Bougainvillea spectabilis, or the Great Bougainvillea is a perennial flowering plant. Its rich pink flowers make it popular among gardeners as an ornamental plant. It is a shrubby vine that grows well in a hot and dry climate. Check out this guide to learn how to grow this tropical plant in your home garden.
| Common name | Bougainvillea, Great Bougainvillea, Paper Flower |
| Botanical name | Bougainvillea spectabilis |
| Family | Nyctaginaceae |
| Species | spectabilis |
| Origin | Brazil |
| Life cycle | Annual |
| Plant type | Annual |
| Hardiness zone | 9, 10, 11 |
| Sunlight | Full Sun |
| Maintenance | Low |
| Soil condition | Clay |
| Soil ph | Acid |
| Drainage | Well-Drained |
| Growth rate | Fast |
| Spacing | 3 ft. – 6 ft. |
| Flowering period | Fall |
| Height | 15 ft. – 40 ft. |
| Width | 15 ft. – 40 ft. |
| Flower color | Cream, Tan |
| Leaf color | Gold, Yellow |
| Stem color | Brown, Copper |
| Fruit type | Achene |
| Leaf benefit | Long-lasting |
| Garden style | Butterfly Garden |
| Uses | Coastal |
I. Appearance and Characteristics
Bougainvillea spectabilis, also known as great bougainvillea, is a species of flowering plant. It is native to Brazil, Bolivia, Peru, and Argentina’s Chubut Province. It is widely grown as an ornamental plant.
Bougainvillea spectabilis grows as a woody vine or shrub, reaching 15 to 40 feet (4.6 to 12.2 m) with heart-shaped leaves and thorny, pubescent stems. The flowers are generally small, white, and inconspicuous, highlighted by several brightly colored modified leaves called bracts. The bracts can vary in color, ranging from white, red, mauve, purple-red, or orange. Its fruit is a small, inconspicuous, dry, elongated achene.
Bougainvillea spectabilis can grow in hardiness zones 10-11, preferring full sun , dry conditions, and fertile soil. It can be propagated from stem and root cuttings.
II. How to Grow and Care
Sunlight
The great bougainvillea loves the sun and needs at least 5 hours of full sun a day. Any less than this will affect the quantity and quality of the plant’s blooms.
Temperature
Great bougainvillea can tolerate hot dry locations, with temperatures over 38 °C. It does well in locations with a minimum of 18-20 °C at night and 24-35 °C during the day.
Keep your plant in a frost-free position during the winter. It can be stored at 2-3 ºC, but be aware that the plant will tend to become deciduous and lose its leaves under 10 ºC, but will leaf up again when it gets warmer. The plants can flower well during winter in temperatures above 10 ºC so long as the light is good enough.
Watering
Great bougainvillea flower best under stress. Water regularly after planting to encourage a deep root system, then reduce to only as needed. Keep the plant slightly on the dry side, and allow the plant to become root bound. Wet, waterlogged soil can cause root rot and make the plants susceptible to pest problems.
Plants should be watered when the medium surface becomes dry. Close attention is needed because it is easy for plants to use up the available moisture in the pots. The amount of water needed depends on the medium type, environmental conditions, size of the plant, and pot size. Watering well but less frequently is better than frequent, light waterings.
Soil
The great bougainvillea needs well-drained and rich soil – adding some organic compost to your planting mixture can provide this. It also loves slightly acidic soil, so try to keep your soil pH between 5.0-6.0.
Fertilizing
Fertilize during planting, and then every summer, for maximum blooms. Just keep in mind that a fertilizer with increased nitrogen might result in more leaves than flowers – a slow-releasing, well-balanced quality fertilizer, preferably with iron, is the best choice for the great bougainvillea.
Planting Instructions
Planting from seed is time-consuming and not always successful. Seedlings are widely available and are fairly easy to plant, making this the better option. Choose a warm and sunny planting/growing spot, and use rich, loamy soil that has good drainage. To improve this, add some compost to the planting soil if needed – 1/3 of compost to 2/3 of soil is a good ratio. Planting should be done during spring as this gives the plant enough time to get established before the winter.
