Bougainvillea is a plant that truly needs to be seen to be believed. With its stunning flowers in bright colors and bold shapes, it’s impossible to miss when in full bloom. While bougainvillea plant care isn’t particularly difficult, there are key things you should know to ensure your plant thrives.
At Joy Us Garden, bougainvillea care is a popular topic we cover frequently! Having grown it in two very different climates—Santa Barbara, CA, and Tucson, AZ—I’m excited to share my experiences and insights with you.
I’ve received many questions about growing this vibrant flowering plant, so here is my comprehensive care guide. Be sure to stick around until the end because I answer some commonly asked questions.
Note: This was published on 12/18/2019. It was updated on 8/5/2024.
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Table of Contents
Bougainvillea Plant Care Growing Guides
How to Care For & Grow Bougainvillea
How to Plant Bougainvillea in Pots
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Bougainvillea Plant Care Growing Guides
Bougainvillea isn’t a plant for colder climates. It’s hardy in USDA zones 9 through 11, with optimal growth in zones 10 and 11. Below are our top guides for growing bougainvillea, rounded up in one place. We hope you find this helpful!
How to Care For & Grow Bougainvillea
If you live in a climate with a long growing season and mild winters and want an (almost) year-round floral fiesta, then bougainvillea is the plant for you. Depending on the variety, it can be grown on a trellis or over an arbor, against a building or fence, in containers, as a hedge or ground cover, in tree form, and as a bonsai. Here, I’m sharing care and growing tips for bougainvillea, a plant I have a lot of experience with.
A large red/pink bougainvillea in full bloom grows up & over an archway.
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How to Plant Bougainvillea in Pots
I’ve done multiple posts and videos on all aspects of growing bougainvillea—or so I thought! I know many of you are curious about bougainvilleas in containers, and I’ve seen many of them growing in pots over the years. This is all about planting bougainvillea in pots, including the soil mix to use, the type of bougainvillea to plant, the pot size required, the steps to take, and a key thing to know.
A variegated bougainvillea grows in a tall blue pot next to red lantana.
Bougainvillea Care in Pots
The answer to the question I often get: “Does bougainvillea grow well in pots?” is yes, with proper care! Here, you can learn more about growing bougainvillea in pots. There are key things you need to know if you’re going to grow bougainvillea successfully in containers, and they’re covered here.
A bougainvillea grows outdoors in a teal pot.
How to Plant Bougainvillea
Planting bougainvillea isn’t too much different than planting any other shrub or vine except for one key factor. If you don’t do this one thing, it’s a crapshoot whether your bougainvillea will do well or even survive. The two most important things to know are that bougainvillea doesn’t like to have its roots disturbed, and it requires soil with good drainage.
Close up of bougainvilleas flowers in pink & orange.
What is Eating My Bougainvillea Leaves?
Are you seeing damage on your bougainvillea leaves? Like something’s been chomping and munching away? I’m not talking little nibbles here and there but some serious feasting. I’ll show you what it might be so you can identify three kinds of pests that commonly infest bougainvillea and the steps to take.
Close up of a bougainvillea leaf with a big chomp taken out of it.
Bougainvillea Winter Care
For an extravaganza of color 8+ months out of the year, bougainvillea is hard to compete with. It stops blooming when the weather turns cool because it needs to rest before the show starts again. If you want your bougainvillea to thrive in the warmer seasons, there are a few things to know about bougainvillea winter care in the winter months.
A bougainvillea red-rose Barbara Karst in full bloom.
Why is My Bougainvillea Dropping Yellow Leaves?
Let’s be honest here: bougainvillea is not a plant I grew up with. I thought it was some exotic plant until I moved to Santa Barbara 10 years ago where it’s found growing in some form or color on every block. It’s ubiquitous, I tell you, yet in my opinion, it’s a beautiful “weed.” I had no experience growing bougainvillea until I bought a house with three of them on the property.
The first winter, they suddenly started losing leaves, so I had to ask the question: Why are my bougainvilleas dropping lots of yellow leaves? I soon found out about leaf drop and share what I learned here.
Close up of bougainvillea branches with some buds & a few yellow leaves.
Answering Your Questions About Bougainvillea
This is part of a monthly series listing the top questions we get asked about popular plants. Here, we’re answering the most commonly asked questions about bougainvillea, including flowering, pruning, training, and much more.
Bougainvillea Pruning Tips
Bougainvillea is a vigorous grower and needs pruning throughout the year. How often and to what extent you prune the plant depends on where you live, what shape or form it’s growing in now, and what shape you want it to take on. I’ll tell you from experience: bougainvillea isn’t hard to shape, but it can take some work. And be careful of those sharp thorns!
A pinkish purple bougainvillea grows in an arch form over a garage.
A Bougainvillea Tutorial
With its vibrant and abundant blooms, bougainvillea captivates the hearts of gardeners and plant enthusiasts worldwide. Its popularity is evident, as bougainvillea-related posts consistently rank among the top on our website.
Like any plant, bougainvillea has specific requirements and can present challenges. Over the years, we’ve received hundreds of questions about how to grow and care for it. This overwhelming interest was the inspiration to create this digital guide to share my knowledge and experiences caring for this plant. By bringing together all the essential information in one place, the aim is to make growing and mastering bougainvillea enjoyable and rewarding for everyone.
Growing Bougainvillea Successfully
This 21-page ebook is designed to be a valuable resource for anyone looking to grow bougainvillea successfully. This concise, comprehensive guide is packed with useful tips and guidance to help your bougainvillea thrive.
A collage with 3 different colors of bougainvillea the text reads bougainvillea plant care everything you need to know.
Bougainvillea Plant Care FAQs
A hummingbird drinks off a flower of a pink bougainvillea in full bloom.
In conclusion, providing proper bougainvillea plant care will transform it into a stunning centerpiece in your garden. Even outside of tropical climates, with the right attention, you can enjoy the show-stopping blooms in vivid colors that make bougainvillea such a great addition to any landscape. Follow these tips, and you’ll enjoy the stunning bougainvillea blooms for years to come.
