Begonia acetosa
Velvet Begonia
UK price
£5 to £25
Estimate
Price by size
- Sold, 90 days
- 0
- Middle half
- -
- Last sold
- -
- On record
- 0
Cutting/cormNone
7cmNone
12cmNone
MatureNone
- Sale
- Typical
- Middle half
- Estimate
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For sale in the UK
Before you buy
- Press the rhizome gently — it should feel firm throughout, with no soft or discoloured patches
- Check leaf axils and the underside of the rhizome for mealybugs, which hide in the crevices between growth points
- Avoid plants with yellowing lower leaves, often an early sign of rhizome stress before rot becomes visible
- Confirm the rhizome sits on top of the substrate rather than buried, which is how it should be growing in a healthy pot
About Begonia acetosa
Large, star-shaped, velvety leaves make Begonia acetosa one of the more visually generous rhizomatous begonias in cultivation. Native to the humid, shaded understory of Brazil's Atlantic Forest, it grows on rich humus over decaying leaf litter, its creeping rhizome anchoring long petioles that carry leaves ranging from olive-green to brownish on top, wine-red underneath — a contrast visible from any angle in the room. The bold palmate outline and considerable leaf size set it apart from the smaller-leaved garden begonias most people picture; consistently high humidity is what keeps that velvet texture from crisping at the edges.
Native range
Southeastern Brazil (Atlantic Forest, humid shaded understory)
Classification
- Genus
- Begonia
- Family
- Begoniaceae
- Type
- Wild
- Growth habit
- Rhizomatous, creeping
Morphology
- Leaf shape
- Large, star-like, palmately lobed
- Leaf length
- 10-25 cm
- Leaf width
- 10-25 cm
- Petiole colour
- Long, reddish-green
- Venation
- Palmate venation, visible through velvet surface
- Texture
- Velvety upper surface, contrasting wine-red undersides
- Variegation
- None
- Growth habit
- Creeping rhizome with upright petioles
Begonia acetosa care
- Substrate
- A very free-draining mix — 50% perlite, 30% potting compost, 20% orchid bark — is essential; the rhizome sits at the surface and rots quickly in anything that stays wet.
- Watering
- Let the top half of the substrate dry before watering again, and water at the base rather than over the rhizome itself. Rhizome rot, not underwatering, is what actually kills most of these in cultivation.
- Humidity
- High, 70-85%. Consistent humidity is what keeps the velvet texture from crisping at the leaf margins; average room humidity alone tends to show it within a few weeks.
- Feeding
- Feed at quarter strength every 2-3 weeks through the growing season. These are slower, more deliberate growers than cane begonias and don't need or want heavy feeding.
- Repotting
- Repot every 12-18 months into a shallow, wide pot that matches the rhizome's spreading habit — never a deep pot, and never bury the rhizome itself.
Common problems
Rhizome rot
Cause: Substrate that stays wet, or a rhizome partially buried in compost
Fix: Cut back to firm, healthy tissue, let the wound callus, and keep the rhizome fully exposed at the surface going forward
Powdery mildew
Cause: Poor air circulation combined with high humidity
Fix: Improve airflow, avoid wetting the leaves when watering, and treat with a dilute bicarbonate-of-soda spray if it appears
Stalled growth after division
Cause: A division with too small a section of rhizome or too few roots
Fix: Keep divisions warm and humid until new growth resumes, which can take several weeks
Gear for this plant
- Natural Rooting Powder, 3 x 75gRooting hormone powder for stem and leaf cuttings.
- Precision Bonsai Pruning Scissors, 200mmFine-bladed snips for clean node cuts when taking a cutting.
- Humidity Dome, Heavy-Duty Germination KitVented propagation dome for holding humidity around fresh cuttings.
- Digital Hygrometer & ThermometerLCD humidity and temperature gauge for checking a grow spot against a plant's target range.
How to propagate Begonia acetosa
- Methods
- Leaf cutting, Stem cutting, Rhizome division. Step-by-step guide
- Difficulty
- Easy. Forgiving of missed waterings, average home humidity, and imperfect light. A solid pick for beginners or low-fuss collections.
- Time to establish
- 3-5 months
- True from cuttings
- Yes. Cuttings keep the cultivar's character.
- Notes
- Divide the rhizome into sections with at least one growth point, or root leaf-with-petiole cuttings flat on moist substrate; plantlets form at the base of the petiole within a few weeks in consistently warm, humid conditions.