Dwarf bougainvillea provides glorious color to your landscape without the rampant growth of full size varieties.
The most well-known dwarf variety is Helen Johnson bougainvillea.
This is a versatile and hardy shrub you can keep trimmed to 3 feet.
The blossoms are bright pink with a hint of purple, and newly opening flower bracts have a slight pink-orange tone.
A newer cultivar that stays smaller and more compact is Sunvillea. Flower colors are pink - a soft salmon-pink, rose - a dark pink bordering on purple, and white - with a touch of creamy yellow.
These shrubs are small enough to work as front-of-the-border plants.

Dwarf bougainvilleas have thorns but because they're smaller overall than full-size varieties, they won't tear you to bits.
Sunvilleas (like the Pixie variety, covered under the 4-6' Shrubs section) have dense foliage that covers up the thorns on their stems.
Bougainvilleas bloom on and off all year - even in winter.
The flower of any bougainvillea plant is actually the tiny white blossom...the colorful parts are the flower bracts that encircle the little white blooms.
Plant specs
The size of a dwarf bougainvillea depends on the variety.
Helen Johnson is best kept trimmed to about 3 feet, while the miniature Sunvillea  can be kept a bit smaller.
Bougainvilleas are moderately salt-tolerant, fast growers that need full sun to flower heavily.
They're cold tolerant and do well anywhere in South Florida.
Plant care
Add a mixture of composted cow manure and top soil or organic peat moss to the hole when you plant.
Dwarf bougainvillea care requires occasional trimming to shape, especially the Helen Johnson variety which can grow somewhat leggy. After each bloom cycle, cut each stem back at least several inches past the bloom area.
Sunvillea is more dense and mounded, needing less trimming. It puts out shoots (like outstretched arms) that blossom on the ends. When the bloom cycle is over, just cut off each shoot.
Fertilize after each bloom cycle with a top-quality granular fertilizer high in phosphorus to promote flowering. You can supplement feedings with bone meal and/or liquid fertilizer as well.
These shrubs are drought-tolerant but do best with regular waterings timed to let them dry out in between.