B. 'Noemie Mallet'

Also referred to as B. 'Noemi Mallet.' Begonia Noëmi Mallet has leaves with only a slightly rounded base, as individual teeth projecting at the margin make them appear angular. The leaf ends in a long, pointed tip. The color is a beautiful, very dark coppery red, a mixture of metallic carmine and violet-red, applied in spots and dots on a gray-green background that is barely visible on young leaves. The veins are blackish-green. With age, the leaf is not as attractive because the dark red metallic sheen fades and the gray-green base color becomes more pronounced. The bristles are short, stiff, and bright blood-red, with a single hair on each of the red dots. Of all five varieties, the young leaf displays the darkest coloration.

1885 - The Begonia Noemie Mallet belongs to a new and very interesting type, which we will discuss in more detail soon. It was developed by Mr. Lionnet, head gardener for Mr. Arthur Mallet at the Chateau de Jouy-en-Josas. Describing it is not easy, especially regarding the colors, which, from the most delicate and varied, blend into a chiaroscuro enhanced by the most enhanced by the most diverse nuances and which constantly change, not only with the foliage, but also depending on the part observed and its position.

It is an extremely vigorous plant, branching easily with the help of pinching and even budding from the base to form a sort of a bush. Fibrous rootstock, not tuberous. Robust, hairless, erect, stiff stem, reddish-green, very smooth.

Leaves strongly inequilateral, tapering long and regularly to an obtuse point, the youngest a deep, warm, shimmering red like velvet, the older ones mottled with nuanced pink speckled on a dark green background with mottling similar to that of a certain Bertolonia; the underside being a very dark, excessively glossy red, with slightly wavy edges, sometimes toothed, more rarely lobed.

One of the unique features of these leaves is that, instead of fading, as usually happens with age, the colors of Begonia Noemie Mallet are maintained and even intensify, so that the older leaves are just as vibrant as the younger ones.

B. Noemie Mallet originates from the cross-pollination of two stem-forming varieties: B. Eldorado fertilized by B. subpeltata. What will its flowers be like? It’s impossible to say, as the plant has not yet flowered. But whatever the flower, the brilliant color of the leaves is enough to guarantee it a prominent place in ornamental gardens.

• Classification: Cultivar
• Plant Type: Cane-like - Mallet
• Origin: Europe, France
• Originator: Lionnet
• Date of Origin: 1885