I planted 'San Diego Red' bougainvillea last year - 5 gallon size. It seems to be doing ok in terms of amount of foliage/new growth/brachts/etc - except for the fact that the foliage leaves are a pale shade of green. I have several more mature vines in the same general vicinity, and their leaves are much darker green as expected.. Any guidance in terms of water/fertilizer/etc?

Some general info:
* I am in San Diego Coastal area
* Plants are against a fence, but get good sun from mid-morning to mid-afternoon
* I've been using 'Bougain' fertilizer (6-8-10) monthly throughout the year.. Every 1-2 weeks during spring/summer
* I spray monthly with Thuricide BT Caterpillar Control

Any guidance in terms of water/fertilizer/etc? Thanks in advance!

 

Sorry missed these details in my original post:

• Zone: 10a (According to the new 2012 map)
• City: Solana Beach
• State: CA

 

It sounds like you are fertilizing enough. What is the soil's pH at the light green plant?

Also, if the plant looks healthy otherwise it just could be that that variety is lighter green.

 

not really familiar with the plant but would suspect its low on nitrogen, it is weird that you are only having this problem with one, while you are fertilizing enough, using a fertilizer thats low in nitrogen is common to promote blooming however it may not be providing enough nitrogen if it was me would probably try an all purpose equal npk fertilizer for just a little more nitrogen and see how they respond.

 

Thanks for the tips.. I did try a balanced fertilizer I had lying around - said it was a 10-10-10 mixture. I do see a bit more darkening of the leaves - so maybe that was the trick - I'll continue to add some more of this fertilizer regularly to see if it solves the problem.

BTW - I'll need to search around to figure out how to measure soil PH

 

If simply adding some fertilizer is working then you might have found the solution and don't have to check the soil's pH. If you fertilize and still not getting results then the first thing I check is the soil pH because if it's off it can prevent the plant from taking up some minerals.