Tropicals - Bougainvillea
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  (March) I have a bougainvillea that is about 3 years old. I put it outside last spring, repotted and fertilized it. It grew and bloomed all summer. I brought it inside this fall and placed it in a room with an east window. After dropping its leaves and blooms during the fall, it started blooming again in early winter and bloomed profusely. Blooms fall off and are replaced with others. It is quite "leggy." I need to know when and how much to prune it and should I trim back roots when I repot and put outside? Any other info will be appreciated.

  Go ahead and give your plant a haircut now. This should reduce the legginess, and have it ready to begin blooming again when you move it outdoors. As for repotting or root pruning, Bougainvillea likes to be pot bound. sometimes though, the roots are so potbound, it makes it hard to keep it watered. If yours is severely rootbound, go ahead and lightly root-prune when you repot. If it is not, leave it alone for this season. Just top prune, water and fertilize.

  (June) I bought a Bougainvillea a couple of years ago. The first year it did great. Bloomed all summer. Last year it never bloomed all summer then in fall it bloomed just a few blooms. I put miracle grow fertilizer on it several times last summer, but still no blooms. This year now it is all bushed out but still does not look like it is going to bloom. Can you tell me what I am doing wrong? It is still in the same pot that I bought it in. I read in one of your articles that it helps if they are some what root bound. So I don't think that is my problem. Does it need full sun or just partial sun?

  Full sun is best for blooms. One thing you need to keep in mind is they do need new growth to bloom. If they are simply staying the same size, leafing out and green but not expanding much, they won't bloom very well. Root bound conditions help in a limited way; if a bougainvillea is given free reign of growth with no root limits, they often put on too much top growth to the exclusion of flowering. In tropical climates that isn't a problem because their growing season is year-round. You need to reach a happy medium. Take it out of the container it is in, cut off some roots and put it back in the same container. You might even lightly shear the top to encourage more growth now. Fertilize with a slow release fertilizer and then every two weeks with a water soluble one. Give them full sun. Next year try pruning it back hard before moving it outside -- again to get new growth.

  (August) Can you tell me what is wrong with my Bougainvillea. It has beautiful foliage but has never bloomed. What should I do? It has about 60% full sun.

  Sunlight sounds ok -- they do need a minimum of 6 to 8 hours. They also do best if they are root-constricted. If you put it in a large pot or planted it in the ground, they may spend the season growing and establishing roots, and not blooming. If it is in a small enough container, try stressing it by allowing it to get a bit on the dry side and not overdoing it with fertilizer. You still have time to get blooms this year. Mine had stopped for a few weeks but is beginning to rebloom again now. We are really dry!

  (September) The picture of a bougainvillea in your column of September 10 looks very much like mine. I am a first time grower and have it in a hanging basket on an east facing porch that is not enclosed. What do you recommend when the weather gets cold and for the winter. I am located 15 miles north of Heber Springs

  You have several choices. You can over winter it indoors like any other houseplant, or store it in a location where it won't freeze, or simply let it freeze and buy a new plant next summer. If you choose the first option, you need to bring the plant inside usually by mid October. You don't want it to get too used to cool temperatures, which won’t continue indoors. Place it in a very bright, sunny room. Allow it to get dry in between watering. Bougainvillea actually over winters indoors better than many other tropical blooming plants. Lower light, less humidity and constant temperatures are not ideal for most plants. If you simply protect it from freezing in a garage or storage building, the plant will not look great when you move it back outdoors for the summer, but it should be alive, and gradually recover.

  (September) I have two beautiful bougainvilleas, one red and one pink in a large pot with trellis on my deck. It is covered with eggs of white fly. I spray with Sevin all the time, but it doesn't seem to make the slightest difference. Every morning it is covered again. I have lots of big plants,
hibiscus, etc. with no problems. What can I do? I am afraid I will lose my plants as the leaves are being ruined.

  Sevin is usually not going to give any control on sucking insects--which white flies are. Sevin (or carbaryl) is a better choice for chewing insects like caterpillars and beetles. For white flies try Resmethrin, Orthene, Malathion or Permethrin. You may want to pick off the leaves that are heavily covered with insect eggs and destroy them. You need to get this problem under control before bringing these plants indoors for the winter. If you aren't certain you have them all, I would not bring them into a heated house. They could really take over then.

  (October) We live in Baxter County. This spring I bought a bougainvillea and planted it in a bed facing south, next to the house. It has grown very rapidly, but did not bloom. Should we transplant to a pot and move indoors and will it be safe to prune?

  The bougainvillea does need to be potted up and brought indoors for the winter. If it has really grown, then by all means prune it back to make room for it to fit indoors. Place it in a sunny room, and it can bloom indoors in the winter. One reason it may not have bloomed, is because it had so much room to grow roots, that the plants were in a growing phase versus a flowering phase. Bougainvillea tends to bloom best if it is slightly pot-bound.

  In the spring, I bought a beautiful bougainvillea plant. It had lots of blooms, but after they faded, it hasn’t bloomed again. It is in a hanging basket on my balcony. It gets full sun from noon on. I let it become moderately dry between waterings. Can you please tell me how to get it to bloom?

  You haven’t mentioned fertilization. Have you fertilized? Tropical blooming plants respond to frequent applications of a complete fertilizer. Especially when you grow them in containers, the frequency of watering, causes nutrients to be leached out of the soil. Fertilize monthly. You can use a complete fertilizer, or look for one for blooming plants.

  I have two bouganvillea plants. Could you please tell me how to care for them? When do I fertilize them and should I prune them? If so, how much and when? Also, could you tell me how to get new plants started by cuttings.

  Bouganvillea’s are wonderful tropical plants. Along with other overwintered tropicals, they usually look a little peaked by now, after having spent the winter indoors. If the plants are full and lush with plenty of new growth, they don’t require pruning. If they have gotten thin and twiggy this winter, prune them back now, and begin fertilization. Bouganvillea’s are heavy feeders, and should be fertilized monthly during the growing season. They do best in full sun. They root readily from hardwood cuttings planted in a sandy soil mix.

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