Garden Blog - Top Tropicals

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The Tropical Cat. A Top Tropicals Garden Blog post.

The Tropical Cat

The Tropical Cat
💐 The Tropical Cat

"Man is what he believes." - Anton Chekhov

🐈📸 Google the Cat with tropical flowers he grows at TopTropicals PeopleCats.Garden

#PeopleCats #Quotes

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One fruit on this tray always stumps people. A Top Tropicals Garden Blog post.

One fruit on this tray always stumps people

One fruit on this tray always stumps people

  • 🍉 Another day, another fruit tray from the garden! Even at the end of November, something is always ripening here in Florida. This tray turned out especially fun - a mix of familiar fruits and a couple that always make people guess twice!

  • 🍉 Today’s harvest includes: sweet Persimmons, Star fruit, a few different dragon fruits: yellow Palora and white with red skin - this is Seoul Kitchen. There's also Cocoplum, which makes great drinks. And - ta-da! - the little showstopper of the day: Curly Locks Orchid Cactus fruit (Epiphyllum guatemalense Monstrosa). It looks wild, but it's edible and tastes like a tiny dragon fruit.

  • 🍉 If you live in Florida or any warm climate, growing your own fruit is one of the best gifts you can give yourself. Tropical fruit trees are generous plants - they don’t wait for a season, they give you something month after month. Some days it’s a handful, some days it’s a whole tray, but there’s always a fresh treat waiting. Once you start growing your own food, you realize how easy and rewarding it is to fill your garden with flavor.

  • 🍉 Every tray has a new surprise. Come along and see what the garden gives us next!


🛒 Explore rare tropical fruit

📚 Learn more:

#Food_Forest #Discover

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Cinnamon leaf tea: quick-n-fun exotic recipes. A Top Tropicals Garden Blog post.

Cinnamon leaf tea: quick-n-fun exotic recipes

Cinnamon leaf tea: quick-n-fun exotic recipes Cinnamon leaf tea: quick-n-fun exotic recipes
🍴 Cinnamon leaf tea: quick-n-fun exotic recipes

  • 🟢Steep fresh cinnamon leaves in hot water with a slice of ginger.
  • 🟢Fragrant, soothing, and naturally sweet!


🛒 Plant Cinnamon Tree - the spice that is always with you

📚 Learn more:

#Food_Forest #Recipes

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Watch what this cat tells you at the end. A Top Tropicals Garden Blog post.

Watch what this cat tells you at the end

Scooby - the Cat with the Attitude

😏 Watch what this cat tells you at the end

"Attitude is a little thing that makes a big difference." - Winston Churchill

🐈📸 Scooby - the Cat with the Attitude at TopTropicals PeopleCats.Garden

#PeopleCats #Quotes

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How to overwinter the tropical Bird of Paradise. A Top Tropicals Garden Blog post.

How to overwinter the tropical Bird of Paradise

Strelitzia reginae - the Bird of Paradise, bug plant

Strelitzia reginae - the Bird of Paradise, bug plant

Strelitzia reginae - the Bird of Paradise, flower

Strelitzia reginae - the Bird of Paradise, flower

❄️ How to overwinter the tropical Bird of Paradise
  • Strelitzia reginae - the Bird of Paradise is a resilient tropical that can adapt to indoor conditions through winter if given bright light, moderate warmth, and careful watering. With a few preventive steps and timely protection, plants will stay healthy and reward you with vigorous new growth and blooms when warmth returns.
  • When should you move plants indoors?

    • Move Bird of Paradise indoors before nighttime temperatures consistently drop below 55F. Extended exposure to cooler air can slow growth and stress the plant. In central and south Florida, this often means late fall; in cooler zones, aim for early to mid-October. Once temperatures fall below 50F, leaf damage and root stress can occur.
  • What is the right location for a Bird of Paradise in winter, and why?

    • Place the plant in the brightest spot available - ideally near a south- or west-facing window. Strelitzia reginae is light-hungry even during dormancy. Low light leads to leaf yellowing, weak petioles, and slowed recovery in spring. If natural light is limited, supplement with a full-spectrum grow light set 12-18 inches above the foliage for 12-14 hours daily. Maintain room temperatures between 65F and 75F.
  • Do you need to do anything before moving them indoors?

