Question
Can I start another plant from a cutting?  If so, how is it done?

Answer
Hi Karen,
Thanx for your question.  I think you are talking about Tibouchina urvilleana.  You can take soft-wood cuttings in the spring.  Take green wood, about 6-8 inches long.  Strip all the leaves off but the last two or three.  Dip in rooting hormone and bury about 1-2 inches deep in warm, wet sand, perlite or other growing medium.  Keep the bottom worm and I would enclose the pot and cutting inside a sealed, clear plastic bag.  This will facilitate humidity which is important.  About 8 weeks, gently dig around the cutting to look for roots.  If there is a sizeable enough root clump, gently lift the cutting out of the medium and plant in a separate pot.  Once the cutting starts leafing out nicely, it's ready to go outdoors in the shade for about 10 days and then in the desired spot in full sun.  If you are in a zone colder than 8, the plant will not survive outdoors.  It is a native of Brazil and only hardy in the U.S. in zones 8-11.  In Zone 8, it dies back to the ground but resprouts in the spring.  Another way you can propagate this plant is to cut it back and dig up the root ball and divide the root ball into separate root clumps.  This clump will produce another plant provide there is suffient root system.  I wouldn't go smaller than the size of a softball.  I hope this helps.
Tom