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Species library › Begonia › Begonia nelumbiifolia
Begonias Well documented

Begonia nelumbiifolia

Lilypad begonia

A large rhizomatous Begonia with round, peltate, lily-pad-like leaves, widespread from Mexico to Colombia and naturalised in parts of the Caribbean. It grows on moist, shaded or partly sunny banks, ravines and forest edges from near sea level to over 2000 m. It is one of the easier Neotropical begonias: warm, bright shade, and a drier spell in late winter.

Begonia nelumbiifolia
Photo: Krzysztof Ziarnek, Kenraiz, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
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
No rest periodGrows in the ground

Where it grows wild

Moist forest, ravines, stream banks and disturbed forest edges, typically on shaded to partly sunny slopes. A thick, creeping rhizome carries large peltate leaves on long petioles.

GBIF records span 3–2235 m with a median of 528 m.

BelizeColombiaCosta RicaEl SalvadorGuatemalaHondurasMexico CentralMexico GulfMexico NortheastMexico SoutheastMexico SouthwestNicaraguaPanamá

🔒 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.