Yes, they are. I love bougainvillea, but just make sure you are prepared for the pruning they require.

I think I am prepared. I may not think so a few years from now.

The only thing I ever regretted planting was THORNY a Bouganvillea. I just finally took mine out and have the cuts and scars to prove it. Once established they need constant pruning and are a total PITA. Over time they can get out of control.

Just remember that bougainvillea wants to kill you, always.

@writers - BV's are like a beautiful high maintenance woman. Pretty to look at, but hard to control and will bring out their claws when pissed. I am at a point in life where I will only tolerate & put up with thorny plants if they also produce good tasting fruit - i.e. Lemons & Key Limes.

@ut2nc - My BV was never a hard to control till it was about 5 years old. Once it got a large trunk & root system it was putting out thorny sprawling branches faster than I could prune them even when you cut it right back down to the ground. They are also not 100% privacy fence friendly and tend to cause minor to major damage to a fence when they get big.

Trying to stuff BV trimmings into a trash can for pick up is impossible without cutting cut up. Like dealing with wild brambles.

My advice - find another plant. Maybe jasmine or something like that.

The area faces SW. Currently there is a large tree and a smallish Crepe Myrtle shading it right now. Both are being removed. The Croton may or may not stay. Right now there are only weeds, not ground cover etc. The whole wall is courtyard. I love climbers/vines. I had planned to plant the BV on the far side around the corner so that its stems would not interfere with people and have it come up and over the courtyard, sort of on a diagnole from the middle (outside) of the short wall over and across. I would need to support/tie it so it wouldn't drop down into the path. However, the sewer line runs from the house there and unless I kept it in a large pot (which is an option) it can't go there.TIA

I thought it would bloom most of the time. I am definitely interested in max bloom. I love roses, wisteria and clematis but am not over the moon for petunia type flowers. In a pinch, yes, but it's not ideal.

LOL Writersblock

So are you planting inside the courtyard or outside?

I was planning on planting outside ( I wouldn't have wanted a thorny BV inside the courtyard) but once the big tree is removed - there isn't much sun in there now - we could plant inside as well. Right now it's just sand/shells in there, not concrete or brick etc.

I am open to suggestions.

Sorry for delay. I would actually do pink Calliandra. Blooms on and off all year and has little to no pest issues. Grows fast too.

That's funny. I have dwarf red powderpuff on my wishlist for out back to attract butterflies and hummingbirds. I hadn't thought about using it to front. Where (right, left, middle) would you place a regular sized variety?

Mimosas are one if my very favorite trees but they are too weak wooded and invasive to plant. This looks a LOT like them.

Seriously I wouldn't plant that close to the house or near sewer or septic systems. The roots on those things after they get big are hard as rock and you can't get it out if it starts causing a problem with either the foundation or anything else. I know because I made that mistake once. I know they look beautiful up against a wall so the only way I would do it is to get a huge pot to put it in, but even then I would make sure I had a large concrete stepping stone underneath and watch to make sure even then that the root isn't coming out the bottom. BTW, they bloom better if you don't baby them with much fertilizer.

I use the dwarf red Powderpuff a LOT. It is a great plant. If you let them get to 3-3.5" you don't even need to prune unless they are in a tight space(don't plant in tight space).

I would center the plant and let it spread. Calliandra grows extremely fast and you can have a wall covered in 6 months easy. There's a nursery here that trains them on a 5x5 trellis but if you can't buy on a trellis you can easily train a bush.

i did this one at a clients house 2 gears ago. It was 3 individual plants that were 15 gal on a 5x5 trellis. We planted in December and if memory serves correctly it was filled in in 3-4 months. It is a great plant to espalier and if you don't have to prune to create space you won't even have to prune at all.