Bougainvillea x buttiana 'Barbara Karst'

Common name: Hybrid bougainvillea

Description

It is a variety of bouganvillea whose bracts take on a very intense bright fuchsia color. Bougainvilleas are climbing plants highly prized for their colors to decorate walls, bars and fences.

They are plants with simple, alternate, oval-accumulated and semi-persistent foliage of about 3 to 12 cm in length and about 2 or 6 cm in width, their stems are up to 12 m long and they are merely climbers with spines under the leaves with which they have to be manipulated with extreme care.

The flowers of the Bougainvillea x buttiana 'Barbara Karst' are actually inflorescences, since these are composed of three white bracts inside which are three yellowish-white and tubular flowers, appearing practically all year round.

Culture

Bougainvillea is not a demanding plant in terms of care, it is practically not necessary to water it as we would any other plant, as it is adapted to dry climates, so it is widely used in xerophytic gardening and in Mediterranean gardens. It must be placed in a place exposed to the sun, since otherwise it does not bloom with the same intensity. It is also necessary to avoid fertilizing it with a nitrogen fertilizer, as then it develops more leaves and reduces the number of flowers. The most important thing in this plant is pruning, since it tends to grow excessively, so it is necessary to eliminate vigorous, dry or damaged stems. In general, it supports any type of pruning and its flowering is enhanced with severe pruning, since it stimulates the formation of new stems (it is in the new stems that the flower appears).

Multiplication

This plant can be multiplied by woody cuttings (during the winter period, although it is advisable to keep them at a temperature of 20ºC), tender or semi-woody cuttings (during spring and summer) or by air layering (in spring).

Applications

Its use in gardening is very widespread, as it is one of the most widely used climbing plants to upholster embankments, entangle fences or cover the walls of a wall.
It is also a plant suitable for growing in pots on sunny terraces due to its great adaptability.