Bougainvillea
Bougainvillea
Months of vivid colour from papery bracts on a vigorous, heat-loving climber that shrugs off drought, salt and wind. Give it full sun, sharp drainage and something sturdy to climb, and mind the thorns near paths.
- Mature size
- 10 × 10 ft
- 3 × 3 m, tall × wide
- Hardiness
- Zones 9b–11b
- USDA
- Sun
- Full sun
- Water
- Dry to medium
- Blooms
- Mar–Nov
Bougainvillea at its mature size
A mature Bougainvillea grows to about 10 ft tall and 10 ft wide, taller than most people.
Drawn to scale beside a 5 ft 9 in person. With VeraScape, you see it at this size in your own yard.
Typical mature size, unpruned. Sources: NC State Extension, University of Hawaiʻi CTAHR.
Through the year
What Bougainvillea looks like month by month in a typical zone 6–7 garden.
In leaf · Dec–Feb
Small green leaves with only a few bracts.
In flower · Mar–Nov
Masses of vivid magenta-pink papery bracts.
Growing Bougainvillea
- Grows well in
- The Southeast, California, and the desert Southwest.
- Growth rate
- Fast
- Good for
- Privacy screen, hedge, climber, drought tolerant, and fast growing
- Leaves
- Evergreen
- Native to
- South America
Spacing for a hedge
VeraScape spaces plants so their grown canopies just touch. For Bougainvillea, that’s about 10 ft apart, center to center.
Place a row in your own yard and VeraScape spaces them at their mature width, so you can see whether they’ll crowd the walk.
See Bougainvillea in your yard before you dig
Visualize it at its true size, alongside the rest of your design.