    • Inspect the plant for pests such as mealybugs, scale, and spider mites, which often hide in leaf bases. Rinse the leaves and petioles thoroughly and check the soil surface for insects or snails. Prune off any damaged or aging leaves. If the plant has spent the summer in heavy rain, allow the soil to dry slightly before bringing it indoors to avoid fungus gnats or root issues.
  • Do plants need watering or feeding during winter?

    • Reduce watering. Indoors, the Bird of Paradise grows slowly in lower light, and excess moisture can cause root rot. Let the top 1-2 inches of soil dry before watering again. Avoid fertilizing during winter rest; resume feeding in spring when new growth appears. If the air indoors is very dry, increase humidity with a pebble tray or humidifier rather than overwatering.
  • Can you overwinter Birds of Paradise outdoors?

    • In frost-free areas of Florida (USDA zones 10-11), they can remain outdoors year-round. In zone 9, occasional cold snaps require protection. Mature clumps tolerate brief dips to about 30°F, but foliage burns easily at low temperatures.
  • What tips do you have for protecting plants outdoors?

When frost threatens, water the soil thoroughly a day before - moist soil retains heat better than dry. Cover the plant overnight with frost cloth or breathable fabric, not plastic, to trap ground warmth. For large clumps, wrap the base with mulch or straw to protect rhizomes. After cold events, remove damaged leaves but wait until spring to cut deeply, as live tissue below may still recover.

📚 Learn more:
How to grow Bird of Paradise

🛒 Plant Bird of Paradise

#How_to #Container_Garden

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🏡 To Use Your Garden Or Be Used By It

Two cats in a garden planting a young tree. Smokey, a black-and-white tuxedo cat, holds a small shovel and works the soil, while Sunshine, a fluffy orange tabby, sits smiling beside a bag of garden soil.

Smokey and Sunshine November Planting.

Smokey: Winter roots make spring easy. Keep that plant straight.
Sunshine: I am keeping it straight by not touching it at all.
Smokey: That is exactly what I was afraid of.

November is the month when the garden finally stops yelling at you. The heat backs off, the bugs calm down, and the weeds take a breath. This is when we get to take control again. And as gardeners, we know the truth: Either you use your garden, or your garden will use you in spring. Let me walk you through this, gardener to gardener.

"November is when the garden finally listens. Give it a little direction now, shape it, guide it, and prepare it for spring. It will reward you all year." - Tatiana Anderson, Top Tropicals Plant Expert

🌴 When The Garden Uses You

We have all lived this scene:

  • March weeds appear, and two days later it looks like a jungle.
  • One missed watering turns into five wilted plants and a full week of recovery.
  • A skipped feeding shows up as yellow leaves and panic searching online.
  • Bugs return fast, and suddenly you are washing leaves every other day.
  • Random plant purchases fill your yard with chaos and mismatched care needs.
  • When the garden takes control, spring feels like hard work, not joy.

An overgrown tropical garden with dense foliage and vines spilling over a walkway, showing how a garden can take over when not maintained.

Overgrown Tropical Garden Showing How a Garden Can Use You

📊 When You Use Your Garden

November flips the script. Plants slow down. Soil stays warm. This is the safest month to experiment, move plants, fix mistakes, and redesign.

What you do now pays off huge in March.

  • You map out sun zones and shade zones.
  • You mulch now so weeds do not explode later.
  • You move plants to better positions without heat stress.
  • You remove the high-drama plants before they start another season of complaints.
  • You pick what you want for next year instead of letting impulse buys rule you.

Spring becomes smooth instead of overwhelming. And honestly? It feels good to walk outside in March and see order instead of chaos.

A neat, organized tropical garden with trimmed plants, open pathways, and balanced landscaping, showing how a gardener can use and direct the garden.

In the photo: Every garden starts in small steps. Biquinho Pepper (front) in the garden.

What Benefit Do You Get Personally?

  • Less watering.
  • Fewer bugs.
  • Bigger fruit.
  • Better flowering.
  • Less money wasted.
  • Less time fixing problems you could have prevented now.

This is why experienced tropical gardeners adore November.

Garden

In the photo: Organized Tropical Garden. Firebush (lemon gold variety) and Cordylines (Ti Leaf) make colorful spots in the garden.

