I have a top-floor flat in a Scottish tenement and want a few evergreen plants to make the bit outside my door look nice. I love the way bougainvillea looks across doorways in sunnier climes, but I’m not sure it would do the same this far north. There’s a glass cupola in the stair, so my doorway gets a lot of light, but it’s also cold in the winter. Am I looking for the impossible?
If I have understood correctly, your door is in a covered stairwell, so, as long as it doesn’t freeze, you could well get away with a bougainvillea. You’ll need to invest in the largest pot you can fit and a tray to collect the water. Water freely from spring to autumn, but keep just moist over winter. Too much moisture over winter will cause rotting. You should expect some leaf drop over winter too, but it is evergreen. Bougainvillea glabra, B. x buttiana and B. spectabilis are the hardiest and will survive down to 0C for short spells. You will also need to provide some sort of support, trellis or the like, so that it has something to climb. Another option is a Swiss cheese plant (Monstera deliciosa). It doesn’t flower, but will look impressive; and, given something to climb, (it may need tying in) it will happily cover the entire doorframe. It won’t mind low light levels, but won’t tolerate frost.
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