Posted on by susurrus

Hairy-leaved Begonia sizemoreae (syn. longiciliata) at a Show

Begonia sizemoreae (syn. longiciliata): a very hairy begonia

Begonia sizemoreae (syn. longiciliata) on the Dibleys Nurseries’ display was charming all the passers by at the latest incarnation (should that be invegation?) of the RHS’s northern flower show.

I have to pause to check the show’s name. Wentwood Worthhouse? Woodworth Wenthouse? Wentworth Woodhouse. Phew.

Begonia with variegated, hairy leaves

It wasn’t because the begonia had bold or fancy flowers. These were unassuming enough – small, pale pink, gappy singles nodding beneath the stars of the show: magnificent, patterned leaves held aloft on red stems, all outlined with silvery hairs.

The arresting novelty proved inconvenient – a safety hazard, you might argue – when each knot of lightly-dripping folks stopped in their tracks to admire this teddy bear of a plant.

Begonia with hairy leaves and red stems

You see, the marquee was packed and steamy because the RHS had not forecasted that there might be any rain up north in the summer, so had thought to provide very limited shelter. It’s much the same at RHS Garden Bridgewater. You would almost imagine that the RHS have heard that we northerners are hardy types, who never go anywhere without umbrellas, raincoats and wellingtons, and much prefer eating our lunches or listening to music out in the rain.

Singers under an awning, with listeners in the rain

Elsewhere, a queue that we estimated to be 40 mins long of the best provisioned, least arthritic folks were standing in the rain to win access to the Flower School; Blooming Ballroom; Summer Fruit & Veg Competition; Petals and Paint, Stems and Stitches; and RHS Rhubarb by Candlelight, all of which were tantalisingly tucked away inside the traditional country house.

While the organisers had been taken by surprise by the teddy bear begonia hazard, they had clearly foreseen a rush for the veggies, as security staff were stationed by the door to direct any hopeful, and rather-more-dripping-by-this-time would-be-refugees to the back of the snaking queue. If proof were needed that the British can queue, this would be it.

Gnashing our teeth rather, we decided to skip all these and headed for the exit.

24 Replies to “Hairy-leaved Begonia sizemoreae (syn. longiciliata) at a Show”

  3. Those fuzzy leaves are remarkable. I’ve never seen anything like it. Sometimes, leaving is the best decision. My tolerance for standing in line is severely limited by my creaky knees. Sitting, I’m good at. Standing, not so much.

    1. It might have seemed better if visitors had the chance to be awarded certificates of recognition. Bronze medal for finding somewhere under cover where they could eat their lunch, perhaps, or a gold medal for queueing to see all the exhibits inside the house.

  5. That sounds like what should have been a day full of iterest rather ruined. Did you go and see WW itself? It’s been on my ‘must see’ list for ages.

    1. Not ruined, but curtailed. We had a quick look round WW. I wondered how the sales of their very decent-looking plant centre would be affected by having so many plant vendors on their doorstop.

  6. Invegation? Between that and “hairy potter” in the comment below, I need a fainting couch. How sad that the rain dripped on such a show, and even sadder that people were stuck in it. Those begonia leaves make me itch, just looking at them, but, yes, a “Teddy bear of a plant” — it’s good to read you again!!

    1. The rain came down so hard shortly after we left that all but the most valiant and storm-proof of queuers must have had second thoughts.

    1. I would have liked to see the prize fruits and vegetables and the floristry. Luckily the Southport Flower Show is later this week.

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