Boston’s first House Plant Show is now past and gone, but it will be long before those who attended it will forget the magnificent array of unusual plants exhibited there.
House Plants In Horticultural Hall
The 6,000-odd people who thronged Horticultural Hall on September 5 and 6 are proof enough of the widespread interest in house plants that exist at present.
The material quality proves that most house plant enthusiasts do not take their hobby lightly.
Since the show was sponsored by the New England Branch of the American Begonia Society, with the assistance of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society, it was only natural that begonias played a major part in the exhibition.
Begonias At North Street Greenhouses
The large silver medal begonia display of North Street Greenhouses, Danielson, Conn., filled the stage and contained choice specimens of numerous rare varieties and species.
A Glory of St. Albans plant was the most colorful, a mass of glowing rose-red leaves, veined and edged with black.
In a corner stood a 6-ft plant of Alzaseo, with dark ruffled leaves, silver spotted, and dripping clusters of dark red flowers.
Rex Begonia Silver Cord
Nearby were the delicate fern-like Begonia foliosa, and Begonia ‘Richardsiana,’ with delicately cut leaves and pendant white flowers.
The Rex begonia Silver Cord was also conspicuous in this display, and its gleaming silver leaves veined with green.
From an Eastern standpoint, the rarest plant in this exhibit was a fine specimen of Begonia goegoensis.
The peltate leaves are deep green, bronze flushed, net veined, and deep red beneath.
Begonia Goegoensis: Small Flowers
The small flowers are rose pink. Begonia goegoensis is not conspicuously beautiful, but it is hard to obtain and still harder to grow, contrary to what human nature desires.
Another rare begonia in this exhibit was Begonia erestahruchi, with smooth, lettuce-green leaves speckled with white, red flecked, and the deeply ruffled, hairy edges touched with red.
Pennywort Leaves Begonia
Still another treasure was the dear little pennywort leaves begonia, Begonia hydrocotylifolia, which appeals strongly to those who enjoy miniatures.
The thick, glossy rounded leaves are the size of an English penny, dark green, black veined.
Beneath, they are silvery green, red-veined, the edge fringed with brown hairs.
The small, pale pink flowers appear in midwinter. It is a Mexican species, discovered in 1841.
Seedlings of Begonia
Among the specimen begonias, a large plant of the variety Richard Robinson was conspicuous. It is a seedling of Begonia dregei var. macbethi (new transfer, Bailey) produced by the late Alfred D. Robinson of California.
The delicately cut light green ‘eaves are overlaid with silver and have a bright red spot at the sinus. The flowers are pale pink.
Peruvian Tuberous Species
There was a large plant of the Peruvian tuberous species, Begonia mieranthera Fimbriata, full of bright Orange flowers, held well above the velvety green leaves.
It was grown in a square wooden box and successfully used a method in California.
This begonia has yellow-blotched leaves thickly set with tiny plantlets and is becoming scarce.
So many plants have lost the beautifully variegated leaves, reverting to the plain green leaves of the original Brazilian species, Begonia phyllomaniaca, the so-called “Jessie.”
Perhaps over-anxious growers have grown Begonia templini in too rich soil. It needs poor, sandy soil and full sun to keep the variegated leaves.
A nice plant of the variety Dawn was shown, another of the difficult plants to grow in the East.
Seedling Of Abel Corriere
It is a seedling of Abel Corriere and was produced in San Diego in 1928 by Chimney Vedder.
The small, pointed silver leaves are veined with dark green, and the slightly ruffled edges are touched with red.
Other less common kinds shown were Begonia cathayana, the red and green velvety Chinese beauty;
Begonia mannii, a shrubby species from far-away Fernando Po which is quite unlike a begonia in appearance as the leaves have equal halves and the pink flowers lack the usual begonia shape; and
Begonia weltoniensis alba, whose flowers are white instead of the usual pink.
Robinson Diehroa Hybrids
Two of the Robinson diehroa hybrids were shown. Di-anna (Begonia diehroa x Begonia Annie Laurie) is tall and light with dark green leaves, heavily silver spotted, hearing brilliant red flowers.
Di-anna is a lower grower with broader, lighter green leaves, faintly silver spotted, and orange-red flowers.
In fact, the whole plant shows an orange flush. Both plants are very free bloomers.
