Bouvardia
I was sitting on my deck a few days ago watching a
hummingbird go to every flower on my bouvardia plant. My plant is still small and short so the
hummer was close to the ground, which made me worry about his safety with our
ever present cats. But he was sure
interested in those flowers.
If you are looking for an interesting blooming plant
that attracts hummingbirds then bouvardia may be just the plant you need. For most gardeners it will need to be a pot
plant since it’s only hardy to zone 9.
But it overwinters inside nicely and will bloom on and off through the
winter.
Bouvardia ternifolia is also known as Firecracker Bush,
Trumpotilla, or Hummingbird Flower. It is native to Mexico and the far
southwestern United States. In the wild
it’s a shrub that grows to about 4 feet tall.
It responds well to pruning however and potted plants can be kept much
smaller.
Bouvardia has narrow oval leaves on woody stems. The foliage is attractive as a house plant.
The flowers are the spectacular part of the plant. They are a bright orange-scarlet tube flaring
at the bottom into 4 petals. They are
1-2 inches long and form in clusters at the end of branches. They are full of
nectar which attracts hummingbirds, which are the pollinators for the plant.
For me (Zone 5) bouvardia blooms from late winter to
mid-spring inside, takes a short break when I move it outside after frost
threat is gone and then blooms from mid-summer to late November before
resting. Many gardeners with a very
bright, warm indoor location for it report it blooms all winter and summer.
Cultivation
of bouvardia
In the north you will have to order your bouvardia
plant from a catalog. In the southwest
plants are often sold in garden stores. Plants can be grown from seed, if you
can find it.
In the far south bouvardia can be planted in the
ground. Choose a sunny, well drained area.
It will grow in partial shade but not bloom as well. In zone 9 it will probably die back to the
ground but return in spring. In zones
above 9 and indoors it is evergreen. It
prefers the drier climate of the southwest rather than the humid southeast. Bouvardia likes slightly acidic to neutral
soil.
Indoors bouvardia needs a potting soil that is
lightweight and drains well. Choose a
pot that is appropriate for the size of the plant. Most small plants do well
starting out in a 6 inch pot. You will need to transplant into a larger pot
every year or so until the plant gets to the size you want it to remain. You will retain the size by pruning the top
growth and not giving it a larger pot.
When inside find the sunniest, warmest spot you can for
the bouvardia. If you don’t have a bright south window you may want to provide
a grow light to keep it in bloom. Bouvardia benefits from being outside in the
summer, after danger of frost has passed and there it can draw hummingbirds for
you. When you move it outside in the
spring give it a month in a location that is at least shaded in the middle of
the day. Then move it to full sun if desired.
Outdoors they will bloom happily in light shade or when shaded for a few
hours of the day.
Bouvardia should dry slightly between watering. Outside in the ground it is considered to be
drought tolerant but if you want consistent bloom inside or as a potted patio
plant you’ll want to water it regularly.
Indoors use a water soluble fertilizer for blooming plants according to
label directions, about every other week.
Do the same when you move it outside or if you are repotting it then you
can mix some slow release granular fertilizer for blooming plants into the
potting soil.
Don’t be afraid to prune bouvardia to shape it or limit
its size. Pruning often promotes
blooming in this plant. Even small
plants 8-10 inches high can bloom although the display is better the bigger the
plant gets. Also you should deadhead,
(remove dead flowers) to keep it blooming longer.
Bouvardia can be propagated by stem cuttings so you may
want to root those pruned pieces. It can
also be started from seed, although seed is hard to find in catalogs and
germination can be slow and erratic.
Bouvardia has few disease or insect problems inside or
outside. If the leaves start looking chlorotic (yellow or light green with
darker green veins) try using a water soluble fertilizer for acidic
plants. If the leaves are falling it may
mean the light level is too low or the temperature too cool. Bouvardia prefers temperatures above 45
degrees. It may lose some leaves when
brought inside in the fall but this is normal.
Bouvardia is very sensitive to ethylene exposure and it
may drop leaves or even die if exposed to the gas. Fruits and some vegetables give off ethylene
gas so don’t store them near the plant. It’s also found in cigarette smoke,
auto exhaust and propane heater fumes.
There are other species of bouvardia, some of which are
grown for florist use. The flowers of
these are less tubular and more star shaped and they come in a wide range of
colors. Bouvardia ternifolia also has some flower color variations in the
red-pink range but the cultivars can be hard to find.
Bouvardia is not edible. Little is known about herbal uses though in
Mexico they are used to “cure” scorpion
bites. A study (link below) did find that
an extract from bouvardia roots did relieve the poisonous effects of a scorpion
sting.
Bouvardia is listed in the FDA poisonous plant
database.
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