[3] In the original description of the species, it was suggested that the plant was inhaled to treat chest pain and dry coughs.

[4] Tibouchina aspera is a subshrub with densely scaly indumentum on the stem, petiole, calyces and hypanthium.

The description was based on a specimen from French Guiana which is currently kept in the herbarium at the Natural History Museum in London.

[7] There are three described varieties:[2] Tibouchina aspera is widely distributed in Central and South America, including in Belize, Bolivia, Colombia, French Guiana, Guyana, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru, Suriname, Venezuela, and in the Brazilian states of Amapá, Roraima, Amazonas, Pará, Acre, Rondônia, Maranháo, and Mato Grosso.

[5] It is commonly found in the cerrado, campinas and restingas in humid, sandy soil.