Garden Blog - Top Tropicals
Date:
Anthurium Collector Set
These aren't your typical tropicals - they're collector-grade Anthuriums grown for foliage and texture. Each one brings something different, but they all thrive in the same kind of setting: shade or filtered light, warmth, and humidity. Perfect for growing in containers indoors or out.
Anthurium Black Dragon
This is the most dramatic of the trio. Upright, leathery leaves shift from dark green to nearly black depending on light. Instead of bright flowers, it produces a dark brown spadix and glowing red berries. A hybrid not found in the wild, it's grown from seed - no two are exactly alike.
- Best for: Indoor focal plant, shaded patio, black ceramic pot
- Height: 2–4 ft in container
- Texture: Thick, architectural leaves
- Highlight: Color shifts with light intensity
Read more about Black Dragon Anthurium
Anthurium hookeri – Giant Bird's
Nest
This one's about scale. Broad, crinkled leaves with a cardboard-like texture form a bold rosette. It can get huge with time - up to 6 feet across. Perfect for gardeners who want the "instant jungle" look.
- Best for: Shaded garden, large pots on porches
- Height: Up to 5 ft; width even more
- Texture: Wrinkled and leathery
- Highlight: Bright red berries in maturity
Buy Giant Bird's Nest Anthurium
Read more about Giant Bird's Nest Anthurium
Anthurium vittarifolium – Long
Leaf Anthurium
Graceful and rare, this species sends out narrow strap-like leaves that can reach 5–6 ft long. Ideal for hanging baskets or mounting. Bonus: it produces small pink fruit against deep green foliage.
- Best for: Hanging displays, vertical planters, bright bathrooms
- Height: Leaf length, not upright height - up to 6 ft
- Texture: Smooth, ribbon-like
- Highlight: Cascading growth and color contrast
Read more about Long Leaf Anthurium
✅ How to Care for Anthuriums
- Light: Bright, indirect light is best. Avoid direct sun, especially mid-day. These plants evolved in rainforest understory - think "dappled light under trees."
- Water: Keep the soil lightly moist but not soggy. Let the top inch dry before watering. They hate wet feet.
- Humidity: These are tropicals - they'll do fine in 50-60% humidity, but thrive at 70%+. Use pebble trays or place near other plants. Bathrooms with windows work great.
- Soil: Use an airy mix: orchid bark + perlite + peat or coco coir. Drainage is key. Never use plain potting soil.
- Fertilizer: Feed with SUNSHINE Robusta every 2–4 weeks during warm seasons. It's formulated for aroids and won't burn roots.
- Potting: Use shallow, wide containers. Repot only every 2–3 years, or when roots crowd the pot. They don't like frequent disruption.
- Temperature: Ideal: 65–85 F. Short dips to the 30s F are tolerated by mature plants, but avoid cold drafts.
Date:
Shady spots aren't a problem - they're an opportunity
Photo above: Niki and Cash, the Top Tropicals PeopleCats-in-residence, lounging in a lush indoor jungle
Most tropical gardens have at least one corner that gets morning light, filtered sun, or just bright shade - and that's exactly where Anthuriums thrive, along with many other shade-loving plants. That makes them ideal for spaces where other tropicals struggle.
Don't have a greenhouse? You don't need one. Anthuriums do beautifully on a shaded porch, in a screened lanai, or even indoors near a north or east-facing window. They're perfect for:
- Bathrooms with natural light
- Bright kitchens with indirect sun
- Shaded entryways or under eaves
- Hanging baskets under tree cover
- Mounting on cork or wood in humid areas
Even a small space can feel like a tropical conservatory with the right plant - and Anthuriums bring that look without being demanding. They grow slowly, stay manageable, and don't need constant pruning or repotting.
Best of all, they reward consistency. Keep them warm, give them some humidity, water when the top inch feels dry, and they'll stay healthy for years. No drama - just quiet, lasting beauty. If you've never grown tropicals in the shade, this is where to start.
Operation of life
"Alcohol is the anesthesia by which we endure the operation of life." - George Bernard Shaw
🐈📸 Mr B is chilling at Top Tropicals PeopleCats.Garden.
#PeopleCats #Quotes
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The morning glory that sleeps in? Alamo Vine - the noon-blooming mystery
Ipomoea sinuata - Alamo Vine
- 💮 Ipomoea sinuata - Alamo Vine or Woodrose isn't your average morning glory.
- 💮It's a fast-growing, very fine vine with feathery, soft-textured leaves that look like they belong in a fairytale.
- 💮 And its white pretty blooms? They're a little rebellious! Opening around noon instead of morning, then closing again before sunset.
- 💮 Perfect for trellises, fences, or even a container if you want a vine with personality. Attracts butterflies and bees.
- 💮 It's fast, it's different, and it's ready to cover a small fence or trellis.
🛒 Add this noontime bloomer to your garden
#Hedges_with_benefits #Butterfly_Plants
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Big energy for small spaces
Cats Scooby, Timo, James Coconuts and Matilda
"May your home always be too small to hold all your friends." - Irish blessing
🐈📸 Scooby, Timo, James Coconuts and Matilda showing off at Top Tropicals Bfarm (PeopleCats.Garden)
#PeopleCats #Quotes
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Why tipping mango trees makes them fruiting machines (DIY Garden Tip)
📱
🌳 Want more mangoes from your backyard tree?
