The Bougainvillea is a very resilient species to work with. This is one of my indoor plants. I got this one from a cutting back in 1983, and has survived may abuses along the way. The one thing that is consistent with this tree is that it mostly dies off in winter, or goes into a slow / no grow mode. Over the past week or so it has shown some signs of life again and is budding out. It needs a little bit of shaping and a transplant, but I may leave it for another year.
The cool thing is that spring is on the way, one of my oldest trees its telling me the days are getting longer!!
In the past it has looked like this. The flowers last for a long time and when I get it outside the color of the flowers is absolutely fantastic.
Once this plant is fully grown for the year, and I hope to get many flowers, I will post up how it looks.
Things I like about Bougainvillea:
- It is tough and can stand major trimming.
- Dryness resistant, incase of forgetful watering.
- Flowers for a long time, and also looks very good while flowering.
- Leaves can be made to be small, with heavy trimming.
- The bark gets very rough and old looking after some years.
Things I do not like about Bougainvillea:
- Brittle roots. They are hard to repot without doing a lot of damage. One has to be extra careful while repotting to avoid breaking too many roots.
- That in winter, sometimes it becomes nothing but a leafless tree.
The trunk and branches have a very whimsical shape, and good taper. Quite agree the bark makes the tree look very aged. Do you ever clean the bark?
It looks a bit stained at the base, possibly from the fertilizer. It might protect the wood if you wash it gently with a toothbrush and water.
I do not know the science, but I think the wood is healthiest if it isn't constantly wet. Dirty wood can rot easier and receives less direct sunlight. Keeping the wood clean after the rain/cold season I believe allows the tree to regulate moisture in the air efficiently for optimal health. Any opinions on this?
Yes, the base is stained, mostly from just being in the same pot for many years I would guess. I do not wash it or try to remove the staining. I should try to place it in something more tractional.
I tend to like exposed root as you will see in some of my other trees. Root over rock is one of my fav styles. This tree has been raised once and much of the bottom was under dirt for unknow number of years. This could also be the cause of the coloring.
Since I am in the north where 5-6 months are frozen outside, my indoor plants suffer from very dry conditions. The house gets lower than 25% humidity. Moisture does not stay on the surface of anything for very long.
I will give it a try, see if the color can be removed or lightened. Though a good outdoor stint will tend to bleach it some.
Yeah I also struggle when forced to bring my outdoor trees and plants inside. Terrariums work well, but often too small for bonsai trees, and take up a ton of space. Using a spongey moss soil mix also helps maintain moisture levels and humidies the nearby air, necessary for health. Only problem with organic soils is the roots will not develop correctly for bonsai.
Always learning from my own mistakes. Good luck.
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Yes, the base is stained, mostly from just being in the same pot for many years I would guess. I do not wash it or try to remove the staining. I should try to place it in something more tractional.
I tend to like exposed root as you will see in some of my other trees. Root over rock is one of my fav styles. This tree has been raised once and much of the bottom was under dirt for unknow number of years. This could also be the cause of the coloring.
Since I am in the north where 5-6 months are frozen outside, my indoor plants suffer from very dry conditions. The house gets lower than 25% humidity. Moisture does not stay on the surface of anything for very long.
I will give it a try, see if the color can be removed or lightened. Though a good outdoor stint will tend to bleach it some.