New Mexican Begonia Species
A new species, shown for the first time in the East, is Begonia maxim, so called because it grows in the rain forest on the Mexican rancho of Don Lisandro Maza, where it was collected in 1946 by Thomas MacDougall, to whom we owe so many of the new Mexican species.
The leaves are typical begonia shape, deep red beneath, so deep’ that the color flushes through the upper olive green surface, which is dark veined.
An excellent picture of this plant is in the August issue of The Begonian.
It is one of the loveliest begonias known but will test the skill of growers. Like all rainforest plants, it does not like the hot, dry air of the average house.
More moisture must be provided by constant spraying or growing in a Wardian ease.
William E. Starr, president of the New England Branch of the American Begonia Society, has produced a new hybrid variety from Begonia schmidtiana X Begonia Woolly Bear, which will be an excellent basket plant.
It has the recumbent tendency of Begonia schmidtiana and the free-blooming habit of Woolly Bear, also its trait of retaining its greenish-white seed pods for a long time.
The leaves have a velvety texture and the coloring of Begonia selimiatiana but are a little paler and larger. The flowers are white.
Double Semperfloret Begonia
Two groups of new double semperfloret’s begonias were shown, all developed by W. D. Holley.
These New Hampshire hybrids are green-leaved, semi-dwarf, with double flowers ranging from white to deep rose.
The Thimble-berry group has dark red leaves and pink or red flowers, very double, some with crested centers in pink and yellow.
None of these new plants are ready for distribution except Begonia mazae.
Class For Vines And Hanging Plants
The class for Vines and hanging Plants brought out six ceropegias:
- Ceropegia woodii
- Ceropegia barklyi
- Ceropegia radicans
- Ceropegia monteiroa
- Ceropegia debilis
- Ceropegia eaffrorum
Of these, Ceropegia monteiroae and Ceropegia radicans have the largest and most handsome flowers. Those of the other four species are much alike.
Ceropegia woodii and Ceropegia barklyi have the most handsome foliage, fleshy heart-shaped silver leaves.
Doxantha unguis-cati, the South American cats-claw vine, has dark green, ovate leaves set in pairs on the long stems and axillary sprays of yellow flowers.
Columnea gloriosa is a lovely basket plant with long trailers set with pairs of velvety brown leaves.
The flowers are scarlet. Quite the most handsome plant was Episcia cupreata, which has scarlet flowers and velvety brown and cream leaves with a coppery luster.
The young plants are borne on runners, like strawberry plants, and, alas, were most enticing to the light-fingered gentry.
Ivy Collection Plants
The ivy collections were most interesting, showing the many forms Hedera helix develops—some very small, like Hedera helix pedata, and some very large, like Hedera helix coriacea.
Several new ivies from California, as yet unnamed, were shown. The good shed leaves were beautifully cut, curled, and twisted into fantastic shapes.
The spiderwort collection included several familiar tradescantias, the brilliantly colored Rhoeo discolor and Spironema fragrans, an upright Mexican plant whose long and narrow green leaves are dotted with chocolate-brown.
It has long sprays of tiny white flowers which have the pleasant habit of blooming intermittently for several weeks and perfuming the whole room.
Mexican Plants
This group showed two new Mexican plants: Setcreasea pallida with gray, hairy leaves flushed with violet and lavender flowers.
The other is a rare Setcreasea species as yet unnamed. Its growth habit is like the tradescantias, and its silvery-green leaves are veined with white and flushed violet beneath. Both were discovered by Thomas MacDougall.
An excellent collection of 50 named succulents was shown, including some choice Haworthias, aloes, echeverias, and several Texas “windowed” plants.
A very handsome 3-ft specimen of Euphoria herrnantiana was shown, and its architectural lines would almost tempt one to build a modernistic house to provide it with its proper setting.
Collection Of Seedlings
A collection of seedling coleus made a splash of brilliant rotor against a black background, and a night-blooming cereus opened its lovely creamy white flowers to benefit the admiring crowds.
Only a few saintpaulias were shown, but they were choice plants with pink or white flowers and the more familiar blue flowered varieties.
This above article appeared in a November 1947 garden magazine. It is published here to remember, and share the plants, what was new and what was happening 75+ years ago in the plant world.
43147 by Bessie R. Buxton