You did a great job of growing that monster! I've had problems with it and I don't know why as I've seen others in our club grow them very easily. ARGH! I think I just over water mine.

Here is one of our member's Gryphon begonia on his front porch in November 2015.

Nice plant! here is the one I have pushing out spring growth.

Thanks Matt.

Lovely! Happy growing

Matt, I had a Gryphon for several years that just got bigger and bigger and bigger. And bloomed! But only in spring and summer. It would wind down in fall and then I made it slow down by putting it in the laundry room and it would go semi dormant. I still watered it and the temp would drop to 45F to 55F. Sure it lost a few leaves but for the most part it did well. And come spring it bounced back and continued on. This went on for several years. Until I had surgery and no one knew how to take care of it. By the way it was in a 12 in hanging basket pot that was soooo full!

I thought it was dead. The stems were even a little shrivelly. But I took it out of its pot this spring and put it in the same size square pot in the above pix. There were only 3 stems I could rescue and I put it in a square pot (same size yours is in). The difference is mine had no leaves. At all. Just 3 stems about the height of yours.

Finally one of the stems started to sprout. The middle one. Then about 3 weeks later the other two outer stems sprouted. Once the leaves on the middle stem opened up I carefully cut it about 1/2 way down. And I am starting that. As the other two arms mature a little I will do the same to them. I want it to actually sprout lower down to be the nice bushy plant it used to be. And I think she is on her way! Looking very well at this point. I am so glad I could save her.

Can't wait til she returns to her former glory!!!!! Wish me luck! And good luck to you!!!! Rosie

I finally took pix of my "restarted" Begonia Gryphon. Here is what was barely left of her minus the new leaves. She was just sticks.

Notice the middle stick? I cut off the top 7 inches and am starting it.

She is doing very well! I am rooting her in damp spaghnum moss. That works very well for me with begonias. Eventually I will cut off the tops of the remaining stems and restart them. Hopefully that will make her nice and bushy again and she will return to her former glory! Rosie

Rosie, I noticed you said you let the leaves on the middle stem open up before pruning. As a novice, I am always trying to pick up tips I don't know to do. Thanks. Laurie

Laurie, the only reason I pruned the middle stem first was because I was actually rooting all three "sticks". The middle one sprouted first and when it did and became tall enough to cut off, I did so it would bush out from below the cut. Then I rooted THAT cutting. It never ends!

UPDATE: As the other stems resprouted, I cut them also. I now have 2 pots of B. Gryphon started! (sigh) Only wanted one, so I guess I will have to combine all the cuts in one pot and be done with it. Then it will be coming in the house soon. September is right around the corner! Rosie

Hey Rosie1949. I started a angel wing Carolina de Lucerna from a few cuttings a year or two ago. I set it outside this summer. It has got nice and huge and full. I have topped off a few stems as you did and it's really taking a nice shape. Thank you for the input. This plant was a slow starter, it seems cutting it back really makes a difference. Thanks.

The name is 'Corallina de Lucerna' - a nice pass-along plant. I wished I could grow it like Doug Pridgen in southern Florida. Around six feet tall at the ABS convention in West Palm Beach 2009.

Hi Laurie, glad I could help. Everything benefits from pruning occasionally. I had one years ago and if you don't prune them they will go nowhere but up!

Hey hc mcdole thanks for the correct spelling!!! Rosie

Hey Rosie,

You know me - I like to keep my names correct - HAHA!

Have you gotten most of your plants indoors yet? Mine are soaked with all the remnants of Irma. I just emptied my rain gauge as it was overflowing. The top is six inches plus but when i measure the entire gauge with a tape measure it is 8.5 inches. Guess I don't know rain gauges after all. I'm sure there is some good scientific reason as to why it is this way.

Butch in soggy Atlanta suburbs

Nope, still working on it among other things. Sat out with coffee this a.m. and fixed my 3 pots of Scilla. They are now ready to come in and be washed down and put back in their winter spot. Too many interruptions! Can't stick with one task long enough to just work all day and finish!!!!!!!!! grrrrr. Rosie in dry s'east Michigan!

Rosie,

Join the crowd. I brought in one plant so far and that wasn't because of the remnants of Irma coming through our neck of the woods but more the cool mornings. It was Begonia brevirimosa. I think it has perked up some since I brought it inside. Guess it is truly tropical and doesn't care for low 50's?

