TIBOUCHINA semidecandra

Fascinating semi-deciduous shrub with expanded and rapid developing purse, native to South America. Branched and lignified from the base, it has stems initially erected and then arched by the silvery bark and the characteristic quadrangular section that allow the plant to reach and exceed in nature the 3.50 meters high and the same in width: in the semi-woody portions of the branches there are large oval-lanceolate leaves of intense green color and marked opposite delicately velvety ribs. From the beginning of summer and until late October, the apexes of the stems are surmounted by loose inflorescences composed of large cup flowers formed by only 5 petals of a really showy blue-violet.

It prefers sunny locations and well-drained fertile soils. It tolerates temperatures of a few degrees lower than 0°C, or it will result defoliated; during summer-time it doesn’t love long periods of drought and prefers regular constant wetting. Direct exposure to salt winds is also to be avoided as they could compromise its general aesthetic appearance. At the vegetative restart, it can lightly be pruned in order to remove dry branches or fragments of bulk and allow a greater thickening of the shrub. Suitable in the garden to create informal hedges with a dazzling summer bloom, it lends itself very well to growing in pots or large containers of hanging gardens; very elegant alone, it can be combined very well with other essences of the same subtropical flavor such as, for example, Hibiscus or Bougainvillea.