Bougainvillea Mauna Kea Live Plant – 1 ft Tall – 6 inch Pot – Outdoor Shrub

Overview

Introduce a burst of tropical color and charm to your outdoor space with the magnificent Bougainvillea Mauna Kea live plant. This stunning flowering shrub, also known scientifically as Bougainvillea glabra, is celebrated for its brilliant, paper-like bracts that envelop its true, small white flowers. The ‘Mauna Kea’ variety is particularly prized for its vivid hues and vigorous growth, making it a spectacular choice for gardeners looking to create an eye-catching display. Our Bougainvillea Mauna Kea live plant arrives as a healthy, established specimen, approximately 1 ft tall and ready to thrive in its new home. It’s a perfect addition for those seeking a vibrant, low-maintenance plant that delivers continuous blooms throughout the warmer months. Whether you’re looking to create a stunning focal point, a colorful hedge, or a beautiful container plant, this Bougainvillea offers unparalleled beauty and resilience.

Key Benefits

The Bougainvillea Mauna Kea live plant offers numerous advantages for any garden enthusiast, combining visual appeal with robust growth habits. Its striking appearance and ease of care make it a highly desirable option for various landscaping needs.

• Spectacular Floral Display: This Bougainvillea is renowned for its profusion of bright, colorful bracts that often outshine the actual flowers. These vibrant displays can last for many months, providing continuous visual interest and a tropical ambiance. The intensity of the colors, often in shades of pink, purple, or red, creates a dramatic statement.
• Drought Tolerance: Once established, the Mauna Kea Bougainvillea is remarkably drought-tolerant, making it an excellent choice for xeriscaping or gardens in arid regions. This reduces the need for frequent watering, conserving resources and simplifying maintenance.
• Versatile Landscaping Use: Its vigorous growth habit allows it to be trained as a climbing vine, a sprawling shrub, a colorful groundcover, or even a stunning container plant. This versatility makes it suitable for various garden designs, from formal to informal.
• Attracts Pollinators: While the bracts are the showstopper, the small true flowers do attract hummingbirds and other pollinators, contributing to the biodiversity of your garden ecosystem.
• Low Maintenance: This tropical flowering shrub requires minimal care once established, thriving on neglect rather than excessive attention. Pruning is primarily for shaping and encouraging more blooms, making Bougainvillea care straightforward.
• Long Blooming Season: Unlike many plants with fleeting blooms, the Bougainvillea Mauna Kea live plant boasts a long blooming season, often from spring through fall, ensuring your garden remains colorful for an extended period.

Plant Care & Growing Tips

Proper Bougainvillea care is essential for ensuring your Bougainvillea Mauna Kea live plant flourishes and produces its spectacular blooms. This tropical shrub thrives in specific conditions that mimic its native environment. For optimal growth, provide plenty of sunlight. Bougainvillea needs at least 6 hours of direct sunlight per day to produce abundant flowers. In cooler climates, it can be grown in containers and brought indoors during winter, but it truly excels in full sun outdoors. Ensure it is planted in a location where it will receive maximum sun exposure.

When it comes to watering, Bougainvillea prefers a drier soil. Overwatering can lead to lush foliage but fewer flowers. Water deeply but infrequently, allowing the soil to dry out completely between waterings. During its active growing and blooming season, consistent watering is important, but reduce frequency during dormancy. Well-draining soil is crucial; a sandy loam or a potting mix designed for cacti and succulents works well. Ensure the pot has drainage holes if growing in a container. The ideal temperature range for this tropical flowering shrub is between 60-85°F (15-30°C). It is sensitive to frost, so in USDA zones below 9, it is best grown as an annual or overwintered indoors. Fertilize sparingly with a balanced fertilizer, or one higher in phosphorus, every 4-6 weeks during the growing season to encourage blooming.

Pruning is important for shaping and encouraging new growth and more flowers. Prune after a flush of blooms to remove spent flowers and unwanted growth. Be mindful of its thorns when handling. Common problems include leaf drop due to sudden environmental changes or overwatering, and pests like aphids or mealybugs, which can usually be managed with insecticidal soap. By following these guidelines, your 1 ft tall Bougainvillea will provide years of vibrant color.

Size & Details

This offering features a robust Bougainvillea Mauna Kea live plant, approximately 1 ft (30-40 cm) in height from the base of the soil to the tip of its tallest stem. It is carefully shipped to you in a 6 inch (15 cm) nursery pot, complete with established roots and ready for transplanting into a larger container or directly into your garden landscape. The plant exhibits a healthy, bushy growth habit, indicative of its potential to become a magnificent tropical flowering shrub. With proper care, this Bougainvillea can grow rapidly, reaching several feet in height and width depending on its training and growing conditions. Expect the first significant flush of vibrant bracts within the first growing season, with continuous blooming throughout the warmer months. The mature size can vary greatly; when trained as a vine, it can climb up to 20-30 feet, while as a shrub, it can be maintained at 3-6 feet tall and wide.

Frequently Asked Questions

• Q: How big does this 1 ft tall Bougainvillea get? A: The Bougainvillea Mauna Kea live plant you receive is 1 ft tall. As a mature plant, it can grow quite large; up to 20-30 feet if trained as a vine, or maintained as a shrub at 3-6 feet tall and wide with regular pruning.
• Q: What size pot does it come in? A: This Mauna Kea Bougainvillea is shipped in a 6 inch nursery pot, ensuring it has a well-established root system for a smooth transition to your garden or a larger container.
• Q: Is this an indoor or outdoor plant? A: Bougainvillea is primarily an outdoor plant, especially in warmer climates (USDA Zones 9-11). It can be grown indoors in containers in colder regions, but it requires significant bright, direct sunlight to thrive and bloom.
• Q: How much sunlight does it need? A: For abundant blooms, the Bougainvillea Mauna Kea live plant requires at least 6 hours of direct sunlight per day. More sun generally leads to more vibrant and prolific flowering.
• Q: Is this plant easy to care for? A: Yes, once established, Bougainvillea is considered relatively low-maintenance, especially regarding water needs. The most critical aspects of Bougainvillea care are providing ample sun and well-draining soil, and protecting it from frost.
• Q: What condition will it arrive in? A: Your tropical flowering shrub will arrive carefully packaged, approximately 1 ft tall and in a 6 inch pot, with its roots and foliage protected to ensure a healthy arrival.
• Q: How long until it blooms? A: With proper care and sufficient sunlight, your Bougainvillea should produce its first flush of vibrant bracts within the first growing season after planting.
• Q: When is the best time to plant? A: The best time to plant Bougainvillea is in spring or early summer after all danger of frost has passed, allowing it ample time to establish before cooler weather.
• Q: Will it survive winter in my zone? A: Bougainvillea is hardy in USDA Zones 9-11. If you live in a colder zone, it’s best to grow your 1 ft tall Bougainvillea in a container and bring it indoors during winter to protect it from frost.
• Q: What’s the minimum temperature it can tolerate? A: Bougainvillea is sensitive to frost and generally cannot tolerate temperatures below 30°F (-1°C) for extended periods. Consistent temperatures below 40°F (4°C) can cause damage.