"Nick Maclaren" wrote in message
...

Please could you help me to make mine grow like that? It doesn't
seem unhappy, except that it is very sensitive to not being watered
and shows no symptoms before permanent damage occurs to its leaves,
but I cannot get it to thrive. It seems happier in cooler, damper
conditions, which is a bit bizarre given its leaves. But, even
keeping it well watered, it grows terribly slowly.

My initial plant was in the conservatory border, and never thrived,
and my current one is a cutting in a pot (4' high but spindly). And,
yes, it has never had less than full light.
Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

Hi Nick,

Mine is about three years old. It's in a large plastic pot. In summer it stands
on the terrace with sun for most of the day.

I always cut it right down about now and bring it into the frost free GH.
However last year I had an unnoticed power failure in the GH and it was down to
freezing for about two or three days. Consequently I lost a far number of
tender plants. I thought that the Tibuchina had also given up the ghost but it
started to sprout in late spring.

I gave it some fertilizer (pellets and some bone meal if I recall) and it took
of and is now at least 5ft and bushy. It's still flowering ATM.

Maybe some serious feeding might encourage it - or a touch of frost !
Jenny