Pleroma urvilleanum, synonym Tibouchina urvilleana,[1] is a species of flowering plant in the family Melastomataceae, native to Brazil.

Pleroma urvilleanum
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Myrtales
Family: Melastomataceae
Genus: Pleroma
Species:
P. urvilleanum
Binomial name
Pleroma urvilleanum
(DC.) P.J.F.Guim. & Michelang.[1]
Synonyms[1]
  • Lasiandra macrantha Vuk.
  • Lasiandra urvilleana DC.
  • Tibouchina paulistana Hoehne
  • Tibouchina urceolaris var. papillosa Hoehne
  • Tibouchina urvilleana (DC.) Cogn.

Common names include:

  • glory bush
  • lasiandra[2]
  • princess flower
  • pleroma
  • purple glory tree[3]

The specific epithet urvilleanum commemorates the 19th-century French explorer and botanist Jules Dumont d'Urville.[4]

Description

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Growing to 3–6 m (10–20 ft) tall by 2–3 m (7–10 ft) wide, it is a sprawling evergreen shrub with longitudinally veined, dark green hairy leaves. Clusters of brilliant purple flowers up to 10 cm (4 in) in diameter, with black stamens, are borne throughout summer and autumn.[5]

Cultivation

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Under the synonym Tibouchina urvilleana, Pleroma urvilleanum has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.[2][6]

With a minimum temperature of 3 °C (37 °F), it requires some winter protection, and in temperate areas is often grown in a conservatory. However, it can also be grown outside in a sunny, sheltered spot.[7] Plants are best grown in acidic and well-drained soils and spread by suckers. It can be trained as a vine and grown on a trellis.[8]

References

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  1. ^ a b c "Pleroma urvilleanum (DC.) P.J.F.Guim. & Michelang". Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 2022-05-04.
  2. ^ a b "RHS Plant Selector - Tibouchina urvilleana". Retrieved 12 March 2021.
  3. ^ "Pleroma urvilleanum". Germplasm Resources Information Network. Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture.
  4. ^ Harrison, Lorraine (2012). RHS Latin for gardeners. United Kingdom: Mitchell Beazley. p. 224. ISBN 9781845337315.
  5. ^ RHS A-Z encyclopedia of garden plants. United Kingdom: Dorling Kindersley. 2008. p. 1136. ISBN 978-1405332965.
  6. ^ "AGM Plants - Ornamental" (PDF). Royal Horticultural Society. July 2017. p. 102. Retrieved 23 December 2018.
  7. ^ "ENH791/ST633: Tibouchina urvilleana: Princess Flower".
  8. ^ "Tibouchina urvilleana - Plant Finder". www.missouribotanicalgarden.org. Retrieved 2018-07-03.