How to Prune Tibouchinas

[@mikedan297]

Wow! I didn't know the tibouchina plant can grow that big. I just bought one from Bunnings as tall as 30 cm. The label says 1.5 m height and 1 m width. Mine is Carol Lynne tibouchina. I just put it to the ground today.

[@jyap9675]

Hi, what happens if you dont cut it cleanly with a chainsaw? Can we just leave it before you used the chainsaw?

[@iCultivate1]

Thank you for your question. As with most plants, Tibouchinas will continue to grow until they reach what their maximum height is. Depending on your variety, this could be anywhere from about 2 metres through to about 10 metres. People prune for numerous reasons - to maintain a desirable shape and size, or to prevent the plant from becoming too large and branches perhaps a bit brittle. So, I mainly used the chainsaw to cut the trunk down to the level that I wanted. You could go without doing that - you just need to cut it down to level that you desire. Hope this helps :)

[@TambMtnLittleTheatre]

Which season of the year did you make this video? Is hard pruning done after flowering, say in February? I am in South East Queensland.

[@iCultivate1]

I am also in SE QLD 😄 - Sunshine Coast hinterland. This was done in spring, but in our part of the world, it doesn’t really matter.

[@LindieFockens]

👍😂

[@equestanton1017]

What kind of Tibouchina is this? I'm not sure why you didn't thin the pollarding out and start creating a desirable shape tree straight away. Why start again doing exactly what was done before. You can only decapitate a tree so many times before there's nothing left. If it's granulosa they are magnificent trees with a lovely natural open shape and should never be cut in this manner. Always think about what you are planting and where, go for a smaller version if needed. Cutting trees like this will ultimately lead to their demise, one overly wet seaon and it's tickets.