Begonia × tuberhybrida white - Begonia Multiflora Maxima white

This lovely white Begonia Multiflora Maxima is sought after for its floribundus nature and elegance in shaded pots and borders. It becomes covered in a multitude of double flowers, resembling small white roses, throughout the summer and beyond. It is grown as a tender perennial, to be brought indoors in winter.

From the Begoniaceae family, the tuberous begonia belongs to the Tuberhybrida group, a vast collection of hybrids derived notably from South American Andean species. The Multiflora Maxima horticultural series is characterised by a compact and branching habit, and a profusion of flowers which are smaller than grandiflora begonias. The plants typically measure 25–35 cm tall with a 20–30 cm spread; their stems may bend slightly under the weight of the flowering.
The double to semi-double, 5 to 8 cm in diameter flowers are produced from June to October; as with other begonias, the plant is monoecious: it bears separate male and female flowers. The green to dark green leaves are asymmetrical, toothed, borne on fleshy petiolate stalks; the brittle, water-filled stems are susceptible to wind. The tuber (3 to 10 cm in diameter) goes dormant at the end of the season, while the foliage yellows and disappears. Flowering renews in successive waves as long as spent flowers are removed.
This begonia is not hardy; frost will kill it.  The tuber should be lifted and overwintered dry, at 5/10 °C, protected from rodents.

Plant the Multiflora Maxima white begonia in pots and your containers in partial shade where it will form a cushion of white flowers; pair it with Begonia multiflora 'Flamboyant', with its single red flowers, or with the cultivar 'Bijou de Gand' which produces small double yellow-orange flowers. In the garden, it will pair well with light heucheras like ‘Lime Marmalade’, with small bluish hostas like ‘Blue Vision’ and with shade-loving grasses like Carex oshimensis ‘Evergold’.

Tuberous begonias, highly prized since the Victorian era, have been extensively improved in England, Belgium, and Germany; the "Multiflora" lines were developed for cultivation in more exposed sites: their numerous, yet modestly sized, flowers are less sensitive to wind and rain than those of the Pendula or Grandiflora hybrids with their very large corollas.