Identification Help: green tubors, pruple hue on leaves - what am I?

[zander787]

Hi all, brand new to the site, and saw two of my anonymous houseplants identified already.
I have a third, and have never seen it anywhere but in Southern Florida where I took a clipping. It has long, medium wide leaves, and they tend to cluster together at the top of the various tubes. These tubes come out at almost right angles from the main stalk. The more healthy it is, towards the center of the tubes where the leaves meet, the color becomes purple in hue. The size of the leaves also vary, with - it seems - the amount of soil that is available. I currently have a clipping sitting in water, as well as a ful plant in the pot, and they both seem to de doing well just like that, but the one in water is definitely a more pale green. I almost thought it might be a kind of bromeliad, but there's not enough room in the tube to collect water. The leaves have the same thickness as a daffodill leaf, but not quite as stringy - if that helps.
Anyway, if you can help identify, I'd appreciate it!

Oh, and how do I get my water begonia to bloom? I've had it two years, the leaves are 8-9 inches in diameter, and it has taken over my living room, but no blooms yet!
Thanks,
--Suzanna

[Eric La Fountaine]

Hello zander787,

What's a water begonia? I don't get anything on that when I search. Do you have any other name or info on that? I guess it is on the table for ID as well. Don't know about the other either. Pics would be really helpful if you have 'em.

[zander787]

The begonia I have is a large leaf. The person who gave me a clipping 2 1/2 years ago tld me it should flower in less than a year - orange flowers, if I remember correctly. Hwever, it has kept growing - I now have it in a 5 gallon pot, and the leaves are 8-10 inches in diameter. It is definitely a begonia, because it has that characteristic leaf pattern, but it's plain green, no striations at all.

Anyway, with the other plant, it's still a mystery, too.
--Suzanna

[wrygrass]

Hi Zander,

You wrote,

...the leaves are 8-10 inches in diameter.

Does that mean the leaves are round or kidney-shaped. If so, you might be talking about beefsteak begonia or Begonia erythrophylla This is mainly grown for its foliage but has small flowers when it blooms.

If not round leaves, another commonly sold begonia, is the tuberous begonia, 'Non Stop'. But as the name implies, it is usually easy to get to bloom and will bloom year around if you let it do so.

Another common begonia with large leaves is the angel wing begonia, the leaf of which resembles one wing of an angel.

Ecxept for the 'Non Stop' which I think is istelf a cultivar, there are many cultivars/hybrids of both the BeefSteak and Angel Wing types, with varying degrees of leaf color, color in the veins of the leaf, even the shape of the leaf.

Harry

[Ginger Blue]

Gosh, pictures are worth a million in this case. I just can't visualize your first plant at all. And your begonia is going to need a pic to get an ID, also.