Here is where you should make your pruning cuts. Don't worry, the bougainvillea can easily tolerate the most heinous cuts. Make sure your tree is healthy and vigorus. You will see new growth all over the tree. Wire the new growth early before it gets hard or you will have to start over. Good luck! Chris

Did your instructions tell you to remove all but a few leaves (no more than 4)? If you took a long cutting with 15-20 leaves, it may be way too much for the stem cutting to support AND try to put on roots. There are many people who root things in water and insist that that's the way some plants should be started, but in Master Gardener class we were taught that the fine, spidery roots that set on under water end up dying when transplanted to dirt and the plant just has to grow them again. It's best to start in moist soil when possible to minimize transplant shock when the time comes.

We had a similar problem here in the Alpes Maritime. Ours survived and has now been flowering well for the last two months. I cut some of the branches back, it then sprouted again and flowered. Although some of the branches did still die back, on the whole it's given a good display. Try cutting back a branch and if there is still some green inside then it is still alive. How about a phormium (New Sealand Flax) in your pot. They make good architectural statements and can grow quite large. There are ones with red leaves and some varigated green/yellow ones that are particularly attractive. Hope this helps

CONTINUATION FROM LAST POST...Also, that plant needs to be trimmed. trim the shape,ie.circular ,around the outside but DO NOT TOP IT. maybe trim up under the plant so the leafs and spiky branches do not touch the ground. also leaf damage will occur from the branches being tangled from wind action and the thorns on the branches-this is natrual... you can 'unwind them' but as you know, probably will get cut. I have many scars from dealings with my Bougainvilleas' thorns and NO even welders gloves will not stop the thorns so do not take comfort with gardening gloves which WILL get tangled. My bush sent runners up a nearby avacado tree and now remains 20-25 feet up in my royal palm. it provides a nice purple bloom in the top of that palm and i use it as a landmark to get folks to my home.