In this step-by-step guide, Ed from Top Tropicals in Fort Myers, Florida, shows how to tip mango trees to boost branching, improve structure, and increase fruit production. Whether you're growing Valencia Pride, Orange Sherbet, or Glen mangoes - this method works!
✔️ You'll learn:
▫️When and how to tip branches- ▫️ What tools to use (and how to clean them)
- ▫️Real before-and-after results from trees in our Florida garden
- ▫️Tips for shaping young trees for long-term success
🛒 Get your own mango trees
🌱 More garden tips and tropical fruit care
#Food_Forest #Mango #Mango_Rainbow
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Do pet repellers work? Here is your answer
Bob, James Coconuts, Scooby and Philemon the cats
Product marketing line:
"Keep your pets off furniture painlessly with our pet repeller mat, deterring them with sound and texture, protecting your belongings."
Right.
🐈📸 Bob, James Coconuts, Scooby and Philemon testing new TopTropicals protective gear at PeopleCats.Garden.
#PeopleCats
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Strawberry Guava for best Margaritas - the easiest fruit tree youll ever grow!
Strawberry Guava, Cattley Guava - Psidium littorale
- 🍓 If you're looking for a cold-hardy tropical fruit tree that thrives on neglect, you’ve found it: Strawberry Guava, or Cattley Guava (Psidium littorale). It's our favorite Guava at Top Tropicals!
- 🍓 This fast-growing, evergreen small tree or dense bush doesn’t mind poor soil, limestone, or salt. It’s hardy to the low 20s F, drought-tolerant once established, and can even handle short-term flooding. Great as a hedge, windbreak, or container specimen, it also adds beauty year-round with glossy green leaves, peeling reddish bark, and soft red new growth.
- 🍓 You’ll get round, tangy-sweet fruit from spring through fall - perfect for snacking, jams, or jellies, juices, and adding to all kinds of drinks, especially Margaritas and Mojitos! 🍸
- 🍓 The red and yellow types are both tasty, with the yellow often a bit larger and sweeter. The sweetest and the most flavorful Cattley Guava variety is Hawaiian Gold - Psidium littorale var. Lucidum. This one is our favorite for eating out of hand!
- 🍓 Cattley Guava is productive, low-maintenance, and ornamental - one of the easiest tropical fruit trees to grow in poor or alkaline soils.
🛒 Add a sweet guava hedge to your yard
📚 Learn more:
- ▫️Favorite Guava fruit for eating fresh
- ▫️Top 10 fast-fruiting trees: #2. Cattley and Tropical guava
- ▫️How to always have lots of Guava Juice
#Food_Forest #Guava
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Squeaky little things
Labrador puppies
Sweet Memories: our Labrador puppies - Wigglebutts - 2.5 years ago!
🐈📸 Sunshine, Draco, Lila and their brothers and sisters in December 2022 at Top Tropicals Bfarm PeopleCats.Garden.
#PeopleCats
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What is the best pineapple to grow at home
White Jade Pineapple - Eleuthera
- 🍍 Pineapple plants (Ananas comosus) are easy to grow, virtually carefree plants. You you plant a few - you will always have the benefit of fresh and delicious fruit on the table, full of health benefits.
- 🍍 White Jade Pineapple, also known as Eleuthera, is one of the most prized pineapple varieties you can grow at home - and for good reason. If you're only growing one pineapple, make it this one. And here is why:
✔️ Six reasons why you want to grow White Jade Pineapple
- 🟡Super sweet and low acid: White Jade has tender white flesh that's ultra-sweet with almost no acidity. The flavor is smooth and rich, far better than anything you'll find in a grocery store.
- 🟡Edible core: The core is soft, juicy, and 100% edible - no waste and no tough center.
- 🟡Spineless leaves: Unlike most pineapples, White Jade has soft, spineless leaves, making it much easier and safer to handle.
- 🟡Compact and container-friendly: It stays small, perfect for pots, patios, or tight garden spaces.
- 🟡Backyard hero, not for shipping: This variety bruises easily, so it's rarely seen in stores - but perfect for home gardeners who want top-tier taste.
- 🟡Tropical beauty + fast fruiting: With its blue-green foliage and striking fruit, it's ornamental as well as productive. Expect fruit in as little as 18-24 months with good care.
- 🍍 Although often mistaken as a Hawaiian variety, White Jade actually originated in Eleuthera, Bahamas. It thrives in warm climates and rewards gardeners with a sweet, low-acid treat unlike any commercial pineapple. It is grown in Hawaii now, especially by backyard gardeners and small farms, because it does so well there.
- 🍍 Make sure to feed your pineapple plants what they crave - sunshine and nutrients! Boost their growth with - SUNSHINE Ananas - Pineapple and Bromeliad Booster. This special formula gives your plants the energy they need to thrive and produce tons of sweet, juicy fruit just for you!
🛒 Plant the pineapple that grocery stores can’t sell
📚 Learn more:
- ▫️What are the best varieties of Pineapples?
- ▫️How we ate all pineapples from that ugly corner
- ▫️The most luscious Hospitality Fruit: Pineapple
- ▫️Three must-have fruit for every tropical garden
#Food_Forest #Container_Garden #Discover
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