i've had this one for sev years and i know where i got it - in brooklyn bot garden. and i know i only bought camelia or picotee style corms.
this one is the only surviving and it is a semi-double picotee of some sort - not what i bought for sure.
i've searched for a while - but the only similar ones are british grown large-leaf begonias. and they don't seem to have the same kind of flower.
i was thinking that due to our hot summers it is not producing a proper flower. but now i think it's just a semi-double.
this year it really grew big - 2 giant canes 2' high with at least 5 more secondary canes coming form the base. and it bloomed early in may, instead of aug. it's still producing many buds - but thrips ruined them and i pulled them off. the only flower that fully opened in may was 7" and it held for a week, doing someth peculiar. it would droop in the evening and straiten out upright in the morning. the leaves curl always (too hot?), less so in may. and are 10" long.
the closest ones i think are 'pin-up' or 'mission-bells'.
since it was bought in bot-garden and they only sell named varieties, may be even dutch? i hoped to find a match, but can't.
any ideas?

Couldn't begin to suggest a name, but any years-old tuberous Begonia is worth an acorn. Great job!

i keep thinking that i am failing it in some way - not the right fertilizer, not the right conditions...at least it's growing bonkers, so my tuber should be better for next year.
...oh, and i thought you meant figuratively ... thanks! - i am squirreling them away!

Skylark, Perhaps you may find some answers in this link. Mark Tebbitt was at the Brooklyn Botanic for a number of years and his specialty is Begonias. I hope this is of use to you.

http://www.slideshare.net/acol...

http://www.calu.edu/academics/...

Moon

thanks, that's a great book - lots of useful culture info. i managed to find very useful info on British begonia societies site - the most detailed as far stages of growth, punching, potting,etc. and their leaves are very similar to mine too, but not flowers.
it's doing OK, i know it needs cooler temps, especially at night. but we are getting there soon. i usually bring it indoors when it goes above 85F - for some a/c treatment, it deff likes that.
what surprises me is that i can't find any images resembling my flowers. and am thinking that probably they can be different if grown up north in cooler conditions.
of course, i keep searching.

I kept thinking I had seen that flower before... scroll down about 1/3 of the way....noid begonia....at least one other person has this begonia.


http://forums2.gardenweb.com/f...

and this link has similar flowers, but "cocoa" leaves, so I think yours is either a parent plant or a green leaf hybrid.

https://mbasic.facebook.com/no...

h-mm.. that's my pic and my flower....you're blowing my cover! i'm a cross-poster
i'll look into 'enchanted' - shrub begonias. that could be a good lead, thanks.

Who Moi? when I found the picture, and clicked on the link, I found a couple familiar pictures.

You could possibly e-mail/revisit the botanic garden, or Mr Tebitts and see if one of them might shed some light.

you've been infiltrated! and we know that you can image-search! wait till purple finds out!
and i have a funny Q: are shrub begonias tuberous? 'cause mine is.
i have actually seen most leaves resembling mine in 'british begonias' - they are very tall and have rather thick stems just like mine and huge leaves like mine, but are usually double with super large flowers.

The info I have been looking at suggests 2ftX2ft as the height and spread for the tuberous begonia. I am thinking that perhaps your Begonia is possibly a sport or came along for the ride with one of the others you purchased that day. If it is that heat sensitive, it could be one of the Tuberhybrida cvs as they are usually a cross with one of the Andean species.

http://www.pacificbulbsociety....


[url=ahttp://www.gardening.cornell.edu/homegardening/scenef2e2.html]ahttp://www.gardening.cornell....[/url]


In answer to your question, I can only posit a guess. Since there are so many different shrub begonia species, I would think yes it is possible. ( )

http://www.bradsbegoniaworld.c...

http://www.kartuz.com/c/2BEG10...

http://www.igarden.com.au/plan...

yah, i got some pretty weird tuber ...even though it was in a net and all marked with label and all - it was just a few years ago - you'd figure i would save it or document it, right?!
oh, well, will be a lesson.
what i am getting from shrubs - is they don't go dormant in winter and can even put on new growth, in winter! i of course stopped watering in nov and let it dry out and drop the stems for dormancy period, even though it was still green and good looking....
i have to say that all pics of begonias sold in US - nothing looks close to mine based on leaves. only british varieties. the next question will be : what's the main difference? are british varieties 'old-fashioned'?

Have you heard of the Thick-stemmed Begonias? http://www.begonias.org/greenh...

no. that's a new one... pics are hard to find. mine exhibits lots of thick-stemmed properties. but they are 'evergreen' right? lots to read!
found this houston B. soc - very good directory with pics. and i see that our DB is lacking...see lotsa possibilities as i have visited a begonia heaven recently
http://begoniahouston.org/hkey...
i just uppoted mine into a larger pot too, without breaking off anything - it was drying up even if the surface was not dry - the monster drinks a lot!
i had so-o many buds all over and they all dried up.