bougy bush

I bought this as a bush early  spring,,  trimmed it back  and  potted it..  all summer it  did good,, pretty brackets  and flowers.  now  it is dropping it,s  leaves  really bad  also  the  leaves are  a lighter green what is wrong with  it  now  ???  thanks  in  advance  john

Need more info, John. Soil, when last potted, watering, location (sun/shade), pests, fertilization, etc.

Sorry Jim,, Bought  the bush early spring,, trimed it back and potted.. it has had full sun with full sun..  so much rain not much watering has been done.. like i said  it did good until about a week ago.. now the leaves are just falling off.. the   branches are green all the way to the apex. just do not know.. thanks  john

 They do well in the tropics, but really don't like wet feet.  Does the soil drain fast?

The soil does not drain as fast as i would like it too. Up here you you can not find  all the right things to mix up  john

the leaves are still falling off.. do they just drop their leaves at times ?? thanks john

moyogijohn,

I have several bougainvillea in my collection, leaf drop is usually due to one of two factors in my experience. Too drastic of a root prune in which case do not worry they will come back. Or case number two is they are over watered. I would move them some place where they still get sun but have a roof over them to avoid soil saturation by the rain, and let them dry out.


I water mine only a little every day and they get full sun at 85 degrees every day year around. The soil is very close to dry by the end of the day.

( a note on soil, volcanic cinders from home depo put into a loose burlap bag or other container you want to ruin, can be put beneath a piece of plywood and driven over several times to get them to a smaller size, mix that with a little perlite and some Napa Auto Parts diatomaceous earth floor dry, sift it and you have a winner for bougies!)

Michaelsturm,,,Thank you very much for your information.. good luck with your trees.. take care john

Bougie prefer dryer than moist soil and love lots of sun light.

They do drop old leaves to replace with new ones (these usually turn yellow). They also drop leaves during dry summers to conserve water but this does not seem to be the case with you.

Unless it had bad root rot/damage, it should bounce back easy.

Good luck!