Forum home› Plants
This Forum will close on Wednesday 27 March, 2024. Please refer to the announcement on the Discussions page for further detail.

Indoor bougainvillea

alison_rothniealison_rothnie Posts: 1
in Plants
I'm looking for some advice on which variety of bougainvillea (or open to other plant ideas!) would be best for us.

We have a double height extension which has a lot of triple glazing and is SE facing. We would like to have an indoor plant that we could train to grow up the indoor wall and brighten up the room. The room is warm with underfloor heating and in the sunshine can easily get to 24 degrees even in the winter. Attached are some pictures of the room and the pink blob is where we're thinking of having the plant.

A friend suggested a bougainvillea would be perfect but we're not that familiar with the varieties available or how suitable the location would be for the plant. Would we be constantly clearing up dropped leaves?!

Would love to get any advice or other suggestions!

Posts

  • fidgetbonesfidgetbones Posts: 17,618
    Yes, you will forever be picking up dropped leaves.
  • PlantmindedPlantminded Posts: 3,580
    Personally I wouldn't consider a climber of such proportions indoors.  Have you thought about investing in some form of artwork to add interest to your walls?  This could be a painting, metalwork or botanical photographs, whatever is to your taste. 

    Just for some inspiration, there are some superb photos here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/in-pictures-60111369

    To add plant interest to your space I'd be more inclined to put a dramatic architectural plant in well chosen pot on the floor.  Something like a Strelitzia nicolai would enjoy the light and warmth in that space:

    Buy giant white bird of paradise or wild banana Strelitzia nicolai: £39.99 Delivery by Crocus

    If you decide you really do want a climber, a Monstera would also enjoy those conditions:

    Monstera deliciosa on a moss pole and pot cover (crocus.co.uk)

    Hope this helps!
    Wirral. Sandy, free draining soil.


  • Blue OnionBlue Onion Posts: 2,995
    I would try with a pothos.  They are happy to grow a long distance.  I suggest training several vines up across that area.  Mine get quite a bit of a sun where I have them, they should be okay with your conditions as long as you keep potting them up as they grow and prove the correct amount of water and food.  The vines I have are about 12 feet long or so.  They do loose leaves occasionally, so you'll need to provide a bit of maintenance.  Mostly they are just older leaves.  You might consider some quality imitation silk leaf vines to intertwine with the real ones, especially to create an impact as the real ones grow.. and to help hide any 'holes' in the vine.

    A rubber tree might be a good option for the middle area.. or an umbrella plant (which reaches up to about 15 ft, so sort of a tree?). 

    Or maybe a strong open wood shelf book case, with a variety of plants on the shelves?  I have one as a room divider in our open plan, and it's an easy way to fill the space with green.  
    Utah, USA.
  • Nanny BeachNanny Beach Posts: 8,719
    I agree,I have a Bougainvillea here next to me,it's would take absolutely years to attain that height.you would also need a climbing support structure. Have you considered a high up hanging basket, plants hanging down instead. Plectranthus,Hoya, tradescantia, even the humble spider plant.They will all drop leaves.
  • PlantmindedPlantminded Posts: 3,580
    Blue Onion said:
    Or maybe a strong open wood shelf book case, with a variety of plants on the shelves?  I have one as a room divider in our open plan, and it's an easy way to fill the space with green.  
    I like that idea @Blue Onion, it would make maintenance much easier.  A floor standing ladder style shelving unit would also work well.
    Wirral. Sandy, free draining soil.


  • zugeniezugenie Posts: 831
    Another vote for pothos, jamies_jungle on instagram used to grow one up a wall, he used the command mini clips to support it if I remember correctly!


  • Blue OnionBlue Onion Posts: 2,995
    Ohh.. how lovely @zugenie. Maybe I should unwind mine and try that.  I'm stuck just going round and round.  

    Utah, USA.
  • someblokecalleddaveo0XkpY4zsomeblokecalleddaveo0XkpY4z Posts: 10
    @alison_rothnie Go for it Alison I'm doing something very similar. Mine's only 24" at the moment and it'll be in the garden during the summer and then indoors for the winter (That's the plan). Are you still going to give it a go? I'll be interested to see how you get on with it.
  • SueG1SueG1 Posts: 41
    How about a Stephanotis? They grow quite fast and have lovely scented flowers and don't drop leaves all over the place. Here's ours, in a north facing living room, it goes back and forth across the bay several times! It is in a 10" pot on the floor behind the television. Come to think of it, it probably needs repotting by now...(sorry, I don't know why my picture comes out sideways!)
Sign In or Register to comment.