Pruning
Regular pruning is necessary to shape the plant and direct its growth because the shoots often grow vigorously. Prune after it stops blooming. Bougainvillea blooms on new growth. So once its blooming cycle ends, use a set of garden pruners to trim off one half of the new growth that ends with the flower. For example, if the plants have 4 inches of new growth at the end of a blooming cycle, you can cut off the flowers along with 2 inches of stem. This will encourage the next blooming cycle to begin more quickly.
To reduce the size of plants, cut them back by about a third, removing all spindly and twiggy growth. Prune suckers from the plant’s base to encourage top-growth. Dead wood should be removed as it appears. The long shoots can be trained in various shapes and heights – espaliers, arbors, twisted or braided trunks, or even large, fanciful animals.
Propagation
Great bougainvillea are usually propagated by cuttings. They grow readily from cuttings 4″-6″ long, and in 4-6 weeks will develop good root systems when given bottom heat and mist. When well rooted in perlite/peat moss mix, they can be potted in small containers in a soilless mix with added perlite to give more drainage. Care should be exercised in transplanting since the fine roots often do not knit the soil together in a firm root ball.
Leaf-bud cuttings can be used when source material is limited. Each node can be used as a cutting. The cutting, taken from shoots that are partially matured, consists of a leaf blade and a short piece of the stem (1-1.5 inches) with the attached axillary bud. Cut the stem section about 0.5-1 inch above and below the point of leaf attachment. Place the bud vertically in a rooting medium and lightly cover it (1 ⁄4 inch) so that only the leaf blade can be seen.
Some cultivars that have little or no chlorophyll in their leaves are difficult to grow from cuttings and need to be grafted onto a vigorous rootstock to be propagated. Grafting is useful with delicate cultivars that have fragile root systems. It is also used when it is desired to have multiple cultivars on one plant. The scion should be free of disease. The rootstock could be a seedling or a rooted cutting of an existing, established plant. All cut surfaces should be covered with grafting wax once the join is made to prevent moisture loss. Remove shoots from the rootstock. Put the grafted plant in a humid environment so the scion does not dry out. Various kinds of grafts may be used, including wedge, whip or tongue, or approach graft.
Pests and Diseases
No pests or diseases are of major concern but occasionally leaf-chewing worms or aphids. Aphids suck the sap, causing speckles on the foliage, reduced color, stunting, wilting, and deformed leaves. In severe cases, leaf loss occurs. In this case, insecticidal soap is the safest and most effective control strategy. Controlling the ants will go a long way in helping to control aphids, as well as scales and mealybugs. Ants move these insect around and harvest the honeydew they exude. Ants also protect these insects from predators and parasites.
If the leaves are eaten, severe scalloping of leaves can cause Bougainvillea loopers. As the population multiplies, plants can be defoliated. In this case, use Bacillus thuringiensis (BT) insecticide; neem-based biological insecticide products; most synthetic insecticides with labels permitting use against caterpillars on land-scape ornamentals; and organic insecticide Spinosad. Spraying late in the evening, when caterpillars and adult moths are active, is recommended.
III. Uses and Benefits
- Medicinal uses
The plant has been used in traditional medicine among the Yanadi tribe in Andhra Pradesh’s Chittoor district. The leaves were used for treating diabetes
The extract and decoction of the plants were utilized in fertility control. Bougainvillea spectabilis is also known to contain anticancer, anti-inflammatory, antihepatotoxic, antimicrobial, antioxidant, antihyperlipidemic, and antiulcer properties.
- Ornamental uses
The plant is also widely grown as an ornamental plant, which can be grown in an open garden, or as a container plant in the patio and outdoor spaces. Several hybrids and cultivated varieties of Bougainvillea are commercialized as ornamental plants due to their long-lasting, colourful flower bracts.
Find Where to Buy the Best Great Bougainvillea (Bougainvillea spectabilis)
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