Garden Blog - Top Tropicals

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What flowers do NOT attract bees? A Top Tropicals Garden Blog post.

Butterfly on a flower that doesn't attract bees

❌� What flowers do NOT attract bees?

Most tropical flowers bring in pollinators, and bees are usually first in line. But what if you’d rather avoid them? Maybe you’re allergic, or just don’t want bees buzzing around. Good news: some flowers attract butterflies, hummingbirds, moths, or even flies - but not bees.
  • 👉 Quick rules:

  • ✔️ Night-blooming + strong fragrance = moths or bats, not bees.
  • ✔️ Red tubular flowers with little scent = hummingbirds or butterflies, not bees.
  • ✔️ Rotten or fermented smell = flies, not bees.
  • ✔️ Carnivorous plants = trap insects, no bee nectar.


1. Night-blooming, fragrant - moth and bat flowers

Bees forage by day, so many night-fragrant flowers skip them.
  • ▫️Brugmansia - Angel’s Trumpet - big, hanging blooms, moth and bat pollinated.
  • ▫️Cestrum nocturnum - Night-blooming Jasmine - powerful night scent, moths only.
  • ▫️Hylocereus Dragon Fruit - huge cactus flowers, bats and moths.
  • ▫️Brunfelsia - Lady of the Night - sweet fragrance at dusk, no bee interest.


    • 2. Hummingbird and butterfly flowers

    Bees don’t see red well. Tubular reds, oranges, and yellows usually go to birds and butterflies.
  • ▫️Hibiscus - hummingbirds and butterflies visit, bees less so.
  • ▫️Heliconis and Gingers - designed for hummingbird beaks, bold tubes are for birds, not bees.
  • ▫️More good picks: Ruellia, Sanchezia, Aeschynanthus, Aphelandra, Anisacanthus, Cuphea, Fuchsia, Iochroma, Justicia, Lonicera, Hamelia, Russelia, Odontonema, Tecomaria, Bougainvillea.


    • 3. 🐱 Fly-pollinated oddballs

    Some flowers smell bad to us but irresistible to flies.
  • ▫️Amorphophallus (Voodoo Lily) - rotting meat scent.
  • ▫️Tacca (Bat Head Lily) - spooky black flowers, fly-pollinated.
  • ▫️Stapelia (Carrion Flower) - also fly-pollinated.
  • ▫️Aristolochia (Pelican Flower) - giant, bizarre fly-traps.


    • 4. 🌸 Specialized orchids

    Not all orchids rely on bees. Many use moths, butterflies, or beetles instead.
  • ▫️Vanilla orchid - its natural bee pollinator is absent in most regions, so no bee appeal elsewhere.
  • ▫️Brassavola nodosa and others - open at night for moths, not bees.


    • 5. 🕷 Bonus: carnivorous curiosities

    Carnivorous plants don’t offer nectar. They trap insects instead, so bees stay away.
  • ▫️Nepenthes (Pitcher Plant) - uses pitchers of liquid to lure and digest insects.


These flowers keep the beauty, fragrance, and wildlife appeal - but without making your garden a bee hotspot.

🛒 Explore butterfly attractors

#Butterfly_Plants #How_to #Discover

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The secret to abundant dragon fruit harvests. A Top Tropicals Garden Blog post.

The secret to abundant dragon fruit harvests
✍️The secret to abundant dragon fruit harvests

🔴 Dragon fruit (Pitaya) thrives when it's fed regularly. For the best results, use Sunshine C-Cibus, a complete liquid fertilizer made for fruit trees. It is gentle enough to apply with every watering, all year long, and it gives your plants the steady nutrition they need to set more flowers and produce bigger harvests.

🛒 Order Sunshine C-Cibus liquid plant booster

#Food_Forest #How_to #Dragon_Fruit #Fertilizers

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Pitaya vs Dragon fruit - what is the difference and how to grow it? A Top Tropicals Garden Blog post.

Pitaya vs Dragon fruit - what is the difference and how to grow it?
🌵 Pitaya vs Dragon fruit - what is the difference and how to grow it?

  • 🍉 Pitaya and Dragon Fruit are the same plant!

    • Both names refer to climbing cacti in the genus Hylocereus. The word pitaya is more common in Latin America, while dragon fruit is the name used in Asia and English-speaking countries. They come in different types: white-fleshed (Hylocereus undatus), red-fleshed (Hylocereus costaricensis), and yellow-skinned (Hylocereus, or Selenicereus megalanthus). All share the same growth habit and care needs. Pitaya or dragon fruit - whichever name you use, it's one of the easiest exotic fruits to grow at home.

