Please Help My Begonia Rex

2 years ago

I’ve had this begonia Rex since the spring and it was thriving. Then, the summer weather changed to fall and it suddenly wilted. It used to be in a pot with no drainage holes, however was doing excellent. In the past, it has wilted dramatically when it needed water. So I watered it, but the soil didn’t dry out as fast as it normally did in the past. So I repotted it a week later and separated it into 2 pots that are more shallow. I’ve been letting it dry out so I’ve given it minimal water recently from following advice from online. I’m unsure if it has stem rot. This is my favorite plant in my collection and I’d appreciate any kind advice on anything to do better. Thanks everyone!

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Comments (7)

Mereze Visagie
Original Author
2 years ago
Also forgot to mention that it’s been 2 weeks since the repot, only use distilled water for it, it’s under a grow light for 9 hours a day like it’s always been, I use a moisture meter before a water, humidity hasn’t dropped below 50%
Tiffany, purpleinopp Z8b Opp, AL
2 years ago
So pretty, I would want to save it too! When you repotted, did you find a rhizome? The rhizome should not be buried. It should slowly expand across the soil surface, making new leaves and blooms as it travels. I would also remove the pretty rocks so the soil can get oxygen.

If you want to try to root some leaves, that might help if the existing rhizome/roots are not happy and struggling. If all goes well, you should see something like this after a month or so. These pics are from about 6 weeks ago.

About a month ago, I put this leaf and another that had formed roots into this group pot (to the left.) By now, several new leaves have grown on each.
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It does appear you have some stems that are rotting off which is a sign the plant has too much water. Cut back on watering - let the soil dry some before watering again. Outdoors this should not be an issue as the heat dries them out even if it has been raining quite a bit. The leaves that show rot near the base of the rhizome can be cut off and restarted in many different ways so you would have a little insurance in case the mother plant croaks. Do it sooner than later. I just moved a bunch of my starter plants from leaf wedges to the great outdoors a couple of weeks ago, hoping the squirrels let them alone. I find Jiffy pellets the easiest way to do this. after several weeks I then move them up to bigger pots (3 to 4 inch to begin with)
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Mereze Visagie
Original Author
2 years ago
I don’t think the rhizome is buried but I’m not 100% sure! I removed the rocks and aerated the soil with a chopstick. How do I go about propagating a leaf? I tried taking a leaf cutting and putting it into soil but the leaf seemed like it died and was droopy and crispy. Here are updated photos! I also got a second stand and moved both closed to the grow light for improved lighting. Any other advice? 🙂
ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
2 years ago
looks like you have a problem with the roots sending water to the leaves.. to keep them turgid ... full of water pressure ... you may have been near root rot.. and repotting sure stressed it more.. and now you are not watering for fear of over watering ... a real catch 22 ...

though i prefer to root.. propagate .... things in damp media... in this case .. im not sure there is enough water in the leaves to spare them the time to use such.. to force out roots.. so... in this case.. i would root them in water ...

tiff clearly showed you a pic of the result .... so go do the right thing ....

ken

https://duckduckgo.com/?q=begonia+rex+leaf+propagation+in+water&t=ffcm&iax=videos&ia=videos
party_music50
2 years ago
The potting mix looks bone dry to me. I think the they just need ample water.
hc mcdole
2 years ago
I agree with party_music50 - looks very dry to me too. Water and put under some humidity dome/baggie to get them to perk up again.

Growing outdoors is always beneficial (if you have high humidity)
Tiffany, purpleinopp Z8b Opp, AL
2 years ago
That would be the first thing to try. If they are just thirsty, they should perk up by the next day.

To propagate a leaf, you can put it in soil, more sideways than vertical, so the cut end is just barely under the surface and most of the petiole is laying across the soil surface. You can put a small rock on the leaf to hold it in contact with the soil.

Or you can put it in water. The examples I showed were in put water until the roots looked as photographed, then moved to the pot.

Please Help My Begonia Rex

Comments (7)

Mereze Visagie
Original Author

Tiffany, purpleinopp Z8b Opp, AL

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Please Help My Begonia Rex

Comments (7)

Mereze VisagieOriginal Author

Tiffany, purpleinopp Z8b Opp, AL

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Mereze VisagieOriginal Author

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Mereze Visagie
Original Author

Mereze Visagie
Original Author