Tuesday, April 1, 2008

A Tropical Treasure

A South American native, Bougainvillea puts on quite a show for months on end. I have always loved the many colors of this particular specimen. The dark salmon bracts fade to pale pink as they age. After much looking, I can't decide which variety I think it is . My best two guesses are Bougainvillea Buttiana 'Temple Fire' or Bougainvillea 'Rosenka'. If I had to choose the most descriptive name, it would definitely be 'Temple Fire'.

When I purchased this particular plant it was viney and trained to a small trellis. In the past five years, I have come to see that it's natural form is actually bushy and smallish (small for a bougainvillea, that is).
Bougainvillea is propogated by stem cuttings taken in the winter or spring. It blooms on new growth so feel free to trim away after a flush of blooms. Hardy to 25 degrees, bougainvillea is a great choice in Deep South Texas.

7 comments:

Priscilla George said...

Wonderful Bougainvillea. I am awaiting for mine to really take off. Yours is a beautiful color.

Anonymous said...

I love your Bougainvillea. It has two colours hasn't it? I plant them also in pots. The colours are amazing they greet you from afar.

Mary Beth said...

Vanillalotus - and bougainvillea does really well in pots! I guess because it likes to dry out between waterings . . .

Trudi - I have never seen one that has such distinctly different colors. Can you grow them both in the ground and in pots?

Catherine said...

A tropical treasure indeed! Wow that is a gorgeous bougainvillea ~what fantastic colors!! That salmon & pale pink ~stunning!! Wow I would love to have a cutting of that :D
You have a great blog, I am enjoying my first visit here in your paradise!
Cat

Aiyana said...

That is a great color. My 'Barbara Karst' bougainvillea is at its very best right now--so heavy with bracts it is drooping. I love them, but they are so messy!
Aiyana

Anonymous said...

My bougainvillea starts dark pink, then fades to pink and then to orange - so I think it might be the Temple Fire - does that sound right?

Mary Beth said...

Mandi - My guess would be Temple Fire - but I don't know much about the different bougainvillea cultivars. I just know that they are knock-outs!