Growers may want to develop new hybrid cultivars by crossing two different begonia plants, also called hybridizing. Sometimes, buying seeds can also be cheaper when a lot of plants are desired or when growing plants from superior strains. Finally, the seeds may even be free, if harvested from own plants, for example.
Begonia seed are very fine, like dust or finely ground pepper. The tiny, fragile particles can be difficult to handle and unlike other seeds you can not touch them or they may be damaged. At first glance it may seem that growing begonias from seed is something that should be left to commercial growers or experts, but this is not the case. Anyone can grow begonias from seed by following a few guidelines.
In as little as 18-22 weeks from sowing you can produce a nice sized begonia with flower buds ready to flower. Seeds sown in early January will flower in May through fall.
The key requirements for successful seed growing are good hygiene, patience, careful handling of the seeds and small plants, and later proper spacing, lighting and fertilizing. All of these factors can easily be done indoors and if you have grown plants from seed before, tuberous begonias are not out of your reach. If you are just starting with seeds, I do recommend trying some larger seeds first.
The process involves following steps:
- Preparation and disinfection of tools, trays, and containers
- Careful preparation of the seed starting medium, light, and temperatures
- Sowing the small seeds. We will look at various techniques
- Waiting, and checking moisture
- Transplanting small seedlings
- Providing suitable space and conditions to grow to maturity
Preparation and Disinfection
Good hygiene is required when growing tuberous begonias from seeds. This is due to the fact that the sprouts are very small and very susceptible to damping off. Damping off is a dreaded seedling disease which causes death before or shortly after germination. The best way to avoid damping off is to use a high quality seed starting media, and then wash all tools, trays, and containers in a 10% bleach solution prior to starting.
The solution can be mixed by adding 1.5 cups of chlorine bleach to a gallon of warm water. Use a clean sponge to carefully wash the inside and outside of all containers and tools and then rise thoroughly. Set up a separate area which is clean from dirt, plant debris, and other possible contaminants. I like to sow the seeds at the kitchen table.
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