These begonias can be saved inside after the season and replanted!

It’s ‘Gryphon’ begonias which are required planting in the garden each summer.It’s funny, because unlike many begonias, this one is grown for its huge bronze, dark green leaves which have silver above and dark red below along with dark red stems. The tiny white flowers come towards the end of the season, but are insignificant. I use it as the “thriller” in containers, planting it in the middle of the pot then surrounding the plant with fillers and then spillers to soften the edges. The plant itself can reach three feet tall or larger with sycamore shaped leaves which get twelve inches wide.‘Gryphon’ is a tuberous begonia, meaning it grows from a tuber like bulb.Some cultivars have interesting leaves, others for their showy flowers and many have both attributes.They are probably best known for their large, colorful flowers and are perfectly suited for shady areas.Flowering varieties come in shades of red, orange, white, yellow, salmon, pink and everything in between. The blooms can be single or double, with the doubles being my favorites.‘Bossa Nova’ and ‘Bonfire’ have a trailing habit, flower freely and pair well with Elephant ears, another tender bulb.Tuberous begonias are cold sensitive, grown from frost to frost during the summer.One thing I love about them is that the tuber can be saved over the winter.I store all my tender bulbs (dahlias, caladiums, cannas, begonias and others) in something called vermiculite. Every gardener stores them differently, some use peat, perlite, dry planting mix or another medium.After the foliage is killed by frost, lift the bulbs and dry them for a day or two on newspaper in a cool shady spot.Put an inch of the storage medium in the bottom of a container and place the tubers on the medium, making sure they don’t touch.Now add another layer of medium and repeat until the container is filled.Store the tubers in a cool spot that does not freeze, checking on them once a month to see how they look. If the medium is too dry, they will shrivel away, too wet and they can rot.In the spring, pot them up and get them out in the garden when all chance of frost has passed.I’ve been working with Flowerbulbs.com to spread the word about the joy of planting bulbs like tuberous begonias.They don’t sell bulbs, they encourage gardeners to plant them and that’s my message too. Check out their site for lots of great planting ideas.In my garden, tuberous begonias are deer resistant, usually getting nibbled on at the end of the season, when the deer are desperate.Brighten any shady corner of a garden by adding tuberous begonias and if you play your cards right, they will provide enjoyment for years to come.