Growing Tips

All about fertiliser’s

Bougainvilleas are gross feeders and do best when fertiliser elements are supplied in abundance. As Nitrogen promotes vegetative growth (often at the expense of flower/bract production), it is recommended not to use fertilisers too high in this element.

When you look on the packaging you will see an analysis of the fertiliser expressed as an NPK ratio. ‘N’ represents Nitrogen, ‘P” represents Phosphorus and ‘K’ represents potassium.

Fertilisers having an analysis of around 15N, 3P, 10K will give satisfactory growth and good flowering. Fertilisers high in Potassium (k, potash) will translate into abundant flower/bract production. These potash fertilisers are best applied when you see new bracts emerging and this will vary according to variety and location.

Controlled release fertilisers, ‘Osmocote’, ‘Nutricote’ etc provide a continuous supply of elements essential for plant growth because of their ease of use, are the most commonly used fertilisers by professional growers.

Choice of variety

This depends on where you want to grow the plant: in a large pot in a courtyard or pool surround, against a fence, for spilling over a rock wall, in a hanging basket, as a spectacular topiary specimen or a colourful formal or informal hedge.

Bougainvilleas come in a range of sizes from dwarf (1metre), medium (2-3 metres) and older varieties that will grow much larger.

Ask your local nurseryman for his or her advice.  We think that bougainvilleas in pots are a great way to go: You can easily keep them compact and manageable.

Pests

Bougainvilleas are colourful, tough and relatively pest free. In protected situations, plants may harbour mite populations. These mites suck on sap from juvenile leaves, which then exhibit deformity on maturity.

Mites are easily controlled with sulphur (as a wettable powder) or with a miticide as recommended by your local garden centre. Aphids will also attack new growth. Once again wettable sulphur at the recommended rate will easily control these pests.

Leaf drop is often caused by bacterial and/or fungal infections. These appeal as spots or angular marking on leaves. Keep the foliage dry (especially towards the evening), remove infected and dead leaves and spray with mancozeb or wettable sulphur.

Always follow the manufacturer’s recommendations and observe all safety precautions when spraying.

Pruining

The idea here is to get the plant into the shape you desire. Plants will grow vigorously in spring and summer, and generally slow up in autumn in preparation for winter dormancy (depending of course, on your location). When they are growing fast in the summer, fewer flowers/bracts are produced. Bracts are actually coloured leaves and the flowers are small white/cream in the centre of the bracts.

The main flowering season is in autumn through to late spring, but many varieties will have sport flowering all year round. With this information you are now ready to decide when is the best time to prune. If your variety is a seasonal flowerer and best in winter, then prune in sprind and after flowering and reduce foliage by 20-50%. Tip prune again until February and leave the plant to initiate bracts in autumn. If the variety flowers spasmodically throughout the year, in a sub-tropical climate you can prune almost any time without affecting flowering.

Your Red Dragon™ Bougainvilleas will flower most of the year, so when the plant needs some attention with secateurs, do it. You will always have some flowers present and these are a small sacrifice for the future flower production. Remember that when you prune, more branches are created and these branches give rise to even more flowers/bracts.

Soil

An open free draining area is probably best – however, Bougainvilleas grow in sandy soils and clay soils just a well. A pH of 5-7 should be ideal.

In the garden, opending the soil up to a depth of 400mm will give your plant’s roots a good start. Avoid creating depressions in heavy clay soils because when it rains, the hole will fill with water and possibly drown the plant. A better solution is to make a mound and plant into that.

If however you are planting into pots, and open mixture is recommended. You can buy propriety potting mixes comprising of bark chips and sand or other local components. These mixes can be expensive and rarely supply the nutrients to feed your plants.

Mixing your own media is rewarding and inexpensive! Just combine aged (6 months) bark ‘fines’ 80% and course sand 20%. Substitutions could be leaf litter and compost.

Do not use sawdust as it ties up nitrogen as it decomposes and your plants will starve. Sawdust may also contain tannins that may interfere with normal plant growth.

Avoid using material that break down too quickly: your soil will slump, compaction will ensure and drainage will be compromised.

The right placement

Bougainvilleas must have maximum sunlight for best flowering! So avoid shady positions. Hanging baskets also need to be in a full sun position. While bougainvilleas are tough and will endure fairly harsh conditions, they would prefer not to be blown about.

So try and avoid a wind tunnel situation and planting where they have to constantly endure strong prevailing breezes. Sunny courtyards are excellent!

Bougainvilleas cope well with a variety of sites; beach locations with salt laden winds, rocky soils, polluted positions, in sand, amongst trees, all except waterlogged sites.

Water

Don’t drown it! Your plants will grow if given adequate water and then will flower best if stressed a little. So not too much, and not too little! Water in the morning only as this gives the plant time to dry off before nightfall. Wet leaves are favoured by fungal spores, so minimise the risk of infection by watering before midday, especially in the winter months. If you are growing in pots, then watering becomes more important. Firstly ensure there is drainage in the base of the pot.

Next, remember to water your new plant daily for the 1st week, every 2nd day for the 2nd week and thereafter. Test to see if the potting mix is just moist (remember that it will be wetter as you move deeper in the pot). Just moist is just right!Bougainvilleas are fairly drought resistant and can endure and survive quite dry conditions. Local conditions will dictate just how frequently you should water and you will soon develop a watering schedule.

Potting mixes can repel water (hydrophobic) and are sometimes hard to re-wet. When you water, the moisture may run off and disappear down the sides of the container, leaving the newly potted plant dry. The solution is to ‘pulse’ water by giving the mix a brief soak and retuning shortly to repeat. Do this until you can see the water ‘wicking’ through the profile. Do not allow the top to dry out in the future! Water retentive crystals and wetting agents can assist greatly when incorporated into the mix. Drying out can set back your plant by months, so keep checking until established.