It's really tough to kill a bougainvilla! They just get more branches when they are pruned. How do I know this? I had one fighting with my grapevines, and the more I pruned, the more determined it was. Finally, I got out the round up, and watched it die. My grapevines are more important to me, and there are plenty of bougies in other parts of our yard.

It's also hard to kill a grapevine! They seem to be alike. In trying to fix some training mistakes, I pruned a vine down to 6". I watched it daily, then, one day, it popped out some fuzzy buds, and now has new strong canes growing.

I've cut them to the ground, leaving about an inch. They grow right back. If it is 20 years old, you can likely do your best to dig it all out, and it will likely grow right back anyway. Once they are established, they are hard to get rid of. And they flower on new growth only, so you will be getting a lot more flowers...

Wow! Just exactly the opposite of what I expected to hear, but music to my ears! Thanks!