Begonia carolineifolia

Palm leaf begonia

Begonia carolineifolia, the palm-leaf or hand begonia, is a large rhizomatous begonia from central and southern Mexico and northern Central America. Its palmately compound leaves stand on tall petioles from a thick, creeping rhizome. Most wild records come from limestone cliffs and banks around Orizaba, Veracruz, at about 800–1,300 m. It holds the RHS Award of Garden Merit and suits a warm, humid conservatory or a bright room.

At home, aim for

Day IntermediateTargets in Plantistry

Night Close to the dayTargets in Plantistry

Humidity Ordinary room humidityBand in Plantistry

Light Dappled lightDLI and PPFD in Plantistry

Expects a seasonal restGrows on rock (lithophyte)

Where it grows wild

Records from Veracruz describe it on limestone rock and cliffs, and as a weakly rooted plant with a very large rhizome (about 45 cm) lying on almost bare ground on a north-facing bank. The region is humid, seasonally dry montane forest on the Gulf slope of the Sierra Madre Oriental.

GBIF records with an altitude cluster at about 1,240–1,300 m (Orizaba, and El Triunfo in Chiapas), with an observation at 805 m on limestone.

Mexico GulfMexico SoutheastGuatemalaHonduras

🔒 Growing it like that

The wild conditions above, turned into targets for a shelf, a tent or a greenhouse. The full profile has:

✓ Day and night temperature targets, and the limits it tolerates

✓ Humidity band, and how to hold it

✓ Light as DLI and PPFD for a grow light

✓ Wet and dry seasons, and whether to rest it

✓ Substrate and airflow

✓ A step-by-step setup to grow it like the wild

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Profiles are drafts built from measured range and climate and from published sources; each section carries its own confidence in the app. Photo from Wikimedia Commons, used under its CC BY-SA 4.0 licence, unmodified.