I've been overwintering a wax begonia someone gave me for a few years now. I save one to keep on a bookcase next to a lamp(with a compact flo bulb). It tries to put out small flowers occasionally through the winter, but I pinch them off. The leaves get lush and it makes a nice houseplant. In the spring I split it into 3 or 4 plants and use them in different areas. Maybe you could keep a pot of it and try a wicking watering system while you travel. I haven't tried it myself, but here's a link to wicking info on the African Violet forum via a search on the Houseplant forum...HTH Here is a link that might be useful: wicking info

A few years ago variegated-leaf Begonia semperflorens were sold as seed here in the ordinary catalogues; I haven't seen them in a long time though I've certainly looked for them; perhaps not enough people bought them or maybe they didn't thrive; anyway, yours sounds pretty unusual and worth holding on to; if you propagate it yourself and see how sturdy it is, you could then find out if any specialist nurseries might be interested. Sometimes variegation means a weaker plant, so it would be worth growing it on as a trial yourself first, I think. The very best of luck with it!

Carly, Here's a pretty good site for propagating begonias . Go down to the cane section for the ones you mentioned. Most canes root easily in a good potting soil mix but I like to add a lot of perlite to my mix so it dries faster. Tenting is not necessary if you keep it damp and the cutting is large enough and healthy. I also like to start most of mine outdoors while the weather is warm. If you start it in the house you may tent it for more humidity. You can also root it in water, but most people find that unnecessary. The begonia you mentioned is serratipetala. It requires more care than a lot of other canes. Kartuz has it as tropical and it needs greenhouse or terrarium care. I had one once, but it is cold sensitive so I lost it in my greenhouse due to not heating during some cold nights. Butch

More years ago than I care to admit, this was my first type of begonia. I don't know if it was the climate or just a different attitude back then in the dark ages, but they were considered houseplants, not bedding, and no one thought of them as annuals as so many do now. Just months after I was married--cliche alert, June bride--I had cut the leggy branches of the semp someone gave me and stuck the branches in a pot of soil, and they grew! Everyone who didn't run when they saw me coming got a pot of begonia for Christmas. And I was hooked on begonias for life!