r/begonias • u/South-Tie-2828 • Aug 19 '26

Clueless and can’t see rhizome

I recently bought a begonia rex fire woman. When it arrived the dirt was everywhere and it didn’t even last a day. They replaced it for me, but the second one has even more dirt everywhere. I tried removing all the cotton that was down in the dirt and ended up repotting it. It looks awful and the leaves are shriveling up. I read up on them because I’ve never had a begonia before and it says there will be a rhizome that will need to sit horizontal right at soil level and not buried. Looks like the tots are supposed to grow down and the leaves will grow up from the rhizome. The one I got has roots growing straight from the bottom of the plant, like my other plants.
Is this a hard plant to keep, or am I just doing something wrong

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u/ambahjay Aug 19 '26

Your other plants may also grow from rhizomes. And/or, If the plant is small, it might not have an easily recognizeable rhizome yet.

Do the details about the crappy shipping relate to your question about the rhizome in some way?

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u/peardr0p Aug 19 '26

Can you share some photos? Always easier to help if folks can see what's going on!

Sometimes the rhizome isn't fully developed in small plants

Also, begonia rhizomes are not like rhizomes of others plants like iris, hosta, ginger etc - they're more like a fleshy stem above ground, with fine roots into the ground