Beautiful Bougs

SERIES 33 | Episode 12

Is there a plant more synonymous with the subtropics than the bougainvillea? South American in origin, they’ve found their way into gardens around the world and although they will grow in cooler climes, they’re at their absolute lurid best under a Queensland sun.

Jerry says “Flowering bougainvillea have etched themselves into my memories: of sunny holidays (and getting away from gloomy London), and of faraway places.

Their brilliant colours now remind me of home - they're at their brightest against the clear blue skies of the cool seasons in subtropical Brisbane.”

And perhaps nowhere will you find a better display of these subtropical show-offs than the specially designed architectural arbour in Brisbane’s southbank parklands, constructed in the year 2000. Who better to show Jerry around than Paul Hoffman, the operation and horticulture manager responsible for overseeing the upkeep of this revered inner-city landmark.

What better place to learn all there is to know about growing these racy plants?

Over 400 Bougainvillea magnifica line the arbour, a variety chosen by Paul for it’s vigour and robustness. It’s a spiny “classic” variety, not suited for smaller spaces.

The arbour is pruned constantly from end to end to maintain the clipped form. An organic fertiliser is applied 3 times a year, to help with flowering. Paul says bougs flower on new growth, so time your pruning to allow for flowering.

When it comes to feeding bougainvilleas avoid overfeeding with nitrogen (ie manures), as it will produce lots of leafy growth at the expense of flowers. The key ingredient is potassium for flower formation, so look for slow-release fertilisers with a higher content of this ingredient

Bougainvillea is vigorous, vining climber that's evergreen in warm climates, but deciduous in cool to cold climates. You’ll find flowering cultivars in shades of red, orange, pink, white, gold and purple. But these colours aren’t the true flower, they’re bracts; modified leaves hiding the true flower-a small white trumpet hidden within.

Cuttings

Bougainvilleas are widely cultivated, with a dazzling array of different tropical shades available. But many cultivars are the work of backyard breeders and aren’t widely commercially available. If you spy a particularly fetching boug in a neighbour or friends garden, why not ask for a cutting? It may be a heritage variety, like some of the ones at this park. Indeed, many bougainvillea cultivars are sterile to propagating and this method is the only way to make more. Jerry’s got special permission to take material from this park, but you can do the same with a boug from a friends or neighbours place you like the look of.

Jerry says to watch out for paper wasp nests hiding in boug thickets. Use a long-armed pruner to relocate the nest if necessary.

Bougainvillea cuttings root readily when they are taken from ripe wood, which feels firm and looks greyish brown, with some old and some new wood present. Cuttings strike all year-round in the tropics, rooting in about four weeks. In southern Australia, cuttings are best taken in summer.

• Cuttings should be about the length and thickness of a pencil.
• Using a knife, trim away the bark on the bottom end to expose the cambium layer.
• Insert the cuttings two-thirds of their length into washed river sand in a terracotta pot
• Water sparingly (keep consistently damp, not wet or not dry) and watch them grow.

Jerry introduces us to Jan Iredell, a renowned bougainvillea collector and breeder. Her garden has been built over 48 years, and is covered in a dazzling array of over 100 bougainvillea, many sourced from collecting trips overseas. Her recommendations for smaller bougs to try include:

• Bougainvillea ‘Donya’
• Bougainvillea ‘Wabag’
• Bougainvillea ‘Siggi’
• Bougainvillea ‘Pedro’
• Bougainvillea ‘Sunrise’

Her advice to get the best results is to “prune and feed”. She says to keep them in pots, where they can be virtually ignored, and they won’t misbehave. It controls their growth habit. “A good pair of snippers, keep them in a pot and you can have colour year-round”.

Bougainvilleas are stalwarts for the tropical aesthetic we all crave. They’re also surprisingly tough and adaptable and can be fit into any garden. Easy to grow and easier to propagate, why not find some room for the Hawaiian shirts of the plant world?

* Check before planting: this may be an environmental weed in your area

Filmed on Turrbal & Yuggera Country | Brisbane, Qld