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Bougainvillea
Bougainvillea species and cultivars
Family: Nyctaginaceae
Brilliant clolour displays over a long season, toughness and and heat tolerance make Bougainvillea ideal for sunny warm-climate gardens. With appropriate cultivar selection and management techniques, Bougainvillea can be grown in a variety of ways including as container specimens, hedges, standards and, of course, as climbers. Thorns are usually a problem, though, so take care with placement and maintenance.
A number of dwarf cultivars of Bougainvillea suitable for containers or small gardens are now on the market, which means that most Queenslanders will be able to find a spot for a Bougainvillea or twenty. Look out for these compact varieties and other Bougainvillea cultivars in your local garden centre.
While the vivid purples, oranges and hot pinks of bougainvillea are synonymous with tropical gardens, the softer pastels and whites could readily be incorporated into a more cottage-style garden in hot climates as substitutes for temperate shrubs, climbers or even perennials (kept compact).
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Nurseries supplying Bougainvillea to Qld
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May include online retailers and mail order suppliers.
If you live in any of the tropical or subtropical regions of Qld, you're likely to find a reasonable selection at local garden centres.
Bougainvillea nurseries, breeders and distributors servicing the retail market in Qld are are invited to advertise on this page. More information about advertising here.
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More Information
Is there a thornless Bougainvillea?
As far as I can determine, there is no Bougainvillea which is 100% thornless. Occasionally one reads of a thornless variety, only to read elsewhere that it does produce some thorns, or reduced thorns.
B. arborea, a species introduced into the US trade in the 1990s, is possibly the closest thing to a thornless Bougainvillea. While commonly referred to as such, even it can produce thorns on juvenille growth, apparently (see notes in the Virtual Tour of the AOS Garden). This species is also interesting as it's said to have a more tree-like habit of growth than most Bougainvilleas, plus fragrant flowers. Unfortunately, I don't know of any nurseries selling this plant in Australia as yet (if you do, please get in touch!).
Meanwhile, dwarf varieties readily available on the market in Qld tend to have very small thorns. With a little common sense, they can be used in a variety of landscaping applications.
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More Links
Queensland
International
The following links are for general information and further research - some species or cultivars may be unavailable in Australia
Bougainvillea (Paper Flower) Pictures of Bougainvillea being cultivated in a variety of ways in Thailand and Vietnam (at www.flowerpictures.net)
Rasberry Ice Part of the Higher Ground website, Texas USA. To help their Bougainvillea 'Rasberry Ice' survive the Texan winter, these gardeners dig it up every year!
General botany, unusual species
Pacific flora database of the National Tropical Botanical Garden, USA. Select Bougainvillea arborea from the "Choose A Plant" menu
Monte Negro Bougainvillea spinosa. Flora y Vegetacion de la Patagonia, Argentina
Nyctaginaceae Universidad Nacional del Nordeste, Argentina. Students of horticulture who don't speak Spanish may nevertheless derive some useful information from this document (PDF)
Possible Misspellings: Boganvillea, Bouganvillea, Boganvillia, Bouganvillia. In older texts it may be spelled Bougainvillaea.
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