so.. you bought it and transplanted it ...no problem ...

but then you read it can never be transplanted ... so you worry ... pshaw ... lol

you do what you have to do.. and dont worry .... buy another if it fails ... its said that to become a green thumb... you have to kill every plant 3 times ....

anyway general plant rules.. need not be specific to Bs...

severe stress .. leaf loss pretty high.. but its still holding some ...

not uncommon to sacrifice leaves to preserve flowers ...

when will you know.. when it losses all its leaves and becomes brittle ...

or... hopefully ...

when it start putting out new growth ... hope for the latter ...

you dont give us any info to help ... you might shaded it for a week or two ... to get the roots working ... if you put it in full sun ... also.. i hope you mulch properly.. and keep the soil moist.. but not sodden ....

also... did you put a big gob of media.. in sand ... sometimes that can be a problem ...

just rest assured ... much of its work.. will be growing roots ... and we cant really see that part ... so it might take a while... to recover ..

next time.. tell us where you are.. it might matter ...

finally ... just about never.. is transplanting good.. while the plant is in flower ... so next time.. next plant.. timing might be an issue ...

i hope you win ... just dont worry about it ... lifes too short.. and its not some exotic $1000 plant ... its replaceable ...

ken

Thanks Ken_adrian!

I don't know what my "zone" is because I live in South Africa, I'm trying to google it now and find out... Apparently my zone is "warm temperate, summer dry, warm summer". Not sure if that is as specific as it could be? It doesn't seem to be a system people here adhere to as strictly as in the states.

I moved the plant about 5 meters from where it was before, I think both positions would get pretty much the same amount of sun. I guess it's a waiting game now to see if my Bougainvillea survives! Thanks for the reply.

I've transplanted bougainvillea multiple times, and have not had the plant die. I've needed to use big pruners to cut roots, and I've been brutal with the other roots (not on purpose, just to get it moved), The plants have never died. One thing you should note, and I think you are seeing now, is that the plant can drop all its leaves at the drop of a hat. Fortunately, after it settles into its new location it just puts out a new set of leaves. My experience is that you might see new leaves in 5 or 6 weeks or so. I just water the plant moderately while it has few leaves, and remain confident that it will come back. By the way, the plant often looks better after transplanting than it did before. All the fresh growth is very beautiful.

Renais