Bougainvillea

About 40 species of shrubs, lianas with woody stems and small trees are included in the genus Bougainvillea.  They need a particularly mild climate to survive.  Thorny branches are covered with oval or rounded leaves with a solid edge, painted in an intense green.  The originality and decorative value of bougainvillea is given by the colored (white, pink, red) bracts of the panicle inflorescences.  Nondescript yellow flowers are surrounded by three such regenerated leaves (bracts) of paper texture.  There are several cultivars with yellow and white bracts.  The flowering period begins in summer and ends in late autumn. Smooth Bougainvillea (Bougainvillea glabra) is a climbing, very lush plant with oval leaves and panicle inflorescences up to 20 cm long, blooming from late summer to late autumn.  Small yellowish-white flowers are surrounded by large bracts of various shades: from red to purple.  The most common varieties are 'Sanderian' with purple bracts, 'Kilty Camp' and 'Evening Dawn' with orange bracts and 'Snow White' with white bracts. Bougainvillea buttiana (V. x buttiana) is a hybrid of smooth bougainvillea and Peruvian bougainvillea (V. peruviana);  it is a plant with oval leaves and bracts, colored in light purple.  The most famous is 'Mrs. Butt', the color of the bracts of which varies from creamy pink to pink-purple.  The dark green leaves of beautiful bougainvillea (B. spectabilis) are elliptical.  From June to September, flowers bloom on it with pink-purple bracts.

About 40 species of shrubs, lianas with woody stems and small trees are included in the genus Bougainvillea.  They need a particularly mild climate to survive.  Thorny branches are covered with oval or rounded leaves with a solid edge, painted in an intense green.  The originality and decorative value of bougainvillea is given by the colored (white, pink, red) bracts of the panicle inflorescences.  Nondescript yellow flowers are surrounded by three such regenerated leaves (bracts) of paper texture.  There are several cultivars with yellow and white bracts.  The flowering period begins in summer and ends in late autumn.

Smooth Bougainvillea (Bougainvillea glabra) is a climbing, very lush plant with oval leaves and panicle inflorescences up to 20 cm long, blooming from late summer to late autumn.  Small yellowish-white flowers are surrounded by large bracts of various shades: from red to purple.  The most common varieties are 'Sanderian' with purple bracts, 'Kilty Camp' and 'Evening Dawn' with orange bracts and 'Snow White' with white bracts.

Cultivation

Bougainvillea is used to decorate walls, pergolas, columns, pavilions, etc. It can also be grown in pots, especially in severe winters, and the plant should be closed at the beginning of the cold season. However, containers should be spacious. Certain varieties of beautiful bougainvillea (S. spectabilis) can grow indoors if placed in a well-lit place. But at home it is very difficult to get them to bloom again, for which it is necessary immediately after the end of the blooming period to move the plants to the terrace or balcony. In mild climates, bougainvillea is grown outdoors. Liquid fertilizer for flowering plants with a low nitrogen content should be periodically added to the water for irrigation - at the rate of 5 g per bucket. Good drainage of the soil must be ensured. During the cold spring, it is recommended to cover the plant with plastic wrap, otherwise you can lose not only foliage, but also part of the shoots.

Bougainvillea is used to decorate walls, pergolas, columns, pavilions, etc. It can also be grown in pots, especially in severe winters, and the plant should be closed at the beginning of the cold season. However, containers should be spacious.

Certain varieties of beautiful bougainvillea (S. spectabilis) can grow indoors if placed in a well-lit place. But at home it is very difficult to get them to bloom again, for which it is necessary immediately after the end of the blooming period to move the plants to the terrace or balcony. In mild climates, bougainvillea is grown outdoors. Liquid fertilizer for flowering plants with a low nitrogen content should be periodically added to the water for irrigation - at the rate of 5 g per bucket. Good drainage of the soil must be ensured. During the cold spring, it is recommended to cover the plant with plastic wrap, otherwise you can lose not only foliage, but also part of the shoots.

Location

Bougainvillea prefers a location well- lit by a bright sun.

Temperature

Bougainvillea species do not tolerate winter temperatures falling below 7 °C. The maximum permissible air temperature in summer is 30-32 ° C, and the optimum is 20-22 °C.

Watering

In the summer, bougainvillea requires frequent, fairly abundant, but not over-watering. In winter, watering is significantly reduced. Because bougainvillea is very supportive of the higher calcium and magnesium salts, even hard water can be used.

Transplant

Potted specimens should be transplanted into a new container annually, bearing in mind that this plant prefers not too large pots compared to the size of the above-ground part of the bougainvillea. They use fertile and soft soil, which, on the one hand, maintains a certain level of moisture well, on the other hand, it is drained, - excess water does not stagnate.

Care

Flowers appear in bougainvillea on last year's shoots; it is necessary to constantly prune, limiting itself to removing all dry branches, as well as reducing the lateral ones by 2/3 of the length. Potted plants are pruned more intensively.

Reproduction

Propagated by apical cuttings. In the summer, shoots about 7 cm long are taken from young branches and placed for rooting in a very well-drained soil with a significant proportion of sand at a temperature of about 22-24 °C. Woody cuttings can also be taken, but in January, from later branches, about 15 cm long. Their root system is formed at a temperature of about 18 °C.

Diseases

In bougainvillea, poor light conditions can cause leaf fall and delayed flowering. Lack of water causes spotting, excess - decay. Coccids, both scale insects and mealybugs, are removed using a cotton swab soaked in alcohol or by treating the plant with appropriate preparations. From ticks, specks appear on the leaves, which gradually increase in size, merging until the leaves turn yellow and fall off. Another symptom of mites is cobwebs on the underside of leaves. In case of mite infestation, plants are treated with acaricides, and they also maintain high air humidity.

In bougainvillea, poor light conditions can cause leaf fall and delayed flowering. Lack of water causes spotting, excess - decay. Coccids, both scale insects and mealybugs, are removed using a cotton swab soaked in alcohol or by treating the plant with appropriate preparations.

From ticks, specks appear on the leaves, which gradually increase in size, merging until the leaves turn yellow and fall off. Another symptom of mites is cobwebs on the underside of leaves. In case of mite infestation, plants are treated with acaricides, and they also maintain high air humidity.

Acquisition

Bougainvillea can be found in horticultural centers and flower shops offering the widest range. Choose plants with healthy and beautifully colored glossy foliage.