The French sailor Louis de Bougainville brought the magical triplet flower to Europe. It received its botanical name “Bougainvillea” in his honor. It is not winter hardy. How is the potted plant overwintered?
Triplet flowers
In our latitudes, bougainvillea is cultivated in winter gardens or on the balcony in a bucket. She is a real sun worshipper. Shady locations and rainy summers cause problems for her. It is not winter hardy. As soon as it gets colder in autumn, she has to move to sheltered winter quarters.
Preparation
1. Choose bright winter quarters
Triplet flowers need a bright place to overwinter. Dark winter quarters weaken the plant and can lead to a lack of flowering the following year.
Possible winter quarters are:
- frost-free, bright basement rooms
- Greenhouses
- unused adjoining rooms
- Winter Gardens
2. Note wintering temperature
Overwintering in the garage, basement or cool side rooms is recommended. A winter quarter with a room temperature of 10 to 15 degrees Celsius is best.
3. Stop watering completely from October
Avoid watering as early as October. The substrate in the pot dries out and the triple flower completely sheds its leaves.
4. Plant cutting before moving into winter quarters
Cut the plant back heavily after the leaves have fallen. This prevents the plant from investing its energy unnecessarily in the dead flowers. Use sharp, clean tools. Remove dried plant parts and stunted branches.
Wintering
5. Protect from the cold with an insulating base
Choose a bright, cool, but frost-proof place as winter quarters for the potted plant in November. Place the plant on an insulating wooden base.
6. Do not water in cool winter quarters
When overwintered in a cool room, the bougainvillea does not need any water. Don't water the plant again until spring when the first new shoots appear.
Overwintering in the apartment
- Place the bougainvillea in its bright winter quarters in the house at the beginning of October
- Water the plant regularly so that it can retain its foliage
- The substrate in the pot must not dry out completely in winter
- Slowly get the plant used to its outdoor location again in April
- She should still spend cold nights in the house.
Wintering
7. Carefully prepare for moving outdoors in the spring
Slowly get the bougainvillea used to the outdoors again at the beginning of April. On warm spring days, place them on the balcony or terrace during the day. The sensitive potted plant should initially spend the nights indoors. In mid to late April she can finally move outside.
Note:
Every now and then late frosts are still on the horizon, even in April. As a precaution, put triplet flowers back in the house. Otherwise the young shoots could be damaged.
8. In exceptional cases, wintering in heated rooms is possible
If you don't have a bright, frost-free garage or basement, you can overwinter the bougainvillea in warm living rooms. However, more intensive care is then required.
9. Radical pruning in spring for he althy plants
Triplet flowers grow very quickly and need to be cut regularly. The best time for radical pruning is in spring, before the growing season begins. Pruning in late autumn is not absolutely necessary, but it makes it easier for the vigorous plant to move to winter quarters and strengthens its vitality.
Beware of pests
The risk of being attacked by spider mites or scale insects increases for triplet flowers in their winter quarters. The animals feel particularly comfortable overwintering in heated rooms. Check your plants regularly for changes. Spider mites can be recognized by their white webs. The first indication of a scale insect infestation is sticky honeydew on the leaves.
