BOUGAINVILLEA in Winter

[penumbra]

I accumulated more tropicals this year than I had ever planed to. I have about 7 bougainvillea that I will need to winter over here in zone 6. I have searched the web and come up with 2 methods of doing so.
One is to force dormancy and store in a cool area, no fertilizer, little water, light not necessary.
The other is to keep it like a houseplant with bright light, little water and no fertilizer.
There may be a middle ground as well but I am curious what others are doing.
While keeping it dormant has a lot of appeal, it may not be the best for me because it will be hard to store at a cool enough temperature while still above freezing. About 55 to 60 degrees is the coolest I can maintain right now. I do have tons of lighting and holding space for tropicals.
What do you other bougie people do?
Thanks.

 

[atlarsenal]

I keep mine under the lights with my other tropicals and they do great. I have to end up pruning them 2 or 3 times through the winter.

 

[Cadillactaste]

I kept mine in my sunroom. Without a grow light they got leggy. So spring when they go out I waisted time by cutting back. To only be able to use spring/summer growth. Now I have tight internodes and fertilize in winter. You can see the room it was in...was full of light.

 

[penumbra]

You have a beautiful sunroom. I wish I had the space and money to have one. I would live in there all winter in a hammock.
Do I understand that you grew them actively all winter and fertilized them as well?

 

[Cadillactaste]

You have a beautiful sunroom. I wish I had the space and money to have one. I would live in there all winter in a hammock.
Do I understand that you grew them actively all winter and fertilized them as well?

Thank you! My son lives out there as do my fur pups. I have my morning coffee out there now that mornings are in the 40's because of lake front microclimate.

They grew all winter yes. Without grow lights the bougie got leggy. And I was focused on development. So the grow lights helped by not waisting removal of winter growth. Shortening the internodes like when outside.
Then...


And now...sitting on lower shelf of the bench.

 

[Paul G]

Thank you! My son lives out there as do my fur pups. I have my morning coffee out there now that mornings are in the 40's because of lake front microclimate.

They grew all winter yes. Without grow lights the bougie got leggy. And I was focused on development. So the grow lights helped by not waisting removal of winter growth. Shortening the internodes like when outside.
Then...
View attachment 261129

And now...sitting on lower shelf of the bench.
View attachment 261128

I love when you post your tropicals

 

[Cadillactaste]

I love when you post your tropicals

Thanks...don't have very many. but love the ones I do have.

 

[Carol 83]

I keep mine in front of my southern exposure patio doors, with additional grow lights. They get pissy, when first brought in, throwing their bracts and leaves to the ground with disgust. But they bounce back fairly quickly. Just be very sparing with the water, a hard lesson I have learned.

 

[Leo in N E Illinois]

Mine live under T5 Fluorescent lights in the basement. It usually starts another blooming cycle in February. It is shohin, less than 8 inches wide and 4 inches tall if you leave out the strange pot.

 

[penumbra]

Wow Leo. That pot is a beauty that looks great with that flower.
I just brought in 4 of my bougies in training and put them under t-5 s. I know its still a bit early and they could have stayed out, but you make hay when its not raining. I have two bougies that are pretty large that I will cut way back and I am hoping to root the cuttings.

 

[Hartinez]

I bring mine in the house and place in a southern facing windows. As @Carol 83 said, they tend to drop leaves fairly quick. Mine doesnt flush through right away though. I get buds and tiny, what appear to be attempts at leaves and that’s about it all winter. When mine goes back out it takes a bit to be happy, but when it gets there it grows like mad.
Current shot. These guy wires were applied recently. I had on other pink pixie, but I gave it to my momma.

Here it is in 2017

 

[Carol 83]

Mine live under T5 Fluorescent lights in the basement. It usually starts another blooming cycle in February. It is shohin, less than 8 inches wide and 4 inches tall if you leave out the strange pot.

Is that a Peach Pixie? I have one that color, that is just starting to bloom.

 

[leatherback]

Mine go in the livingroom behind a southern window. I let them grow (they grow spider mites, wholly aphids and scale). Come spring it is cut back and outside again.

 

[Joe Dupre']

Pretty mild here, so I put mine next to a south window in my workshop. I run a small heater to just keep the chill off. We might get 5 days below freezing.

 

[penumbra]

Curious, no one has mentioned forced dormancy. According to literature this is a good method. Additionally there would be a lot less chance of insect attack.

 

[Hartinez]

Curious, no one has mentioned forced dormancy. According to literature this is a good method. Additionally there would be a lot less chance of insect attack.

I used to keep mine in an Unheated back room, but I felt like it woke up much slower and with less vigor come spring. In all honesty, keeping it in the house over winter was the first time I handled winter that way.

 

[Leo in N E Illinois]

Is that a Peach Pixie? I have one that color, that is just starting to bloom.

Honestly I don't know, It came to be sometime before 2010 as a no name discarded hanging basket. It was the only fragment from the basket that was still alive.

 

[Minnesota Madman]

Curious, no one has mentioned forced dormancy. According to literature this is a good method. Additionally there would be a lot less chance of insect attack.

I could be wrong here, but my own research is showing no light dormancy makes for sluggish spring growth, and trees that are in lit rooms are healthier come spring. There is going to be conflicting opinions on this one, but it makes sense if you think about it ~ Deciduous trees, after leaf drop, can still photosynthesize on a reduced scale through it's newer, thin branching. Yes, through the bark. Evergreens will continue photosynthesis through winter as well, so they will pull out of winter with more vigor if given light. Cell division is slow in winter, but it's still happening.

This is my research, not my experience, so anybody feel free to correct me as you see fit. I've only been doing bonsai 5 years.