Begonia brevirimosa

New Guinea's humid forest margins are home to Begonia brevirimosa (Irmsch.), a cane-type species that grows tall and upright rather than creeping. Segmented red canes carry thin, lush foliage with red undersides, but the leaf's real distinction is on top: an asymmetrical blade with a vivid pink central field fading to darker green at the margins, a naturally occurring two-tone effect rather than variegation. Filtered light and consistently high humidity in its forest-margin habitat sustain that colouration; the more intense pinks in cultivation tend to belong to plants grown in similarly bright, humid conditions. Among New Guinea's cane begonias it's a strong pick for the pink saturation alone.

Native range

New Guinea (humid tropical forest, moist forest margins)

Classification

Genus

Begonia

Family

Begoniaceae

Type

Wild

Growth habit

Upright cane, branching

Morphology

Leaf shape

Asymmetrical, ovateEgg-shaped leaves, with the wider end near the base. with toothed margins

Leaf length

8-18 cm

Leaf width

6-14 cm

Petiole colour

Short, reddish

Venation

Visible below pink central field

Texture

Thin, lush, red undersides

Variegation

Vivid pink central field with darker green margins (natural species colouration)

Growth habit

Upright segmented red canes, naturally branching