My begonias were enormous and healthy looking and now they are starting to look like they are melting?

Question

It has been warm still and no hard freeze yet in North Texas. Only the top part of the plant looks melted. The sides are still full and blooming.

Answer 1

That melting look is classic frost burn. It must have been a light frost because it only formed on the upper leaves and damaged them. During a light frost the upper leaves protect the lower leaves. Since begoinas are sissy plants it doesn't really take a hard frost to kill or in your case damage them.

Answer 2

If you say you haven't had frost then we should believe you. If it isn't frost damage on your Begonias, it might be botrytis. It's when the new growth or under growth gets all yucky and fuzzy.

Here is some info I found on the web:

Botrytis blight or gray mold is a fungus disease which infects a wide array of herbaceous annual and perennial plants. There are several species of the fungus Botrytis which can cause blights; the most common is Botrytis cinerea. Botrytis infections are favored by cool, rainy spring and summer weather usually around 15C (60F). Gray mold can be particularly damaging when rainy, drizzly weather continues over several days.

Botrytis cinerea can infect many ornamental plants including: anemone, begonia, calendula, chrysanthemum, dahlia, dogwood, fuchsia, geranium, hawthorn, heather, hydrangea, marigold, pansy, periwinkle, petunia, rose, snapdragon, sunflower, sweet peat, violet, zinnia.

The best way to manage this disease is by inspection and sanitation. While inspecting plants carry a paper bag for sanitation. Remove faded or blighted flowers, blighted leaves, or entire plants infected at the base and place them in the paper bag so that they may be discarded with the trash or burned. It is best not to do any sanitation when plants are wet with dew or rain since this could spread fungal spores during conditions which favor infection. Likewise avoid overhead watering, syringing, or misting plants especially if Botrytis blight has been troublesome in the past. To promote rapid drying of plants, space them to allow good air circulation.

Good luck :-)

Answer 3

sounds like frost damage. it takes very little to affect begonias. They are very cold sensitive.

Answer 4

I don't understand exactly what you are asking so here are some websites that might help you with your problem:

http://www.ppath.cas.psu.edu/extension/plant_disease/begonia.html

http://www.begonias.ca/bhel_trouble.htm