Plant Min Zone: 6a
Plant Max Zone: 7b
Sunlight: Part Sun, Shade, Deep Shade
Water / Rainfall: Average, High
Soil Quality: Rich
Bloom Season: Summer, Late Summer, Fall
Flower Color: Pink
Berry / Fruit Color: None
Spring Foliage Color: Green
Summer Foliage Color: Green
Fall Foliage Color: Green, Yellow
Evergreen Foliage: No
Winter Interest: No
Scented Flowers: No
Drought Tolerance: Low, Medium
Wet-Feet Tolerance: Low
Humidity Tolerance: Medium, High
Wind Tolerance: Low
Poor Soil Tolerance: No Extreme Soils
Height: 1' - 2'
Width: 1' - 2'
Growth Rate: Slow, Medium
Service Life: Medium: 3-5 years
Maintenance Need: Medium
Spreading Potential: Low
Yearly Trimming Tips: Trim Perennial to Ground Around First Fall Freeze: No Winter Interest.
Plant Grouping Size: Specimen Planting of 1-3, Small Grouping of 3-5
Best Side of House: East Exposure, South Exposure
Extreme Planting Locations: Tolerates Damp Full Shade, Base of Retaining Wall Locations
Ornamental Features: Long Blooming Season
Special Landscape Uses: None
Possible Pest Problems: Root Rot Disease, Snails / Slugs, Weed Competition
Plant Limitations: May get Occasional Winter-kill, Needs Thick Winter Mulch, Needs Regular Irrigation
Hardy Begonia (Begonia grandis) is planted for its attractive green foliage with reddish stems along with its breathtaking summer/fall pink flower display. It is a tuberous-rooted, clump-forming perennial that typically forms a bushy mound of foliage to 2' tall on branching stems. Foliage maintains well all season provided that certain cultural conditions are met. Native to forests with humusy, medium to wet, well-drained soil in part shade to full shade, it needs constantly moist soil rich in organic matter but avoid clay. Good late summer flowering shade plant which mixes well with hostas and ferns in the shade garden. Tolerates heavy shade and black walnut trees. Generally this plant declines after a few years of Kansas climate if dealing with summer droughts but worth a try in rich organic soils in well-tended shade gardens. Where happy, plants can multiply quickly and flower continuously in summer. If low temperatures hit -10 degrees F, it may kill an un-mulched plant; protect any zone 6 perennial with thick layer of mulch. An large established grouping exists at OSU Botanical Gardens in Stillwater, OK. This grouping has proven hardy with 2-3" of mulch and lows down to -14 degrees F on Feb 16th, 2021. The longevity of this cold blast was also impressive: 12 days on a row with highs below 32 degrees F, 7 nights of lows in the single digits and negatives and 48-60 hours of 5 degrees F and mostly lower. A hard ground freeze was inevitable with no damage to tubers.