bougainvillea woes - losing leaves and flowers - watering, feeding, etc...

 i used to water my bougainvillea on the balcony (facing northwest on
my 2nd floor balcony) by letting it virtually dry out, then flooding
it with a couple gallons (like I water my indoor ficus) and it seemed
to be ok. I was told that a better way to take care of bougainvillea's
is to keep them damp as opposed to dry/drench and now it seems to have
lost many leaves *and* flowers. It's done this before, but seems like
one heck of a coincidence. admittedly it's getting a little colder
now, but since I'm in southern california, that doesn't mean all that
much!

so my question is, should I change the way I'm watering back to dry/
drench or keep the soil damp?

Also, I'm adding the same fish/seaweed fertilizer I add for my ficus -
is that a good idea?

thanks!!

- JayDee

 
I have a bougainvillea indoors and let it dry out between waterings.
Generally, when the leaves start to droop, it's time to water.  The
vine is about 10 years old and about 10 feet long.  Were you having
trouble keeping it alive?