Bougainvillea Bad Luck

[thetacker]

Living on the water in the climate of Sarasota, Florida, I should be in bougainvillea heaven, but it's been more like the other place. I am having just miserable luck with mine, no matter how many specimens I buy and which care regimen I try.

The plants are potted (nursery's own pots and soil) and are on a south- facing balcony, where they get sun most of the day. Temperatures range from 70-95 in daytime, depending on season. They are never exposed to frost. They receive a boungainvillea fertilizer weekly, as prescribed, and they get watered at that time only.

What happens invariably is that they start out from the local nursery (outside plants) in full bloom and look great. Then, after the first blooming they get less and less blooms and less and less leaves until finally various arms of the plants die or maintain a subsistence level with few leaves and no blooms.

Over the years, I have tried allowing them to dry out for 2-3 weeks between waterings, have tried west walls and east walls, and each time the results have been similar.

If anybody has some new ideas, I would welcome them, as I love bougainvillea and would enjoy making them thrive on our home's south balcony.

Thanks.

[JXStern]

Do any of your neighbors have successful bougs?

They're big plants, are not entirely happy in pots, and may not like being right on the water.

For anything this side of a cactus in a pot, if it's in the full sun, I'd think it needs water more than once a week. You can get a moisture meter and see how things are going. Make sure the pot doesn't get hot in the sun, too, even with moist soil.

Balconys are tough environments, too much wind. You might try a little more protection and shade, too.

J.

[thetacker]

Thanks for reply.

There are lots of B's all around this area, both potted and in ground. The older, larger well establishe dplants seem, especially, to thrive.

You may be on to something with the watering, as I have a B on the back pool deck, and it gets misted by sprayers every other day, and it seems happier, if not going bonkers.

I'll make some adjustments.

[meg]

replying to thetacker, meg wrote: Bougainvillea is my favorite plant and flower, having grown up in a tropical climate. Now I'm in the North and have tried to keep one going these past few years. Every now and then when I least expect - it issues forth a few blossoms. I think that 1. it really doesn't like being potted. 2. Bougainvillea thrives in warm, dry soil and hot weather - most of all -- outdoors. If your balcony is more or less outside and you can give your plant almost drought like/tropical conditions, it might do well. But I'm going to stop expecting mine to thrive inside potted. It wants to take root and spread.

[Boron Elgar]

I keep several of them potted. They summer outside on the deck and over winter in my kitchen. Two are in bloom right now, though not as vigorously as they will do in summer.