If you’re looking for a small evergreen tree that’ll give you shade and privacy, then one of the Tibouchinas would be an ideal choice. Their colour is outstanding too, most of them bursting into full bloom in late summer / early autumn. Tibouchina granulosa, with it's purple flowers starts the ball rolling in January and flowers for months. 

Possibly the best known of all the Tibouchinas is T. ‘Alstonville’ which starts flowering in February. It was bred from on of our native lasiandras and was first introduced to the market by a plant grower and resident of Alstonville, the late Ken Dunstan. It grows comfortably to about 5-7m tall. When you take a closer look, the foliage is a velvety dark green which complements the deep purple flowers beautifully.

If you find the deep purple of 'Alstonville' a little too much for you taste, then check out some of the other varieties with lighter coloured blooms. There's T. 'Noelene' with white and mauve flowers and T. 'Kathleen' with it's pretty pink blooms.

Short on space? Then consider the purple flowering T. 'Jules', a compact shrub variety that gets to about 1m tall. It makes a great border and grows well in tubs.

While Tibouchinas grow in most parts of Australia, the one thing they don’t tolerate well is frost. They don’t like strong winds either, so make sure you can find them a spot where they can get some protection. 

What they do like is plenty of sun, good drainage and a regular deep soaking. They respond well to pruning too, which is great way to keep them looking good. Just a light trim after flowering is all they need. If you're in a colder part of the country, you may wish to hold off this pruning until spring.