Bougainvillea - Paper flowers

"Bunga kertas" - Paper Flower Unusual mixture of orange and pink colours in my garden. Each flower has 3 petals joined in the centre.

Bougainvillea was discovered by the French botanist Philibert Commerson in 1760. The plant was named after his close friend Captain Louis A. De Bougainville who commanded the French ship Bordeuse that sailed around the world between 1766 - 1769. The plant is native to Brazil. It is very common in tropical regions.

The fashion now is different colours grafted into one tree

These master pieces are expensive- over RM 1,000 (US$ 270).
Bougainvillea is called "Bunga Kertas" or Paper Flower in Malaysia. The flowers do look and feel like thin sheets of paper. It is a very popular plant here becos' of its versatility. It can be grown in pots, as large trees for shade, hedges along the roads and kerbs and as especially as decorative shrubs along garden walls and on balconies. Another added value of "Bunga kertas" is, it is a hardy plant and needs little looking after. It is grown from cuttings and all one has to do is to cut an "older" part of the plant and stick it into the ground.

Bouugainvillea is frequently planted in gardens to brighten up walls.
It's so hot here, the bougainvillea is a great plan to grow as you do not have to water daily. I don't know if you can find it in temperate areas with the 4 seasons, if it can survive the winters. Over here, it just flowers throughout the year. The Bougainvillea is like "Gardening for Dummies" like me - a winner always.