How to Acclimate a New Begonia to its New Conditions
September 20, 2025
The Buxton Branch of the American Begonia Society
September 20, 2025
The Buxton Branch of the American Begonia Society
Our Buxton Branch members are excited to share their cup-grown begonias with you. These are propagations of some of our favorite species and cultivars, and we’d like to help you understand how to get them accustomed to their new home, your home.
Your plant will likely need some time to adjust to its new surroundings. Changes in light, temperature, humidity and routine will all impact how your plant settles into its new digs.
Here are some steps you can take to help your begonia adjust with as little stress as possible.
Your plant will likely need some time to adjust to its new surroundings. Changes in light, temperature, humidity and routine will all impact how your plant settles into its new digs.
Here are some steps you can take to help your begonia adjust with as little stress as possible.
- Don’t make big changes all at once. Chances are your plant is coming from one of our homes where it’s been grown under lights in the controlled humidity environment of its cup. The best thing to do first is to give your plant bright indirect light and leave it in one spot. Notice any changes taking place day-to-day. Never leave a closed cup in direct sun as the risk of cooking your plant will be too great. You also want to avoid cold, drafty spots. If you’re hoping to eventually grow the begonia in the ambient air of your house, you can start acclimating it by just opening the lid of the cup. Leave the entire lid resting in place on top of the cup. A gradual introduction to the open air may take several weeks or months.
- Don’t jump to repotting. Moving to a new pot is a sudden drastic change so keeping your new begonia in its cup for a few weeks will give it a chance to acclimate before you find a larger terrarium or pot to put it in. Over the next few weeks, slowly move the edge of the cup lid off the rim of the cup, maybe just a little bit once a week or so. As the atmosphere acclimates in the cup, you may notice the substrate drying out. If there are no drainage holes in your cup, cut some small holes on the lower edge of the cup to allow for drainage and give your plant some water. Many folks prefer to use distilled or reverse osmosis water at this point.
- Water gently and not generously. Overwatering is one of the most common issue for plants as we bring them home. Make sure your cup has drainage and only give it water when you notice the substrate has dried out a bit. You’ll get to know what your plant likes, waterwise, by observing its response to watering. Remember, begonias are from all over the world and live in different conditions. Some prefer a drier situation than others. Some will want to remain in a closed environment while others will thrive in the open air of your home. It’s helpful to learn about your specific begonia and you might be surprised by the information you can find online about it.
- Find a spot and let your plant stay there so it can get used to the various shifts in conditions. After a few weeks, if it doesn’t seem happy, make a shift to a new spot and keep a watch for signs of how it’s doing. New growth probably means it’s happy, while stressed or yellow leaves might indicate its getting too much or not enough of something.
- Once you notice your plant growing and its roots are thriving, you can gently pull your plant from its cup and introduce it to a new home, either a pot or bubble or closed terrarium, being careful to handle the delicate roots gently as well as continuing to provide a lighting situation similar to what you’d had it under before. Another common problem when transitioning begonias is repotting to a container that is too big. Most begonias do not mind being pot bound, but when repotting, the new pot should be more than 1 or 2 inches larger than the original.