Friday, December 11, 2009

Bougainvilleas


Bougainvillea (pronounced /ˌbuːɡɨnˈvɪliə/)

is a genus of flowering plants native to South America from Brazil west to Peru and south to southern Argentina (Chubut Province). Different authors accept between four and 18 species in the genus. The plant was discovered in Brazil in 1768, by Philibert Commerçon, French Botanist accompanying French Navy admiral and explorer Louis Antoine de Bougainville during his voyage of circumnavigation.

They are thorny, woody vines growing anywhere from 1-12 meters tall, scrambling over other plants with their hooked thorns. The thorns are tipped with a black, waxy substance. They are evergreen where rainfall occurs all year, or deciduous if there is a dry season. The leaves are alternate, simple ovate-acuminate, 4-13 cm long and 2-6 cm broad. The actual flower of the plant is small and generally white, but each cluster of three flowers is surrounded by three or six bracts with the bright colors associated with the plant, including pink, magenta, purple, red, orange, white, or yellow. Bougainvillea glabra is sometimes referred to as "paper flower" because the bracts are thin and papery. The fruit is a narrow five-lobed achene.

Bougainvillea are relatively pest-free plants, but may suffer from worms and aphids. The larvae of some Lepidoptera species also use them as food plants, for example the Giant Leopard Moth.

(Source)



Hi my friends,

Thanks again for your kind comments and visits to my blog post from yesterday.
Probably you have seen it already, I'm answering to your comments and questions directly there on that place where you are writing them. I appreciate every single comment from you!

The bougainvilleas are blooming in Florida and I love them so much! The colors are outstanding, from pastel to strong deep reds and yellows. You can not miss them, they are growing everywhere down here.

I wish you a wonderful weekend - and tomorrow is "My Wordless Sunday" again! Come back and be in time, I'll be here...*smile*....

Susanne


10 comments:

myonlyphoto said...

Thanks Susanne, I noticed your replies, that is so nice of you. What a nice flower, and what a nice weather you have there. Thanks again, and have a good weekend also my friend. Matthew sends hugs and kisses. Anna :)

S-V-H said...

Thank you too Anna, my loyal friend from Canada! I think, Matthew likes me too, right?...*smile*.... Give him a BIG hug back from me :)

Sue said...

Pretty and bright colors. I like how the line of the flower follows the curve of the brick.

S-V-H said...

Hi Sue,
thanks for visiting. That was exact what I have seen by this limb of Bougainvilleas, the parallelism to the curved brick wall.

Do we have the same eyes sometimes?...*smile*...

aim said...

nice & beautiful bougainvilleas you have here. I have used to like this flower because it can be mixed with two or three color in a tree.

S-V-H said...

Hi Aim,
yes, I know...we have here a lot of bushes with many colors, very strong colors and very pretty too. Thank you for your kind comment. :)

Carole said...

You are so lucky to be living in such a warm climate to see these in bloom. Everything here is dull and grey, it's wet, foggy and nothing is bloooming. Lovely cheery photo

GMG said...

Lovely shot this one! Sharp and clear!!

S-V-H said...

Thanks Carol! yes, it's really enjoyable to be in a warm climat especially when I know, that some people more up in the North are freezing :)

S-V-H said...

Thank you, Gil!! :)

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