# anyone have Begonia pavonina



## tahir tareen (Dec 17, 2009)

Im looking for someone selling cutting of this awesome blue iridescent begonia. I would like to try it in one of my more shaded tanks but i really just want it as a houseplant!


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## KeroKero (Jun 13, 2004)

You may be waiting a good while for this one to be available, a number of people on here have it but it's not the fastest growing begonia, or the easiest. Not a houseplant begonia for sure!


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## tahir tareen (Dec 17, 2009)

i figured it would be hard to find, but just trying my luck anyway. From what i have read it seems most people have luck with it outside of tanks and my house has decently high humidity.


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## Jellyman (Mar 6, 2006)

Is there a different spelling? I tried to google it to see what it looked like but nothing was found.


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## tahir tareen (Dec 17, 2009)

http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTuvmcB1ZdWz6eaO4LaPJq1oCrgJJItHpkWFrEqYEKN23LGf9WtNQ

http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcR4rx3Xm-i5YmZdwLoTJVIpcZGS4Sa2dgtxV4Nl4d2hxdI8lKdO

are you sure you spelled it correctly? the leaves reflect and iridescent blue color when viewed from certain angles. Apparently only low light conditions produce the iridescence of the leaves.

i may have found a friend with some of these too!


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## fieldnstream (Sep 11, 2009)

That's awesome! Looks like Morpho didius wings.


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## ilovejaden (Jan 6, 2011)

wow that is a gorgeous begonia!! looks like I found another one I'll be getting in the future!!


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## KeroKero (Jun 13, 2004)

I often worry about how iridescent plants like this look in real life since you never know how much of the color is an artifact of the photography (more showing and stronger showing than real life). Having tried to photograph this and similar plants its very frustrating to try and catch something like you'd see in real life! It's similar to selaginella unicata... bright blue in some photos, green in others. Reality is green with an iridescent gloss.

That being said, grow this one in low light and you'll get a wonderful subtle blue glint from it that is wonderful (but not overpowering) affect. It may not catch your eye from across the room but rewards closer inspection. I think it draws the eye more for being slightly off (was that a glint of blue?) than in your face. If a leaf is at just the right angle though it can compete with a morpho butterfly!

If I remember correctly this one probably would prefer to be mounted and have some lime along with humidity.


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## tahir tareen (Dec 17, 2009)

i know what you mean kero, i have lots of flashy tropical fish and when i take pictures of them they seldom have the same look, the opposite is true as well, i think the flash from a camera may cause such intense iridescence.

i believe a friend of mine has it growing in their greenhouse.


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## Jellyman (Mar 6, 2006)

tahir tareen said:


> http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTuvmcB1ZdWz6eaO4LaPJq1oCrgJJItHpkWFrEqYEKN23LGf9WtNQ
> 
> http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcR4rx3Xm-i5YmZdwLoTJVIpcZGS4Sa2dgtxV4Nl4d2hxdI8lKdO
> 
> ...


Found it. Thanks. Mu cut and paste must need some work.


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## winstonamc (Mar 19, 2007)

I'm currently nursing back to health a plant I got last fall. They're tough and i didn't have the best set-up for it, so I'm down to a happy leaf cutting from the original plant after some initial setbacks.


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## KeroKero (Jun 13, 2004)

Begonias are one of those groups of plants (gesneriads, peperomias being others) that as soon as you get the plant you should put down a leaf/cutting!! It's a general rule in those plant circles for good reasons... I don't know how many times I would have lost some of those plants if I hadn't.


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## tclipse (Sep 19, 2009)

Been looking for this for years, still no luck... on a couple of waiting lists but let me know if you find some.


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## Dendro Dave (Aug 2, 2005)

I keep an eye out for this plant and found this...lil to pricey for me right now but if someone else wants to go for it, be my guest  Feel free to hook me up with a cutting 

Amazing, rare "Peacock Begonia"! - Blue, iridescent Begonia pavonina | eBay


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## tahir tareen (Dec 17, 2009)

i did get two cuttings from a friend which are supposed to be pavonina. I have them in two different tanks, one is all green with no iridescence, the other is definitely iridescent but it only has two leaves right now so im waiting for it too grow out more. Awesome plant, but I still have never seen it look as blue as the pictures.

My club moss is really colorful iridescent right now with lots of blues and purples


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## JoshH (Feb 13, 2008)

Keep in mind that B. pavonina often is iridescent under certain light wavelengths. For some reason a camera flash will often bring it out really nicely. My plants are usually a satin brownish color, with some green. But a camera can bring out some of the bright blue. My hypothesis is that certain light wavelengths may exist in a deep forest floor environment that bring out the color, perhaps from the effect of light filtering through the trees. When grown in deep shade under other plants, they can be dramatic. In a pot under general terrarium lighting they can be a fairly disappointing dull brown color. Good luck and experiment!


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## winstonamc (Mar 19, 2007)

Josh, have you found that it's a particularly slow grower, or does it pick up once it starts to get a little bit bigger?


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## JoshH (Feb 13, 2008)

winstonamc said:


> Josh, have you found that it's a particularly slow grower, or does it pick up once it starts to get a little bit bigger?


Not that slow, when really happy it's no different than many other similarly sized Begs, like B. pustulata, B. burkillii, etc. It can be kinda leggy though, I have never gotten it to look perfect. I bet greenhouse culture is the key, or a giant shady terrarium with it grown on a well draining slope.


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