Begonia plant named after Puan Sri Jamillah Anu, wife of Sarawak Chief Minister

 By Simon Peter

A begonia specie, grown mostly at the Lanjak Entimau Wildlife Sanctuary and the adjacent Batang Ai National Park, has been named "Begonia Jamillahanuiana", after Puan Sri Jamillah Anu, wife of Chief Minister Tan Sri Adenan Satem.

 Puan Sri Jamillah Anu receiving a a begonia plant from RIMBA head of research team Julia Sang as Chief Minister Tan Sri Adenan Satem (partly hidden) and Sarawak Forestry Chief Executive Officer Wong Ting Chung (left) look on. - Nov 3, 2016

The specie is of the 12 wildlife species of plants discovered by the researchers from RIMBA (Research for Intensified Management of Bio-Rich Areas) of the Sarawak Forestry Corporation.

 Begonia is a genus of perennial flowering plants in the family Begoniaceae. The genus contains 1,795 different plant species. The Begonias are native to moist subtropical and tropical climates. Some species are commonly grown indoors as ornamental houseplants in cooler climates.

 With 1,795 species, Begonia is the fifth-largest angiosperm genus. The species are terrestrial (sometimes epiphytic) herbs or undershrubs, and occur in subtropical and tropical moist climates, in South and Central America, Africa, and southern Asia.

Terrestrial species in the wild are commonly upright-stemmed, rhizomatous, or tuberous. The plants are monoecious, with unisexual male and female flowers occurring separately on the same plant; the male contains numerous stamens, and the female has a large inferior ovary and two to four branched or twisted stigmas. 

Puan Sri Jamillah press a button to officially announcing the begonia plant after her as Chief Minister Tan Sri Adenan Satem (left) and SFC CEO Wong Ting Chung look on (picture, right)

In most species, the fruit is a winged capsule containing numerous minute seeds, although baccate fruits are also known. The leaves, which are often large and variously marked or variegated, are usually asymmetric (unequal-sided).

The genus name Begonia, coined by Charles Plumier, a French patron of botany, and adopted by Linnaeus in 1753, honors Michel Bégon, a former governor of the French colony of Saint-Domingue.

The different groups of begonias have different cultural requirements, but most species come from tropical regions, so they and their hybrids require warm temperatures.

Most are forest understory plants and require bright shade; few will tolerate full sun, especially in warmer climates. In general, begonias require a well-drained growing medium that is neither constantly wet nor allowed to dry out completely.

 Many begonias will grow and flower year-round except for tuberous begonias, which usually have a dormant period. During this dormant period, the tubers can be stored in a cool, dry place.

Begonias of the semperflorens group (or wax begonias) are frequently grown as bedding plants outdoors. A recent group of hybrids derived from this group is marketed as "Dragonwing" begonias; they are much larger both in leaf and in flower.

Most begonias are easily propagated by division or from stem cuttings. In addition, many can be propagated from leaf cuttings or even sections of leaves, particularly the members of the rhizomatous and rex groups.

The 12 newly discovered wild life species consist of one specie of wild orchid, one specie of ginger, one specie of Marantaceae and nine species of begonia.

Wild orchids and begonias are protected under the Wild Life Protection Ordinance, 1998. Orchids, Marantaceae and begonias have been widely used as ornamental plants (mostly grown for decorative purposes in gardens and landscape design projects, houseplants etc) in a number of countries.

However, the potential of Marantaceae and begonias as ornamental plants in Malaysia have not been widely explored.

The 12 newly discovered wild life (plants) species were discovered after a short period of survey. Given additional time and wider coverage of research areas, more new species could be discovered.

The wild orchid, Marantaceae  and ginger were discovered at Lanjak-Entimau Wildlife Sanctuary. It would be no surprise if these species would be found in Batang Ai National Park since the forests of Lanjak-Entimau and Batang Ai are contiguous.

Out of the nine species of Begonias discovered, five could be found at Lanjak-Entimau Wildlife Sanctuary, two at Batang Ai National Park and the other two could be found at both sites.

Begonia jamilahanuiana was discovered at both Lanjak-Entimau Wildlife Sanctuary and Batang Ai National Park.