Tibouchina urvilleana

[Las Palmas Norte]

I have a nice potted Tibouchina urvilleana that's growing well, producing foliage and branches at a good rate. My question(s) is, what will get this to bloom? Will it bloom routinely once the top growth slows? I'm currently using Osmocote® Classic 18 - 6 - 12 which is a slow / controlled release fertilizer. Thanks in advance for any info you might have.

Cheers, Barrie.

 

[Pedro 65]

Barrie, your obviously growing this in a Glasshose/Greenhouse as doesnt it snow in most of British Columbia Canada, I imagine so?.

Anyway, N is for leaf and plant growth, you need to fert with a higher K ( Potassium) than N to get good flowering , plus as Ive said many times on PTalk, ferts with High Nitrogen "attract" any sap sucking bugs to plants    eg  scale, mealy bugs etc , etc. Out of the 300 plus var from all over the world, I "think"  ( Australias tibouchina) is the showiest of em all, theyve even made a Blue one now available to the public here in Oz.  Below is Tibouchina Alstonville which was called something else many yrs ago.  Best of luck with yours Barrie..      Pete  :)

                                                     

 

 

[Las Palmas Norte]

40 minutes ago, Pedro 65 said:

Barrie, your obviously growing this in a Glasshose/Greenhouse as doesnt it snow in most of British Columbia Canada, I imagine so?.

 

                                                     

 

 

Snow? ... I hope you know we rarely see snow and if so, during in winter months only. Some folks might be under the impression we live in the land of ice and snow, igloos and such. Our weather is very similar to Seattle and Portland. I'll pick up a higher potassium 'K' fertilizer for this growing season. Thanks.

[Pedro 65]

2 hours ago, Las Palmas Norte said:

Snow? ... I hope you know we rarely see snow and if so, during in winter months only. Some folks might be under the impression we live in the land of ice and snow, igloos and such. Our weather is very similar to Seattle and Portland. I'll pick up a higher potassium 'K' fertilizer for this growing season. Thanks.

Barrie, I wasnt saying it snows all year where you live, and like the rest of the World it snows in Winter , we even have snow way down Sth in the NSW/Vic Highlands, but only in winter  

If your Tibouchina lives outside and it snows in winter then you will have some dead stems left and I doubt very much it would recover, I here in the land downunder in Oz have "no Idea " on Seattle and Portlands winter climate.

All that blah, aside I just felt I had to write what Ive written.

Good luck with your Tibouchina       Pete

Below is a pic of Tibouchina Blue , pic taken off the net  from Logan Tree Farm QLD

                                                       

                                                       

[Las Palmas Norte]

That's a very striking plant. I've not seen or heard of that one around anywhere here.

Thanks again for the advise and my potted Tibouchina will remain that way ... potted.

Cheers, Barrie.

[JasonD]

Plants on the Northern California coast occasionally get mowed to the ground in big freezes and come back from the roots or trunks. It may be worth getting yours up to a substantial size and planting it in the ground and protecting it during the winter. They are fast growers, undemanding.

[Ben in Norcal]

6 hours ago, JasonD said:

Plants on the Northern California coast occasionally get mowed to the ground in big freezes and come back from the roots or trunks. It may be worth getting yours up to a substantial size and planting it in the ground and protecting it during the winter. They are fast growers, undemanding.

It's funny you bumped this today, Jason, as I just picked up a 5ft or so plant yesterday!  I have it mostly under cover but it does get a couple of hours of late afternoon sun - which as you know can be brutal here.  Hope it makes it!

[JasonD]

On July 18, 2016 at 7:34:46 AM, Ben in Norcal said:

It's funny you bumped this today, Jason, as I just picked up a 5ft or so plant yesterday!  I have it mostly under cover but it does get a couple of hours of late afternoon sun - which as you know can be brutal here.  Hope it makes it!

Ben, in your microclimate it should do very well. The main issue will be the dry heat; their blooms seems to last longer in the fog belt.

[Hillizard]

First white flower on this plant I got earlier in March. It appears it will be a much smaller shrub than the more common purple-flowered species. It's supposed to be hardy in the 9b zone. I'll keep it in a pot until I figure out where I'd plant it in the garden.  Ruler in 2nd pix is for scale.

"Melastoma [formerly Tibouchina] lepidota alba is a white flowering, semi-tropical, medium-sized tree-like shrub native to South America. The white-flowered variety is somewhat rare and lesser known. It is commonly called Andean Princess and also sometimes referenced as Ecuador Princess, Alstonville, Glory Bush, and Lasiandra, but those names generally refer to the purple flowering types of this same species as others."