Begonia urophylla

Native from Chiapas, Mexico to Venezuela, this perennial herb grows from branching rhizomes in wet tropical forests. Its large, asymmetrical, heart-shaped leaves have toothed edges and long, tail-like tips. Bristly hairs cover the leaf stalks and parts of the leaf undersides. Large, repeatedly branching flower clusters rise above the foliage. The white male and female flowers each have two petal-like tepals. Female flowers develop capsules with three unequal wings. Rhizomes allow the plant to persist between growing seasons, and new plants can be raised from leaf cuttings. Photographed in Colombia.