The princess flower (botanical name: Tibouchina urvilleana), which comes from Brazil, can also be maintained indoors all year round like a calla lily, but due to its strong growth it is more common to cultivate it as a container plant. Since the princess flower is very sensitive to frost, a protected winter quarters is necessary for overwintering.
How do you properly overwinter a princess flower?
To overwinter a princess flower (Tibouchina urvilleana) successfully, provide enough daylight, sparing watering, high humidity, occasional ventilation, no fertilization and temperatures between 10 and 15 degrees Celsius.
Make sure to change in time
Similar to care, a Tibouchina doesn't only become damaged when temperatures are really below zero, but also at cooler temperatures below 5 degrees Celsius. You should therefore not wait too long before moving into the house in autumn, otherwise irreparable damage to the princess flower may occur. Before overwintering, the plants should no longer be fertilized or watered too heavily for a few weeks.
The ideal conditions for wintering
The best way for a princess flower to get through the winter is to roughly adhere to the following conditions:
- enough daylight
- no waterlogging and economical watering
- high humidity, but please ventilate occasionally in mild weather
- no fertilization before new growth in spring
- Temperatures preferably between 10 and 15 degrees Celsius
Tip
The shrub, which is reminiscent of the violet with its characteristic flowers, should be repotted every year after winter if possible. The new planter should not be too large, otherwise the plant growth will be stimulated, but the number of flowers will be reduced. The rapidly growing branches can be cut back up to 3 times a year.