🐭 Start With Something Small Today (5 Minutes)

Pick one:

  • Add mulch to the driest spot in your yard.
  • Cut one dead branch from any tree.
  • Move one pot to a better sun angle.
  • Pull three weeds from the worst area.
  • Water deeply once this week.

Small steps now save hours later.

⭐ One Short Story

Last year we planted a Star Fruit in November. By March, it was already covered in flowers, and have been harvesting fruit non-stop since then! That is what winter planning does: it gives plants a head start you can actually see.

Young Carambola Star Fruit tree fruiting

🐍 Plants That Will Use You If You Let Them

These are great plants, but only if you plan before planting them:

  • Banana (thirsty)
  • Hibiscus (hungry)
  • Brugmansia (sensitive)
  • Passion vine (takes over anything it touches)

Place them wrong, and they become full-time jobs.

An overgrown passion vine covering a garden swing, showing how a fast-growing plant can take over when not maintained.

In the photo: Passion Vine taking over the swing.

🐰 Plants That Work For You

These feel like free upgrades to the yard:

Pick even one of these and your garden starts giving back.

A landscaped garden path with a Cattley Guava tree featuring a twisted multicolor trunk, surrounded by trimmed tropical plants and decorative garden elements.

In the photo: Cattley Guava brings not only tasty fruit but also a wonderful character with its amazing multi-color twisted trunk.

🌡️ November Advantage

You cannot ruin anything in November. This is the safest, calmest month to shape your garden the way you want. If you act now, spring becomes a victory lap. If you wait, spring becomes a rescue mission.

A landscaped tropical garden with a potted Adenium in full bloom, red Cordylines behind it, and neat mulched beds with decorative garden elements.

In the photo: Adenium is a colorful accent in the garden.

💐 Thanksgiving Tie-In

This is the season to reset, breathe, and be thankful for your outdoor space. A garden that works for you is one of the best gifts you can give yourself going into the new year.

Start your November plan today. Use your garden. Do not let it use you.

A neatly designed tropical garden bed featuring Megaskepasma, iris, Colocasia, colorful Crotons, Dracaena, and Ti Leaf plants arranged in mulched landscaping.

In the photo: Megaskepasma, Iris, Colocasia, Crotons, Dracaena and Ti Leaf bring instant tropical look to your garden.

Shop Fruit trees

Shop Flowering shrubs

Date:

📅 Mark Your Calendar - Holiday Plant Market

Holiday Plant Market flyer for December 13 2025 showing two PeopleCats in a festive garden, one black cat in an apron next to a mango tree and one orange cat holding a basket of tropical fruit, with event details, discounts, and Top Tropicals locations.

Holiday season in Florida means sunshine, green leaves, and cats on patrol. On Saturday 12/13/25, our PeopleCats are hosting a special Holiday Plant Market at TopTropicals, 9 am to 4 pm. This is not a regular nursery day. This is the one where you grab a donut in one hand, a mango tree in the other, and try not to trip over a cat giving you a tour.

We are bringing out the best plants we grew all year: big fruit trees with real branches, flowering and fragrant beauties, rare collectors plants, and vines that are ready to take off as soon as you get them home. December is perfect planting weather in Florida, so while the rest of the country is scraping frost from windshields, you can be choosing which banana, mango, or jasmine will perfume your yard next summer.

Holiday extras: 30% OFF online prices, free plant with purchase, 5 to 10 dollar specials, mini donuts and holiday treats, iced tea and citrus water, tropical Christmas music, and raffle prizes. If there is enough ripe fruit in the morning, we will set up a tasting table too. Our PeopleCats will be on duty all day, rearranging plants, checking on visitors, and occasionally allowing themselves to be petted between tours.

Event discounts and specials are valid at both locations:

Save the date, tell a friend, and plan your plant hunting route now. Come celebrate the holidays the Florida way: sunshine, rare fruit trees, happy cats, and a car full of tropical plants going home with you.

Facebook event page - Download invitation

to confirm attendance
RSVP on Facebook!

Learn More About The Holiday Plant Market

Date:

Content with little. A Top Tropicals Garden Blog post.

