BOUGAINVILLEA x buttiana “Jamaica White”

Very popular tropical plant among the Mediterranean gardens, where it is cultivated for its extraordinary, showy and prolonged flowering. This genus of plants includes a multitude of hybrids with more or less bright colors, most of which have a sarmental-climbing habit, and are ideal for decorating railings and pergolas. The branches are vigorous and have strong thorns. The characteristic flowering is actually made up of paper-like bracts that surround the real flowers, insignificant for ornamental purposes. Some forms of Bougainvillea also grow as a bush. Its resistance to drought and diseases is excellent, while its real weak point is the cold: most of the hybrids, despite going into winter vegetative stasis, cannot bear frosts; there are few varieties that withstand moderate frosts in winter, such as Bougainvillea glabra “Sanderiana”, Bougainvillea glabra “Alexandra” and Bougainvillea x spectoglabra.

It should be collocated in sunny positions to have a richer and more coloured blooming. If these plant are grown in pot, they need a large space to develop freely. In areas subject to light frosts, it should be planted at the beginning of the spring so that it will have enough time for rooting and will pass the first winter without problem. It tolerates vigorous prunings, which must be realized between the end of autumn and the beginning of spring.