Bougainvillea x 'Yellow'
Bougainvillea, Paper Flower
Type Shrub, woody plant
Hardy range 9B to 11
Height 15' to 25' / 4.60m to 7.60m
Spread 25' to 35' / 7.60m to 10.60m
Growth rate Fast
Form Rounded and spreading or horizontal
Exposure Full sun
Persistence Evergreen
Hardy range 9B to 11
Height 15' to 25' / 4.60m to 7.60m
Spread 25' to 35' / 7.60m to 10.60m
Growth rate Fast
Form Rounded and spreading or horizontal
Exposure Full sun
Persistence Evergreen
Bloom Color Orange
Bloom Time Year 'round
The flowers are very showy.
Bloom Time Year 'round
The flowers are very showy.
Environment
This plant tolerates drought and a little salt.
This plant will grow in very dry soil.
Suitable soil is well-drained/loamy, sandy or clay.
The pH preference is an acidic to slightly alkaline (less than 6.8 to 7.7) soil.
This plant tolerates drought and a little salt.
This plant will grow in very dry soil.
Suitable soil is well-drained/loamy, sandy or clay.
The pH preference is an acidic to slightly alkaline (less than 6.8 to 7.7) soil.
Leaf Color Green and variegated
Fall Color No change in fall color
Fall Color No change in fall color
Culture Notes
An evergreen shrubby vine, Bougainvillea is popular for its long-lasting, colorful flower bracts which appear periodically throughout most of the year but are especially plentiful in winter and spring. Although flower bracts of purple or red are commonly seen, cultivars are now available in apricot, white, yellow, and orange. Pollen produces few if any allergies.
Bougainvillea can be trained to stand alone as a sprawling shrub or small tree, or allowed to grow naturally where it will quickly cover fences or climb up into trees. Planted on top of a wall, it will cascade over the side in great bouquets of color. With careful pruning, Bougainvillea can also be used as an espalier or in containers at poolside. It can also be trained as a standard with a single trunked tree. Dwarf cultivars are used as colorful ground covers. Plants can be grown in containers during the warm months in cooler areas of the country. They could be overwintered in a warm spot outside or in a sunny location inside, or replanted each year as an annual.
Growing best in full sun or light shade on well-drained, acid soils, Bougainvillea can tolerate hot, dry locations fairly well but flowers bountifully in full sun. Keep plants on the dry side for best performance. Chlorosis can be a problem in alkaline soil. Fertilizing with slow-release urea nitrogen fertilizers has proven the best method to help prevent this from occurring.
This is generally a low-maintenance plant. Plants in containers perform best with nitrogen applied as controlled release ureas. Too much or too little nitrogen inhibits flowering. Manganese, magnesium and iron deficiencies can occur; keep plants supplied with a complete, low nitrogen fertilizer.
Plants often loose many leaves following a flowering period. This usually precedes a new growth flush.
Bougainvillea spectabilis has purple-red flower bracts, thorny stems, leaves thick, large, and hairy. Bougainvillea glabra has smooth leaves, rose-red flower bracts, is less thorny, and is hardier.
Plants serve as butterfly nectar sources.
Planting and establishing shrubs
The most common cause of young plant failure is planting too deep. Plant the root ball no deeper than it was in the nursery. In most instances, the root flare zone (point where the top-most root in the root ball originates from the trunk) should be located just above the landscape soil surface. Sometimes plants come from the nursery with soil over the root flare. If there is soil over this area, scrape it off. The planting hole should be at least twice the width of the root ball, preferably wider. In all but exceptional circumstances where the soil is very poor, there is no need to incorporate anything into the backfill soil except the loosened soil that came out of the planting hole. Never place ANY soil over the root ball. If a row or grouping of plants is to be installed, excavating or loosening the soil in the entire bed and incorporating organic matter enhances root growth and establishment rate.
Weed suppression during establishment is essential. Apply a 3-inch thick layer of mulch around the plant to help control weed growth. Keep it at least 10 inches from the trunk. If you apply it over the root ball, apply only a one or two inch layer. This allows rainwater and air to easily enter the root ball and keeps the trunk dry. Placing mulch against the trunk or applying too thick a layer above the root ball can kill the plant by oxygen starvation, death of bark, stem and root diseases, prevention of hardening off for winter, vole and other rodent damage to the trunk, keeping soil too wet, or repelling water. Regular irrigation through the first growing season after planting encourages rapid root growth, which is essential for quick plant establishment.
An evergreen shrubby vine, Bougainvillea is popular for its long-lasting, colorful flower bracts which appear periodically throughout most of the year but are especially plentiful in winter and spring. Although flower bracts of purple or red are commonly seen, cultivars are now available in apricot, white, yellow, and orange. Pollen produces few if any allergies.
Bougainvillea can be trained to stand alone as a sprawling shrub or small tree, or allowed to grow naturally where it will quickly cover fences or climb up into trees. Planted on top of a wall, it will cascade over the side in great bouquets of color. With careful pruning, Bougainvillea can also be used as an espalier or in containers at poolside. It can also be trained as a standard with a single trunked tree. Dwarf cultivars are used as colorful ground covers. Plants can be grown in containers during the warm months in cooler areas of the country. They could be overwintered in a warm spot outside or in a sunny location inside, or replanted each year as an annual.
Growing best in full sun or light shade on well-drained, acid soils, Bougainvillea can tolerate hot, dry locations fairly well but flowers bountifully in full sun. Keep plants on the dry side for best performance. Chlorosis can be a problem in alkaline soil. Fertilizing with slow-release urea nitrogen fertilizers has proven the best method to help prevent this from occurring.
This is generally a low-maintenance plant. Plants in containers perform best with nitrogen applied as controlled release ureas. Too much or too little nitrogen inhibits flowering. Manganese, magnesium and iron deficiencies can occur; keep plants supplied with a complete, low nitrogen fertilizer.
Plants often loose many leaves following a flowering period. This usually precedes a new growth flush.
Bougainvillea spectabilis has purple-red flower bracts, thorny stems, leaves thick, large, and hairy. Bougainvillea glabra has smooth leaves, rose-red flower bracts, is less thorny, and is hardier.
Plants serve as butterfly nectar sources.
Planting and establishing shrubs
The most common cause of young plant failure is planting too deep. Plant the root ball no deeper than it was in the nursery. In most instances, the root flare zone (point where the top-most root in the root ball originates from the trunk) should be located just above the landscape soil surface. Sometimes plants come from the nursery with soil over the root flare. If there is soil over this area, scrape it off. The planting hole should be at least twice the width of the root ball, preferably wider. In all but exceptional circumstances where the soil is very poor, there is no need to incorporate anything into the backfill soil except the loosened soil that came out of the planting hole. Never place ANY soil over the root ball. If a row or grouping of plants is to be installed, excavating or loosening the soil in the entire bed and incorporating organic matter enhances root growth and establishment rate.
Weed suppression during establishment is essential. Apply a 3-inch thick layer of mulch around the plant to help control weed growth. Keep it at least 10 inches from the trunk. If you apply it over the root ball, apply only a one or two inch layer. This allows rainwater and air to easily enter the root ball and keeps the trunk dry. Placing mulch against the trunk or applying too thick a layer above the root ball can kill the plant by oxygen starvation, death of bark, stem and root diseases, prevention of hardening off for winter, vole and other rodent damage to the trunk, keeping soil too wet, or repelling water. Regular irrigation through the first growing season after planting encourages rapid root growth, which is essential for quick plant establishment.
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