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Begonia reniformis (Begonia reniformis)

Description

Begonia grandis, the hardy begonia, is a plant in the begonia family, Begoniaceae. It is a herbaceous plant with alternate, simple leaves on arching stems. The flowers are pink or white, borne in dichotomous cymes from late summer through fall in USDA U.S. Hardiness Zone 7. As the common name "hardy begonia" implies, it is winter hardy in some temperate regions. It can overwinter well in hardiness zone 9a in southwestern Japan as tuberous roots or bulbils (bulbils are formed in axils). Above-ground parts of this plant eventually die as temperature lowers. However, it is generally regarded as hardy to zones 6-7. With 1,839 species, Begonia is the fifth-largest angiosperm genus.The species are terrestrial (sometimes epiphytic) herbs or undershrubs, and occur in subtropical and tropical moist climates, in South and Central America, Africa, and southern Asia. Terrestrial species in the wild are commonly upright-stemmed, rhizomatous, or tuberous. The plants are monoecious, with unisexual male and female flowers occurring separately on the same plant; the male contains numerous stamens, and the female has a large inferior ovary and two to four branched or twisted stigmas. In most species, the fruit is a winged capsule containing numerous minute seeds, although baccate fruits are also known. The leaves, which are often large and variously marked or variegated, are usually asymmetric (unequal-sided).

Taxonomic tree

  • Domain: Eukarya

    • Kingdom: Plantae

      • Phylum:

        • Class: Magnoliopsida

          • Order: Cucurbitales

            • Family: Begoniaceae

              • Genus: Begonia