Plant Lists: Hardy(ish) Begonias

I’ve been reading about garden related stuff for years now; in the past I’d regularly find some fascinating nugget of information, forget it, then rediscover it months later. Eventually, it dawned on me that it might be helpful to keep a note of my discoveries, and so I started compiling lists of garden info. Inevitably, most of these are lists of plants I particularly like for one reason or another.

These lists exist under a variety of headings (hardy cacti, good shrubs, drought tolerant plants, etc.), and the sources are wide and varied: maybe an Internet search, maybe a post on social media, perhaps a mention in a magazine or book. Whenever I discover a plant I like, I carry out some additional searches, trying to confirm or deny its particular attractive feature; is it really hardy? does it really look that nice? etc.  

The end result is a somewhat eclectic collection of notes. Some of them are just lists of names, others have a bit more information, some include notes based on my own experiences. While not exhaustive, they generally gather together plants sharing some common attribute, that I’ve not found listed together elsewhere. Rather than hoarding all this information to myself, I thought it might be helpful to share it with the online gardening world.

This first list is one for the exotic gardeners: the more-or-less hardy Begonias. The list includes plants that may be hardy outdoors in much of the UK, and also plants that may need some degree of winter protection (maybe in a cold greenhouse, or a deep mulch). My main criteria is that the plants can, at least potentially, be kept alive without additional heat.

I haven’t grown all of the plants on this list, but I will note where I have personally succeeded (or failed) with the plant in question. As I say above, this is by no means an exhaustive list, but it is longer than I’ve so far found on other websites.

Begonia grandis subsp. sinensis ‘Snowpop’

Begonia 'Barbara Rogers'

White flowers, may exceed a metre in height (!), hardy (?).

Begonia ‘Benitochiba’

A foliage plant, with deeply cut leaves with almost fluorescent pink splashes.  I’ve grown this twice, and lost it twice.  It’s supposed to be hardy, but is painfully slow to get growing in the spring.

Begonia boliviensis 'Bonfire'

Often available as a summer bedding plant, it’s never popped up in the lists of hardy Begonias that I’ve read.  This plant surprised me by surviving in my unheated greenhouse over the winter of 2022/2023.  I think the secret to success is to keep it dry.

Begonia chitoensis

One of the big leafy Begonias, not one that I’ve grown. Apparently the flowers are held above the very large green leaves. Possibly hardy with some protection,  which usually means a pile of mulch over winter, or moving undercover.

Begonia circumlobata 'Chandler's Hardy'

Very divided leaves with silver spots. Apparently hardy in Ireland.

Begonia emeiensis

Large green leaves, pink flowers held below the leaves. Considered to be hardy.

Begonia formosana

Another one I’ve managed to kill.  Allegedly hardy.

Begonia formosana var. albo-maculata

A variation on the previous plant.  Spotty leaves, white/pink flowers. Allegedly hardy.

Begonia fuchsioide

An odd plant this one, a bit like a mini cane begonia.  Small leaves and small orange/red flowers.  I found reports of this plant having a degree of cold hardiness, despite it more commonly being grown as a houseplant. I grew it on the patio over the summer of 2022, then moved it into the unheated greenhouse, where I tried keeping it dry over winter.  Unfortunately it didn’t make it through winter.  I may try again sometime in the future.

Begonia grandis ssp. evansiana

There are many cultivars, selections and subspecies of B. grandis. This subspecies (ssp) was, for many years, the hardy begonia in the UK, but even then it would often be grown undercover as a “temperate” begonia.  It has typical lop-sided begonia leaves, and sugar pink flowers.  The seed pods are similarly pink, and develop in late summer/autumn. Dozens of little bulbils, which develop in the axils of the leaves, form at the same time as the seed pods.  These bulbils drop off the parent plant, and will grow into new plants the following year.  The many variations of B. grandis are all considered to be hardy in most parts of the UK (and anywhere with a similar climate).  It’s certainly reliable in my garden.

Begonia grandis ‘Heron’s Pirouette’

Clusters of large pink flowers. Hardy.

Begonia grandis ‘Nanjing Silver’

Splashes of silver on the leaves, in the plant I have these seem to fade a little over summer. Hardy.

Begonia grandis ‘Pink Parasol’

Pink flowers held above the leaves. Hardy.

Begonia grandis ‘Sapporo’

Green leaves with a deep burgundy underside. Hardy.

Begonia grandis 'Simsii'

This probably has some distinguishing characteristics, but I haven’t made a note of what they are. Hardy.

Begonia grandis subsp. sinensis 'Red Undies’

As the name indicates, the undersides of the leaves are red (this is true of a few of these, but especially pronounced in this one). Hardy

Begonia grandis subsp. sinensis ‘Snowpop’

White flowers, smaller leaves than B. Grandis evansiana. I have this in my garden, and it makes a nice change from the standard pink form (even for someone who’s not always keen on white flowers). Hardy.

Begonia hemsleyana

Divided leaves, maybe with white spotting. Hardy.

Begonia josephii

Large lobed leaves, variably coloured on the top and coloured with red below. White flowers with pale pink. Apparently hardy to -15 ° C; in other words, pretty hardy.

Begonia 'Little Brother Montgomery'

Another plant gown as a houseplant. Christopher Lloyd sometimes bedded this outdoors in the famous exotic garden at Great Dixter. I happened across some reference to a degree of cold hardiness in this plant, as with B. fuchsioide. Happily ‘Little Brother Montgomery’ survived the freeze of `22/`23 tucked up inside the cold greenhouse. As with many (all?) Begonia, it was slow to get moving again in the spring, so patience is required. 

Begonia luxurians

One I’ve not grown myself, but one I’d like to try. Potentially a very tall plant (for a Begonia) up 2.5 metres. This has rather palm-like divided leaves. Usually a houseplant, but has been know to survive winter outdoors in very favoured locations such as London courtyard gardens and gardens on the south coast. A plant apparently came through the winter of 2021/2022 undamaged outdoors at Abbotsbury Subtropical Gardens, most of us would probably need to move it into a greenhouse, but maybe worth a try.

Begonia 'Metallic Mist'

Silver/grey divided leaves. Maybe hardy?

Begonia panchtharensis

Lobed leaves. Supposed to be hardy to -9C, this didn’t survive winter with me in the unheated greenhouse. As with several plants I’m listing here, it may not have been sufficiently well established to cope with winter, so I may try agin in the future.

Begonia pedatifida

Divided green leaves. Hardy

Begonia rubella

Another one that I’ve managed to kill (can you spot a theme?). this didn’t survive the winter of `22/`23 in the cold greenhouse, possibly it was not a very strong plant to start with. Probably worth trying again.

Begonia sinensis

Deep red underside to leaf. Almost as hardy as B. grandis.

Begonia sutherlandii

A more or less pendant plant, goodish in hanging baskets, green leaves and orange flowers. One of those plants that sometimes turns up as a houseplant, sometimes as a summer bedding plant. I’ve heard of it growing outdoors, up against a wall. The only time I’ve tried it it managed to kill it, even thought it went into the greenhouse over winter. Another one I may revisit in the future.

Begonia taliensis

Silver, black, green divided leaf. Should be fairly hardy, say people in the know.

Begonia 'Torsa'

A hybrid of B. grandis, with much larger, thicker textured leaves up to 48 x 35 cm. Hardy in the ground, like B. grandis.

Begonia xanthina

Another victim of the winter of `22/`23. Another one I might try again, if I feel optimistic.