Datura: a fragrant treat for tropical or indoor garden

Q: A few years ago I purchased Datura from you and it was doing well. As a matter of fact I took cuttings and propagated new plants. Now they have markings on the leaves and I do not know what it is. Any remedy?

A: Generally, Datura is a bi-annual plant, unlike its close relative perennial Brugmansia that grows for many years. Which means, Datura is short-lived (2-3 years maximum for the same plant) although it seeds easily and is a very fast grower, reaching from seedling to 4-5 ft size in a matter of couple months.
At this time of the year, markings on the leaves may be a result of normal aging (the plant may already exhausted its natural cycle) in combination with a cool weather that affects the leaves and overall look.
Here at Top Tropicals we especially love this plant and keep up with propagating new plants every few months. Propagation may be by means of seeds or cuttings, but seeds are always better for stronger, longer-lasting Datura specimens. A lot of times you will notice little baby seedlings around the Mother plant, even if you think all seeds has been harvested.
Just continue growing younger plants from seeds, and Datura will always be with you in your garden to bring you joy of showy scented flowers. It makes a great houseplant too!

Read more about Datura...

Improve your intellect with Ashoka,
the tree of Happiness
(Saraca indica, the Sorrowless Tree)

Q: I have recently visited India and saw the most beautiful Ashoka trees at the entrance to a temple. The flowers were simply show stopping, growing directly on the trunk and branches. I would love to grow one. I have been told it has significant medicinal properties. I am delighted to see you have them in your inventory. And they are on sale too! Are they easy to grow?

A: Ashoka or Saraca indica is one of the most exotic flowering trees of the Indian subcontinent. Without a doubt it is one of the most stunning Indian flowering trees. Buddhists, Jains and Hindus all hold this tree in extremely high esteem and it is considered a sacred tree. Ashoka is extremely highly valued for nutritional value as well as its beautiful appearance. No surprise then that they are often found in royal palace grounds and gardens as well as around temples throughout India. Young leaves are a stunning deep pink color and emerge at the end of branches like hanging tassels. This tree will typically grow to around 20 feet and is a brilliant bloomer. It will wow you with large, round clusters of fragrant flowers throughout the year. Almost all parts of this tree are widely used for different medicinal purpose. It reportedly even helps to improve intellect! Simply amazing...

Meet PeopleCats of TopTropicals. Cat of the Day: Klaksa - the Mini Cat

Klaksa is a miniature 6 lb cat that lives together with Jim and Google. You can see all three of them wishing you Merry Christmas at the top of this Newsletter. Klaksa is the tiniest Purrson and yet she is the most energetic one. It is almost impossible to take a picture of her because she never stops moving for a second!
Klaksa came in 2016 as a little kitten, but she never grew up since! She saw Google and Jim and said she could be a good addition to this "Man in Black" team. So she stayed.
Klaksa likes to attach/cling to someone. The boys can't avoid her company even if they wanted too! But who can say no to woman's attention?

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EASY GROW-BOX

How to quickly germinate tropical seeds in winter

Q: I live in the New England area where the winters are very long and dreary. I plant both a veggie and flower garden during the warmer seasons and am especially fond of growing chili-peppers. On account of most chili's longer growing seasons, I need to get already established plants in the ground as soon as the weather is warm enough. My problem is that despite my best attempts to germinate and grow seedlings ahead of time - even in my sunniest window - I just can't seem to keep the soil evenly warm enough to get them to germinate, no matter how warm the room is kept. And on the occasion they do come up, the seedlings always seem to remain weak and stunted, likely owing to the especially low humidity of winter. I also tried using an electric seed-starting heating pad, and the results were only a little better. Are there any tips you could give me?

A: Yes, I understand your issues and can sympathize! While it might be surprising to some, even here in sunny S.W. Florida, there are long stretches of winter weather where the ambient temperatures are simply too cold for germinating many of the more tropical seeds, such as the notoriously warm-weather chili-peppers. Also, I am likewise a fan of chilis, and always have at least a few different kinds growing at any given time. I have two great suggestions...

CONTINUE READING >>

Meet PeopleCats of TopTropicals. Cat of the Day: Google the Cat. The Brain.

Google is the second oldest cat of TopTropicals, after Jim. Google lives in the same house with Jim where they both help us to develop new features for our website.
Google is the most intelligent cat on Planet Earth. Originally we got him from an animal shelter after his first adoption failed: someone returned him back to the shelter... It was hard to believe because he was so cute... but soon enough, we realized why someone was spooked away... Google is TOO smart! When he looks at you and rolls his eyes, you instantly have a feeling that he can literally see through you, and read your mind... It didn't scare us, of course. On opposite, Google became very helpful with writing database codes, engineering difficult construction tasks, and other comprehensive projects that require a brilliant intellect. Since 2007, Google has been a personal assistant of one of the TopTropicals owners, and their minds are worth each other. Google never leaves his desk until he makes sure every complicated task is completed.
Google loves little children (for conversations), shrimp (for snacks) and hi-tech projects (for fun).

