Angel Wing Begonia Light Requirements: How Much Sunlight?

These are one of the most known begonias and can be grown year-round indoors.

Angel wing begonia light requirements are such that they can grow well in indirect sunlight. They would not like direct sunlight as they get easily scorched. The plants like to grow under shade.

If you don’t want your begonia to bloom, then you can shift them partial shade. To bloom, angel wing begonia needs bright indirect sunlight.

It can tolerate direct sunlight in winter seasons, preferable early morning sunlight or late afternoon sunlight. In summer, however, if the plant is kept in direct sunlight, ensure the plant is covered in shade and protected from direct sunlight.

For the plant to produce beautiful flowers, the plant needs to get plenty of indirect sunlight.

Know Your Plant: Angel Wing Begonia

Angel Wing Begonias are fibrous rooted plants. The foliage of this plant is shaped like the wings of an angel. They can be grown in various basket and pot sizes. This plant enjoys a humid environment. They are thirsty plants and they need to be watered frequently.

These plants can be grown indoors as well as outdoors. These plants can be easily propagated from their cuttings.

These plants like to grow in shady places. They don’t prefer direct sunlight as the leaves of the plant are prone to getting scorched easily under direct sunlight. They produce good foliage under average to low light conditions and produce good flower blossoms under good indirect light conditions.

How Does Sunlight Affect the Growth of Plants?

Sun plays a vital role in the growth of plants. Plants need sunlight to get the food for their growth, for producing their harvest and to survive. Plants need the energy in the sunlight to produce the nutrients they need.

Sunlight is very much responsible for the process of photosynthesis in a plant. Sunlight is responsible for converting the carbon dioxide and water into carbohydrates and oxygen.

There is a natural compound present in green plants called the chlorophyll. The chlorophyll captures energy from the sun in the process of photosynthesis in making sugar. When there is not enough sunlight, the process of photosynthesis also slows down.

Without adequate sunlight plants will not be able to produce enough carbohydrates and hence its ability to produce its harvest reduces and eventually the plant may die.

Light Requirements of Angel Wing Begonia plant

Angel Wing Begonia can be grown indoors as well as outdoors. These plants require very bright indirect sunlight.

If you want your plants to produce a good foliage, place them in a low light or shaded area. If you want the plant to produce colorful smiling flowers, place them in an area which receives bright indirect sunlight.

The plant produces heavy, large, draped, flowers in red, white, pink and orange colors. The darkness of the color on flowers and leaves of the plant is determined by the amount of light the plant gets.

If there is enough space and enough light in the room, the angel wing begonia can grow upto 8ft height. Once the plant matures, the plant can be pruned to make it look like a bushy healthy plant.

Also Read: Why Are the Leaves Falling Off My Angel Wing Begonia?

How Much Sunlight Does Angel Wing Begonia Need?

It is advisable to keep the angel wing begonias under indirect sunlight or in a partially shaded place to help them produce healthy foliage and blooming flowers.

If you want your Angel Wing Begonia to produce just a good foliage, place the plant in a partially shaded area. If you want them to produce good flowers, place them in a well lit indirect sunlight area.

If the plant is placed in a partially shaded area the plant does not bloom. The plant may not produce flowers anymore and the plant may look more leggy.

However, angel wing begonia does not like to be placed in the direct sunlight as the leaves of the plant are prone to get scorched easily under direct sunlight.

Does Angel Wing Begonia Like Grow Lights?

Angel Wing Begonias like to grow in bright indirect sunlight round the year. However, they are not able to stand direct sunlight round the year.

You may want to keep them in direct sunlight only during the winter season. But they will need to be protected from direct sunlights during the summer season.

They are the plants which like to grow in an area which is well lit by the direct natural sun rays. But too much exposure to sunlight may damage the foliage of the plant.

They grow and produce bountiful foliage in the direct sunlight during winter season, however they cannot grow flowers under the direct sunlight round the year.

Also Read: Why Parlor Palm Leaves Turning Brown?

