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I bought a potted bougainvillaea at a garden centre in Turkey 5 years ago. It was about 80 cm. tall with a pencil-thin stem. I chopped it down to 50 cm. even before I even left the place because I had to find room for it on the floor in front of me in the aeroplane going home. No problem. The next Spring I re-potted it a “much too large” porcelain bonsai container because it was the only thing I had available (it’s a beauty!) and I figured it would do as a training pot. Maybe yes, maybe no. It didn’t stand very sturdily so I pegged it out and tied it down. It grew but VERY “leggy” and occasionally blossomed when I least expected it. The trunk, however, thickens only under the magnifying glass and often I’m not even sure of that.

The first couple of years I fed it inorganic but then I saw some very attractive bougainvillaea at a garden centre here near home and they recommended an organic dung-smelling concoction so I bought a bottle of it. I’ve been using that for two years. But still the same …. growing leggy, very leggy, no obvious thickening of the trunk but back budding here and there. I’ve re-potted it three times since I bought it (I press it down into the soil firmly but I am careful not to prune the roots too harshly) and always back into the same, oversized pot. Did I mention it’s a beauty? Last year I began pruning the branches rather hard, thinking … “Yeah, that’ll do it” but still growing leggy, leggy, leggy. Today I thought maybe I am being too nice to the thing so I pulled out the restraining pegs thinking the windy elements would toughen (and thicken) it up. Bad idea! If I didn’t have quick reflexes the whole plant with roots and all would have left the soil and ended up on the floor!!! The roots haven’t established themselves IN THE LEAST! Back in with the pegs.

What the hell am I doing wrong? Can it be the size of the pot that is causing me so much trouble? I mentioned it’s a beauty, didn’t I?

Where are you keeping this plant? Why do you keep re potting it? that is doing no good at all. What restraining pegs? If you keep re potting it can't establish the roots. Leggy growth is indicative of lack of sunlight.

m5eaygeoff wrote: Where are you keeping this plant? Why do you keep re potting it? that is doing no good at all. What restraining pegs? If you keep repotting it can't establish the roots. Leggy growth is indicative of lack of sunlight.

It is outside facing south (sun) in warm months and inside in a window facing south in winter months. I'm giving it as much sun as I can.
I didn't think 3 repots in 5 years was so much. Is it? I have read that the bougainvillaea doesn't like its roots tampered with so I am pruning only one quarter each time. I'm using sticks sunk deep into the soil and tying the bougainvillaea to them to keep it standing up, otherwise, it will fall over so the roots MUST be at least one problem I'm having. What about the size of the pot? Can it be the cause of the roots being so timid? Too much space? Or maybe that porcelain doesn't encourage root growth? I am willing to try anything. It grows orange bracts that I am very fond of but I am worried that one day I'll get really angry and throw the whole thing out.

Bougainville grows roots slowly. Grows branches even slower. They extend. I can get mine to grow 1metre or more in a season. But they thicken slowly.
I repot mine WAY less. Repotted last in summer 2018. Might repot next year again.

I think to know that high nitrogen fertilizer and loads of water, without the pot drying out in summer, enhances growth over flowers.

leatherback wrote: Bougainville grows roots slowly. Grows branches even slower. They extend.

That explains it. It’s been growing roots on “one side” l-o-o-o-o-ong but the rest of it hardly grows at all. So I’ve been pruning back the long one(s) in hopes of coaxing the other side to “catch up”. I did wrong?

leatherback wrote: I can get mine to grow 1metre or more in a season. But they thicken slowly.

Yes, mine too.

leatherback wrote: I repot mine WAY less. Repotted last in summer 2018. Might repot next year again.

So, your advice is to stop re-potting it and hope it eventually become pot-bound? What about a small pot? Would that be a good idea or should I just stop fiddling with it and leave it alone?

leatherback wrote: I think to know that high nitrogen fertilizer and loads of water, without the pot drying out in summer, enhances growth over flowers.

It’s the lack of thickness that is irritating. I feel that I’ve wasted five year of my life with nothing to show for it but a stringy plant with very few days of orange bracts.

If I feed it high nitrogen and prune, prune, prune will it start to thicken or is that the worst thing to do?

This is what it looks like today (after 5 years in my possession) and you can see that it’s hardly worth keeping.

I would just leave it in a fairly roomy pot. Keep it watered well in warm weather. And not prune. Thickness comes from foliage mass. To get that, let the branches run. Reason I trim mine for winter is because I do not have space to put it indoors for winter otherwise.

Make sure you wire the base of young branches. Once mature, the branches refuse to bend for me.

leatherback wrote: Make sure you wire the base of young branches. Once mature, the branches refuse to bend for me.

That's the truth. They "snap" very well but don't bend. There is one positive aspect, however. When a bougainvillaea branch snaps you can wire it "as is" (not straighten it out again) and it will heal rather quickly leaving the bend/snap just where you wanted it. Obviously, if you manhandled it and it is completely severed then you're out of luck.

leatherback wrote: I would just leave it in a fairly roomy pot. Keep it watered well in warm weather. And not prune. Thickness comes from foliage mass. To get that, let the branches run. Reason I trim mine for winter is because I do not have space to put it indoors for winter otherwise.

Thank you for your good advice but while I was taking that photo I realized that the problem is much worse than I described it and I have decided to terminate the project.