Bougainvillea

An evergreen climbing shrub in the four-o'clock family, native to South America. Discovered on the world circumnavigation (1766–69) of French explorer Louis Antoine de Bougainville and named for him. The showy magenta, pink, orange, or white 'petals' are actually bracts; the true flowers are small tubular white blooms at their centre. Blooms year-round in the tropics, covering walls in Okinawa and the Mediterranean. Japanese name 'ikada-kazura'.

Identification Points

• ✓Thorny stems climbing on supports
• ✓Three vivid bracts surrounding small white tubular flowers
• ✓Alternate ovate leaves

Morphological TraitsAI-estimated, needs verification

Phylogenetic Positionオシロイバナ科 →