Signs Angel Wing Begonia Isn’t Getting Enough Sunlight

Angel Wing Begonias exhibit stress due to insufficient lighting (sunlight) through wilting, drooping, yellowing etc in the leaves section. They also exhibit their stress through dropping off of their dried leaves.

They also do express their stress through bending or even stretching out of their stems which is caused by the suboptimal sunlight they are capturing for the growth of the plant.

Angel Wing Begonia also exhibits dropping off of its leaves due to too much watering, due to not a very good humid environment, due to stress caused by repotting etc.

Check this out: How Often to Water Anthurium?

Do Angel Wing Begonias Like Sun or Shade?

This houseplant is native to tropical climates and grows well in dapple light conditions.

Angel wing begonia needs under indirect sunlight. You can also grow this plant under partial shade, but to produce attractive flowers this begonia need filtered sunlight.

Every plant location in your room has unique lighting conditions. To healthy angel wing begonia to produce blooms, you should experiment with different pot locations to find the ideal balance of sunlight. Accordingly monitor your plant’s response to light and adjust its location.

To grow angel wing begonia successfully you should maintain proper lighting. If your plant doesn’t receive adequate sunlight, your plant will experience stunted growth, discoloured leaves and elongated stems.

Can angel wing begonia take morning sun?

Yes, angel wing begonia can take bright sunlight. But, it should be saved from direct intense sunlight.

As morning sunlight isn’t intense when compared to afternoon light, angel wing begonia can be grown under morning light.

If you are looking to place your Angel Wing Begonia in a spot with morning sunlight protection from strong afternoon sunlight is recommended or consider providing shade during the hottest time of day.

Growing Tips:  Angel Wing Begonia

Angel Wing Begonia, when kept in the right indirect sunlight area, produces an attractive foliage rich in glossy green leaves accompanied with red color combination on the leaves.

When Angel Wing Begonia is grown only for foliage, one need not concentrate too much about the placing of the plant in the right sunlit(indirect) area.

However, if at all the plant is placed in the right sunlit area throughout the year, the plant is known to produce beautiful flowers in red, pink, white, orange hues etc. It is simply the way of expression by the plant that the plant is happy and healthy and it is receiving everything it needs to grow into a healthy and a beautiful plant.

Angel Wing Begonia has the ability to bloom throughout the year unlike other plants. Hence proper care to the growth of the plant round the year helps us enjoy the beautiful flowering of the plant throughout the year.

Always help the plant grow in an organic soil and not a soggy soil. Always allow the soil in which the plant is growing to dry in between watering.

If the water in the soil becomes too much the plant may start exhibiting its stress and gradually the plant may also lose its life and hence the right watering is also essential for the plant.

When growing Angel Wing Begonia only for its foliage, you may administer the fertilizer food which is slightly higher in the nitrogen content for the plant.

However, if you want the plant to flower all through the year, you may administer the plant with the fertilizer food slightly rich in phosphorus content for healthy and a happy growth of the flowers of the plant as well.

You may be wondering how the fertilizer food varies from that used for growing just the foliage of the plant and that used for growing the flowers in the plant. Yes! The fertilizer varies!

For a healthier growth you will need to fertilize the plant every once in 2 weeks or every once  month.

You will also need to repot the plant once every year in the beginning of the spring. Make sure that while repotting you are moving to a slightly bigger plant compared to the earlier one.

Also Read: Can Angel Wing Begonias Grow Outside?

Conclusion

• Ensure that the plant is given enough indirect sunlight to grow both foliage and flowers all through the year.
• The soil needs to be dry before watering.
• Ensure you provide a humid environment for the plant to grow.
• While repotting, ensure you are shifting to a slightly bigger pot.
• Ensure the plant is given a very good and healthy fertilizer.
• The plant grows well in a soil that is well drained. So ensure the soil in which the plant is growing is dry enough.

Angel Wing Begonia is an easy to grow plant if the plant is cared for as shown in the steps above.