  • 🍉 How to grow Dragon Fruit

  • ▫️Get a desired variety or start from a cutting - let the cut end dry for a few days before planting to prevent rot.
  • ▫️Plant in well-draining soil with lots of sun.
  • ▫️Give it a strong support to climb on - it's a vining cactus.
  • ▫️Water deeply but let the soil dry between waterings.
  • ▫️Flowers open at night and need pollination - some types are self-fertile, others need cross-pollination.
  • ▫️With care, you can enjoy fruit in 1-2 years. Remember to ferilize!


🍉 Dragon fruit varieties

  • 🔴 ⚪️ Red skin, white flesh (Hylocereus undatus) - The most popular type, and the biggest fruit. Mildly sweet, refreshing, and often compared to a kiwi crossed with a pear.

    • Varieties: David Bowie, Delight, Hana, Lake Atitlan, Seoul Kitchen, Vietnamese Jaina, Hana

  • 🔴🔴 Red skin, red flesh (Hylocereus costaricensis) - Sweeter, juicier, and more intense in flavor. The deep red juice can stain, but it’s loaded with antioxidants.

    • Varieties: American Beauty, Bloody Mary, Eureka Red, Costa Rican Sunset, Mac Edwin, Halleys Comet, Mac Edwin, Makisupa, Mega Red, Physical Graffiti, Sweet Red

  • 🔴🟣 Red flesh, purple/magenta flesh (Hylocereus x costaricensis) - Hybrids, usually between red and white varieties.

Varieties: Cosmic Charlie, Edgar's Baby, Halleys Comet, Natural Mystic, Physical Graffiti, Purple Haze, Tricia, Voodoo Child, Zamorano

🟡⚪️ Yellow skin, white flesh (Hylocereus, or Selenicereus megalanthus) - Smaller fruit, but the sweetest of all. Crisp, juicy, and tropical with notes of pineapple or honey.
Varieties: Amarilla (Kirin), Colimbiana, Godlen Dragon, Palora, Thai Gold (Hawaiian)

Each type looks stunning and tastes slightly different, but all are easy to grow once you give them sun, support, and patience.

🛒 Explore and collect Dragon Fruit varieties

📚 Learn more:

#Food_Forest #How_to #Dragon_Fruit

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How to grow ground orchids. A Top Tropicals Garden Blog post.

💮 How to grow ground orchids

📱

📚Learn more:

#Shade_Garden #Container_Garden #How_to

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How to turn an ugly fence into a Perfume Fence. A Top Tropicals Garden Blog post.

Fragrant plants - plumerias and jasmines

🏡 How to turn an ugly fence into a Perfume Fence

🍖 Your fence could smell better than your neighbor’s grill!
  • 📌Got a plain or ugly fence? Just cover it up! We did just that and created a Perfume Fence.
  • 📌First, we planted Hawaiian Plumeria trees along the fence line. Then we added vining jasmines to climb the wire fence and smother it in flowers. Each jasmine has its own fragrance - some sweet, some rich, some spicy - and together they make the whole fence smell incredible!
  • 📌Soon the wire won’t even show - just a living wall of blossoms and perfume drifting through the garden.


Here are some of the best plants you can use to make your own fragrant fence:

🛒 Explore fragrant plants

#Perfume_Plants #Hedges_with_benefits #How_to

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Who is stealing my fruit?! How to protect mango fruit from critters. A Top Tropicals Garden Blog post.

How to protect mango fruit from critters

🐰 Who’s stealing my fruit?! How to protect mango fruit from critters.
  • It's Mango season! But somehow, the mangoes are disappearing. Looks familiar? Squirrels, bunnies, birds, rats, raccoons… They all love the fruit. But sharing? Not so much. You’re lucky to get their leftovers!
  • Here’s what we do to protect our mangoes and avocados - and it works! We use fruit protection bags. They are made of a strong mesh netting with easy drawstrings - keep out bugs, birds, and every other freeloading critter! Just slip it over the fruit and tighten both ends. They’re inexpensive, about 15 cents each, worth every penny! 💰


🐁🐿 Save your fruit - and maybe even have some left to share!

🛒 Don't own a mango tree yet? Plant one now to enjoy fruit tomorrow!

📚 Learn more:
How to protect fruit in your garden from greedy competitors
Penelope, the Squirrel Cat

#How_to #Food_Forest #Mango_Rainbow #Mango

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How to re-pot a plant properly? A Top Tropicals Garden Blog post.

