Not just in movies, Bougainvillea is a hit with home gardens in Kerala too

The tropical bougainvillea is a beautiful ornamental plant that blooms in bunches of heartwarming bright hues. They are incredibly beautiful, elevating the overall look of your garden and lighting up the ambiance of the premises where it sprawls. Bougainvillea could also be used for grafting to have multicoloured flowers on the same plant, to make bonsai or shape them into desired patterns.

Besides the regular fuchsia and white flowers, bougainvillea varieties that produce marvellous light blue, yellow, orange, red and violet flowers too are available. The Lola variety that produces beautiful lilac flowers are truly enchanting. This variety blooms throughout the year, even during the monsoon.

There is a significant difference between the local varieties of bougainvillea and the new ones. While the local varieties bloom 2 to 3 times in a year, the new varieties produce flowers at least 6 to 7 times. Besides, thorns are absent in many of the new varieties. Their stems are thinner and may look like vines. These varieties could either be spread as vines or trimmed as shrubs. Bougainvillea flowers bloom multiple times, especially between October and May, after the monsoon season. Meanwhile, no other plant or shrub can spread a magical shower of beautiful colours on your parched terrace or garden during the summer.

Bougainvillea should ideally be grown at a spot that receives good sunlight for at least 5 to 6 hours. Pruning the stem is essential for bougainvillea as it helps the plant to bloom in abundance. Besides, bougainvillea could be grown in pots too as shrubs. The stems should be pruned well by the end of May before the rains begin. The new stems that appear in the monsoon would then bloom amazingly.

Collecting various varieties and colours of bougainvillea has become the hobby of many plant enthusiasts. Easy maintenance, availability and its ability to bloom throughout the year make bougainvillea one of the most preferred ornamental plants for gardens. The local varieties are available from Rs 100 onwards while the modern and special ones cost up to Rs 2000.

Information courtesy: Prof. Jacob Varghese Kunthara, Associate Professor (retd), Department of Botany, Bharat Matha College, Thrikkakara.