Content with little

Visitor Cat found his comfy spot with Desert Roses at TopTropicals

Visitor Cat found his comfy spot with Desert Roses at TopTropicals

🐈‍⬛ Content with little

"The greatest wealth is to live content with little." - Plato

🐈📸 Visitor Cat found his comfy spot with Desert Roses at TopTropicals PeopleCats.Garden

#PeopleCats #Quotes

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Stop buying macadamias - plant this tree to enjoy your own nuts. A Top Tropicals Garden Blog post.

Stop buying macadamias - plant this tree to enjoy your own nuts

Macadamia tree (Macadamia integrifolia)

🌰 Stop buying macadamias - plant this tree to enjoy your own nuts!
  • 🐿 How to grow a Macadamia tree and enjoy your own nuts - the priciest nuts in the world? Macadamia trees (Macadamia integrifolia) are surprisingly easy to grow once you know what they need. They handle a wide range of soils, prefer regular watering, and adapt well to warm, humid climates. Young trees appreciate consistent moisture, but once established, they can tolerate short dry spells and even brief flooding.
  • 🐿 The most important step is nutrition. Macadamias are heavy feeders and rely on balanced microelements for strong roots, steady growth, and reliable nut production. Use a liquid fertilizer Sunshine C-Cibus and add microelements on a regular schedule. Sunshine SuperFood plant supplement is especially helpful for preventing the leaf yellowing and slow growth that happen when microelements run low.
  • 🐿 Choose a sunny spot, give the tree room to grow, and mulch around the base to keep moisture steady. As the tree matures, it will bloom and form clusters of green husks that dry and split to reveal the sweet nuts inside.
  • 🐿 With the right care, a single tree can reward you with a generous harvest of rich, expensive macadamias right from your garden.


💖 Macadamia nut health benefits
  • 📍 Macadamia nuts are packed with healthy monounsaturated fats, antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals.
  • 📍 They support heart health by lowering total and LDL cholesterol, help steady blood sugar thanks to low carbs and good fiber, and aid digestion and weight management by keeping you full longer.
  • 📍 Their antioxidants, including tocotrienols, protect cells from damage and may reduce risks of diabetes, Alzheimer’s, and certain cancers.
  • 📍 Macadamia oil is great for skin and hair, offering moisturizing, healing, and strengthening benefits.
  • 📍 Even though they are calorie-rich, small daily portions can actually support healthy weight goals.
  • 📍 Enjoy them raw, roasted, ground, as nut butter, or added to both sweet and savory dishes.


🛒 Grow your own Macadamia Nuts

📚 Learn more:
📱 Video about growing Macadamia trees

#Food_Forest #Remedies #How_to #Discover

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Lychee sorbet: quick-n-fun exotic recipes at they need&#x0001f3. A Top Tropicals Garden Blog post.

Lychee sorbet: quick-n-fun exotic recipes

Lychee - Litchi chinensis

Lychee - Litchi chinensis

Lychee sorbet

Lychee sorbet

🍴 Lychee sorbet: quick-n-fun exotic recipes
  • 🔴Blend Lychee pulp with lime juice, freeze until firm.
  • 🔴A refreshing tropical ice treat.

Lychee Sorbet Recipe

Ingredients

  • 3 cups fresh lychee flesh, peeled and seeded (or canned lychees, drained)
  • 1/3 cup sugar or honey
  • 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
  • 1/4 cup cold water, as needed for blending
  • Fresh mint leaves for garnish (optional)

Instructions

  1. Prepare the lychees by peeling them, removing the seeds, and collecting the white flesh. If using canned lychees, drain them well.
  2. Place the lychee flesh, sugar or honey, lime juice, and 2 tablespoons of the cold water into a blender.
  3. Blend until completely smooth. If the mixture is too thick to move easily, add a little more water, 1 tablespoon at a time.
  4. Pour the mixture into a shallow freezer safe container. Cover tightly.
  5. Freeze for 2 to 3 hours, stirring with a fork every 30 to 45 minutes, until the sorbet is firm but scoopable.
  6. Scoop into bowls and garnish with fresh mint leaves and extra lychee fruit if desired. Serve immediately.

🛒 Plant your Lychee tree - Litchi chinensis

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#Food_Forest #Recipes

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