Re-potting a plant quick guide

How to re-pot a plant properly?
  • ✔️ Take a pot a few inches bigger - just enough for the root ball.
  • ✔️ Add some well-drained potting mix at the bottom.

❗️Make sure the plant sits at the same level as before - this is the key!
  • ✔️ Add a good fertilizer at the bottom. We use professional Green Magic - controlled release.
  • ✔️ Turn the plant upside down and gently remove it from the old pot. Loosen up roots if root bound. Set it on top of the soil and check the level again.
  • ✔️ Add more fertilizer around the sides and fill in with soil, pressing around the edges.
  • ✔️ Check the level one more time.
  • ✔️ Water thoroughly - and you are done! Happy growing!


🛒 Shop top-quality supplies:

📚 Learn more:
How to Plant a Tree - A Fun Guide

#How_to

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How to grow Dragon Fruit from a cutting - Quick Guide. A Top Tropicals Garden Blog post.

Dragon fruit, Pitaya - Hylocereus sp.

🌵 How to grow Dragon Fruit from a cutting - Quick Guide
  • 🐉 Get a healthy cutting

    • Use a 6-10 inch long stem cutting from a mature dragon fruit plant. Let the cut end dry in the shade for 2-5 days so it forms a callus. This also helps prevent rot and fungus.
  • 🐉 Prepare the soil

    • Use well-draining soil - well drained potting mix, Adenium mix, or cactus mix is ideal. Dragon fruit hates wet feet!
  • 🐉 Plant the cutting

    • Stick the callused end about 2-3 inches deep into the soil. Make sure it's planted upright (the way it grew on the parent plant).
  • 🐉 Support it

    • Add a trellis or post. Dragon fruit is a climbing cactus and needs something to grow on.
  • 🐉 Water lightly

    • Water once after planting, then wait until the soil dries before watering again. Overwatering can rot the cutting.
  • 🐉 Give it sun and warmth

    • Place in bright, indirect sunlight while it roots. Once established, it can handle full sun.
  • 🐉 Watch it grow!

Roots usually form in 2-4 weeks. New growth means it's taking off! This is the time to Ferilize it!

🛒Shop Dragon Fruit plants and cuttings

📚 Learn more:

#Food_Forest #How_to #Dragon_Fruit

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Bug off! Simple and safe ways to clean your plants. A Top Tropicals Garden Blog post.

Simple and safe way to clean plants

🕷 Bug off! Simple and safe way to clean your plants
  • 🕷 Got pests? Try this quick, organic fix:

▫️1 cup warm water
  • ▫️1 tsp cooking oil
  • ▫️A few drops of dish soap

    • Mix it up and wipe leaves with a soft cloth or paper towel. Works great for aphids, mealybugs, spider mites, and whiteflies.

  • 🕷For sucking insects like scale, you may need a stronger solution, like a systemic insecticide from local garden center. Try products containing Imidacloprid (also safe and found in flea shampoos).
  • 🕷Got sooty mold on leaves? Wipe with household hydrogen peroxide, then rinse.
  • 🕷 SUNSHINE NoBug - Natural Plant Protector works for all kinds of bugs! Fast. Easy. No bugs!


🛒 Stay bug-free with SUNSHINE NoBug - Natural Plant Protector

📚 Learn more:

#How_to

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How to grow tropical fruit outside the Tropics. A Top Tropicals Garden Blog post.

Tropical fruit trees grown in containers

Tropical fruit trees grown in containers

How to grow tropical fruit outside the Tropics

👨‍� Can you grow tropical fruit in colder climates? Absolutely! The key is growing them in containers so you can move them indoors during cold weather. With the right plant selection, a bit of motivation, good plant food, and a little love, you can enjoy a delicious harvest of exotic fruit - enough to treat your family and even share with friends. Here's everything you need to start your own Tropical Fruit Garden in containers.

🏆 Top tropical fruits and expert tips for growing in containers

🛒 Shop top picks for your container tropical garden:

Condo Mango
Cold hardy Avocado
🍒 Tropical Cherries - Eugenias
⭐️ Carambola (Start Fruit)
🍉 Guava
🍈 Annona
🍍 Pineapple
🌶 Herbs and spices - tropical edibles right away
🕙 Fast-fruiting trees
🍊 Shop all fruit trees
Supplies and Boosters

#Food_Forest #How_to #Discover

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