds and they are up and going already, They are bigger than the highsun seeds and they have only been in 14days. I have just ordered some sundancer begonia for my uk easyfill hanging baskets. I hope i get a good result like the illumination. Is there anything else i should do i have given the seeds that are growing a liquid feed diluted 1/4 of the real feed instructions. I am just waiting to seed some roots at the bottom of the jiffy pots.Do i take the cover of the jiffy pots or just leave as is. Best Regards Patricia
I find it interesting that you first refrigerate your seeds over night, but then go on to say it's important for the water to be warm. But there's no arguing with your good results.
Hi marquessman, The clay coating that is used on pelleted seeds seems to melt better when the seeds are prechilled before planting them. I also noticed that prechilled seeds in my experience germinate faster when planted vs when I didn't chill the seeds. Thank you for the compliment. Happy Gardening! Carrie
Hi. Just got some santa cruz begonia seed. Do you suppose I could keep the light on continuously until germination (not using timer). Don't have a grow box - have the seed in a 4 in pot that i just covered with clingwrap. just trying to grow 1!
Hi Mehrin, I tried that once but it didn't make the seeds germinate any faster for me. Are you using a germination mat or some type of bottom heat since you don't have a grow box? Carrie
@@carriesgardeningchannel856 Thanks Carrie. Just want to keep the lights on for convenience and heat. I measured and it seems without the mat the temps range from 90 to 70. Still think a heating mat would help (i have 1)?
Since you don't use a heating pad for germination, what happens to the temperature when the lights go out after 14 hours. Does the temp fall at night and does that hurt germination?
Hi Doug, Thank you for the question. My grow boxes are insulated, "I talked about that on the other begonia videos, I'm sorry I didn't explain that in this one" that is what the silver foil is so being that the box is insulated it helps to keep the heat in. I can provide the foil insulation material for sale, please contact me through email carriesgardeningchannel@gmail.com if you are interest for a price. It has never hurt the germination rates for me with the light going off, I've never looked to see how much the temperature changes during the light off time. I did 6 different begonia varieties this year from seed. I've gotten pretty much 100% germination out of my seeds. I used to use the radiant heat in the floor to germinate my begonia seeds on and that worked too but the boxes are better. The radiant heat would only heat up when the heat was on, the light would help heat them up too. It was never a constant heat using the radiant heat but the seeds still did germinate. I've never used a germination mat to do my seeds on. You don't want to use a heating pad to germinate your seeds on. I hope that answers your question.
Hi Dreamdivine, I bought these seeds from Park Seed. I also buy begonia seeds from Swallowtail Garden Seeds. I know they have this variety too. I did a playlist on these titled how to grow begonias from seed to bloom. You can see them blooming there. Happy Gardening! Carrie