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Meet PeopleCats of TopTropicals. Cat of the Day: Bagheera

Bagheera and Mowgli are Kristi's PeopleCats, originally they came together and they stick together. As little kittens, they were raised by Moe, the Mama-cat. Although she is not technically their Mom, but... she is a Mom for everyone!

Bagheera was born with his brother at a gator farm. He was too little to leave his mom, but he needed out. Bagheera is one of the sweetest boys we know. When he was a baby he could not sleep without laying on Kristi's face, both paws stretching across her mouth. Now he's a big brave boy. He rules the inside PeopleCats, stealing food from his human's plates and asking forgiveness at night when he lays above your head with his hands on your face. He's a reminder that we are all still little kittens on the inside...

Bagheera's new nicknames are Mr Biggs, Biggie and Biggy Biggy Biggy!

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Meet PeopleCats of TopTropicals. Charlie, the Indoor Hunter

Carlie was a kitty drop off with LadyBug, Rickie, and Purry.
Charlie is Jamie's baby. She has an attitude of a teenager, one minute she loves you and the next - wants nothing to do with you. Carlie stays with the inside PeopleCats, she says it's too big in the outside world for her and she gets scared. Carlie has a fun game (fun to her): she plays around 2:00 am in the morning, she loves to drag random items down the hall (socks, toys, shirts, even blankets) in her mouth MEOOOWWWING as loud as she can. She then sets the items down on her human's bedroom rug and waits for her human to say thank you. We're pretty sure her hunting instinct is off...

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Saving Fallen Papaya Tree

Q: Hope there is help for my beautiful amazing papaya tree! There where a loooooooot of fruits on it, but it broke! First of all, it was leaning and friends tried to straight my beautiful tree. What can I do? Will it get fruits again?

A: A couple months ago we also had a Papaya tree loaded with fruit that fell down (see photos). It was heart-breaking. We secured it and it continued growing for a couple of weeks but unfortunately, at the end the tree still died, leaving us a million fruit. The Papaya tree has a very sensitive root system and is hard to re-establish once the roots are damaged.
However, if it just has a broken top, it has a good chance to grow back from the side shoots.
Of course, remove all the fruit so they don't take energy from the recovering tree.
When a tree is loaded with fruit, it is important to provide support for heavy branches and for the trunk if needed. Always support the fruiting tree to prevent from possible falling BEFORE it starts leaning down and may become broken by even a light wind.
In the photo, you can see how we fixed boards around, but it was already after the tree fell. Unfortunately, it was too late since the roots got damaged. Always need to stake the tree up before the branches get too heavy!

RECOMMENDED FERTILIZERS:
Fruit Festival Plant Food - Super Crop Booster
Mango-Food - Smart Release Fruit Tree Booster
SUNSHINE-Honey - sugar booster

Meet PeopleCats of TopTropicals. Fearless Mr Barcy, the Boss

Mr Barcy is the Boss. He owns the property, the street, the neighborhood, and the City of Ft Myers. Once he told us that he owns the whole State of Florida too but he won't go any further... for political reasons he preferred not to disclose.
Along with Chief, Mr Barcy is one of the oldest cats of TopTropicals.
His story is, some 10 years ago, he was sitting in Animal Control shelter in Sebring, FL with no one wanting to adopt him... His "time" expired and he was supposed to be put down on Friday... Someone sent us his picture in a shelter cage and... on Wednesday, we picked him up (along with a few other "scheduled" cats). Since then, Mr Barcy has been living with us, running the business, and being the smartest Purrrson we ever met.
As a Boss, Mr Barcy has his own GPS tracker - and he walks 3-4 miles every day (not bad for a senior purrson ah?) around his premises, keeping operations under control, and himself in great shape.
In his leisure time, Mr Barcy prefers mice- and snake- hunting, keeping the neighborhood safe and monitored. He can walk a human without using a leash, and his tail is ALWAYS up!

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Gardenia flowers: how to prevent bud-drop

Q: My gardenia looks beautiful, but the flowers fall off of it before they even open up, the majority of them get this brown color at their base. Can you point me in the right direction.

A: There are 3 possible problems, either one, or a combination:
1) Lack of light
2) Too much water
3) Lack of micro-nutrients in soil
Try the following treatments:
- micro-elements SUNSHINE-SuperFood as foliar spray + drench rootball, once a month, it will improve quality of the flowers.
- Silicon protection: SUNSHINE-Power-Si. This supplement has Silicon as an active element (Si). Adding it to soil or/and over foliar spray can immensely enhance plants' resistance to external factors and boost their growth and health.
Make sure the soil is not soggy, reduce watering especially during fall/winter.