Instead of cutting back on my plants, I started 144 new ones yesterday (two Jiffy trays with the 72 count pellets). If half root and another half of those survive, it is still too many.

One of the trays I did.

OMG!!!! hmmm, let's see. Which one shall I choose??? hahahaha! Lookin' good! But,,,where are you going to put them, even if 1/2 live? chuckle. YOU do the same thing I do! Rosie

Rexes are faster growing than a lot of rhizomatous though.

Feb 24 in staggered cells this time

Aug 1 - the ones that were leftover from our meeting June 24 (I moved all of these from a tray to 3 inch pots.

Leftover Bashful Bandit

Some of the new ones I started this summer.

You amaze me! I wish I had room for all of that! I struggle to NOT get farther into begonias after I look at all of your eye candy!

In all fairness, I forgot you belong to a Begonia Club. You probably can get a lot of them gone through them.

As far as the two from you, both were doing very well and then, out of the clear blue, one of them died. They were both side by side, got the same care and I have no idea what happened. No one tends them or touches them except me. I didn't change the soil or watering for either one. <:( The other one is doing just fine! <:D

I am already slapping my hand so that I don't start propagating leaves from my B. Silver Limbo! She is so pretty and her pot is so full but I don't want to pot up in size til spring.

Then there are my 2 pots of B. Gryphon. I hope I can find a home for the one pot at my violet group! (There are 3 in that one pot, all nicely rooted.) Oh, and I really could cut stalks again, not that they need it,,,but just because I can!

When I bring in B. Bonfire (that is what I call it) it will need to be trimmed back and potted in a smaller pot to winter over, so oh, am I supposed to just throw away all of those leaves and trimmings???? Arrrrggg!!!! This addict needs an intervention! Thank goodness B. Smidgens needs nothing!

I have 5 varieties of Begonia and I see your pix and I am struggling!!! lol Rosie

PS. That doesn't count my african violets and other houseplants!!!!

If you like Silver Limbo, you should try to propagate it for a little insurance.

I have never had much luck propagating tuberous begonias yet I know they do millions of them every year. ARGH!!

Here is how Bonfire and its ilk should be treated! I threw my "dead pot" on the compost heap back in early summer. A few weeks later and I see something that looks odd - yep, it is Bonfire (or one of the myriad hybrids of boliviensis these days).

Here it is 3 weeks ago. Now the question is should I just let it out this winter or dig it up and bring it inside? HA!

Awwww, you don't like her that much do you. Quick!!! get her in!!! I will trim mine (roots and top growth) back, plop her in a smaller pot (she did get pretty big) and keep her going thru the winter. All I need is for her (and all my other plants) to make it that long.

As far as B.Silver Limbo, I am not sure I knew she was growing from a tuber. hmmm, Maybe I will start a leaf or two.

A while back I trimmed a bunch of leaves off of B. Gryphon. I left the stem on the leaves and trimmed the stem to about 3 inches then just set them in a glass of water. They rooted real well !!!! Never new that could happen. I am going to try that with B. Silver Limbo! I will let you know what happens! WAIT !!!!! Didn't I just say I wasn't propagating??? Rosie

I think Silver Limbo is a rhizomatous (rex).

https://stevesleaves.com/store#!/Begonia-Silver-Limbo/p/38104243

You can water root stems and leaves just like a lot of plants. Just watch for the water turning sour. My mentor propagates almost all her begonias (and other types) by water rooting in small vials and under her humidity domes. I just find that too much work if you do a bunch at one time but just fine if doing a few.

Here is one of my experiments with water rooting using a small syrup bottle (thanks Cracker Barrel)

If you do stem cuttings then try this

That is how mine did in water! Rosie

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Hi, I see that these are older posts. I was just curious as someone who doesn't know much at all about plants. My sister has me house sitting her plants and she didn't know the name of it. I believe it could be the Gryphon Begonia. Is it red on the underside of the leaves or is this one some other type of begonia? The leaves on this one are up to 14 inches across.

Yes, what you have is a Gryphon Begonia, it is red on the underside....

Watch out Gryphon Begonia now has variations of itself with larger leaves.

Pegasus is an alternate one. We know how plant hybridizers are.