Some grow this plant in … Another beauty, with two-toned bracts, is called 'Majik'. Yes. The vine-y shrub typically blooms three times a year once established, often going dormant and losing its leaves, bracts, and flowers during the cooler winter … Evergreen: Evergreen vines keep their foliage over the winter months (individual leaves do get replaced over time, but you don’t run into wholesale or dramatic shedding time). There are two ways to keep a bougainvillea alive indoors over the winter: keeping it growing as a houseplant or forcing it into dormancy. Strangely it flowers profusely indoors once, about January, and the not at all for the rest of the year. Bougainvillea need very bright light (2,500 fc) and do well in full sun. Bougainvillea need very bright light (2,500 fc) and do well under high shade or in full sun. In temperate regions, winter light is rarely sufficient for its taste. Bougainvillée en dormance. Make sure you bring your bougainvillea indoors before frost hits. Still, they’ll adapt to it if necessary. Right now it’s mid-January & the foliage is looking a bit “worn” on my bougies. The bougainvillea was named in honor of Count Louis-Antoine de Bougainville, an 18th century French aristocrat, navigator and explorer. The loss of leaves may actually result in new growth and flowering as it recovers. However, if a young plant has been raised in a warm, humid climate or a greenhouse, bougainvillea flower drop can happen even in Zone 9. I was told that I could keep it indoors in the winter, but how? We seek to improve the lives of New Mexicans, the nation, and the world through research, teaching, and extension. Send your gardening questions to: Yard and Garden, ATTN: Dr.
Follow the directions on the brand of fertilizer you have chosen. If you want to repot, spring is also the right season. It requires at least 6 hours of sun every day to develop and thrive. The plant goes dormant in the winter; it remains alive, but it doesn't need leaves to gain nutrients from the sun. In late fall, I move them to a closed terrace, unheated, where the medium temp in winter is 8-10 degrees Celsius but sometimes as low as 3 (but never below 0). As quickly as one day or up to one week after the frost, it is normal for all the bougainvillea leaves and bracts to drop. I live in Ottawa, Canada, so lots of frost..and early. During the winter, bougainvilleas will go dormant and shed their leaves, but they will remain very much alive if placed in a garage or semi- protected area where … The most common reason for leaf loss in bougainvillea plants is over watering. Your goal during the fall and winter is just to keep your bougainvillea alive, not to stimulate growth, so water very modestly, letting the soil dry out considerably before watering again. True enough, you’ll read that it’s able to tolerate some frost, but that’s when it’s growing in the ground … and even then, the damage can be severe. Photo : adrien0, Pixabay. You may fertilize with each watering, or once a month, depending on the directions. These plants will freeze to the ground when temperatures drop to 30 degrees Fahrenheit (-1 C.) but provided it doesn’t get colder, they usually spring right back when warmer weather appears. Water only enough so that the root ball doesn’t dry out completely, perhaps once or twice a month. State University's Cooperative Extension Service. It sounds like the latter was the cause, and it's now recovered with leaves and flowers. The loss of leaves may actually result in new growth and flowering as it recovers. Move it into a dark location above freezing until the following spring. Photo : jardinierparesseux.com. When new growth has developed, you can also begin fertilizing with a flowering houseplant fertilizer. It has been my experience that bougainvilleas will lose their leaves and look dead sometimes. Great article. You’ll see giant specimens covering entire walls in Mediterranean and tropical climates, but also potted bougainvilleas of a much smaller size (thanks to judicious pruning) sold in pots and baskets as a summer annual in colder areas. The idea at this point is to give it a head start on summer. Hi Tonie Bougainvillea will require winter protection if temperatures fall below 32 degrees in your area. Remember that bougainvilleas really aren’t good houseplants, that you only bring them indoors to keep them alive until the following summer. I kept my bougainvillea outdoors for the summer and brought it in before the temperatures dropped.