Shipping Tropical Plants Worldwide

Q: We are very interested in introducing frost-hardy avocado varieties into Switzerland. We would really, really like to have our own avocados in our garden. And we believe that the plants have a large sales market here. Do you see a way to send some plants to Switzerland? Which varieties would you recommend, which are the cold-hardiest?

A: Yes, we do ship plants all over the world, including Europe. For basic information on international shipping, please refer to these guidelines. Shipping plants internationally is a bit complex procedure, however we have over 17 years experience with that and you came to the right place. For a quote on shipping cost and to make sure you get all the necessary paperwork, contact our international department direct number 239-771-8082 or email us .

Regarding your questions about Avocado varieties:
First, please take a look at Cold hardy Avocado varieties guide pdf file. The most cold hardy varieties like Brazos Belle, Fantastic, Joey, Lila, Poncho, Winter Mexican - can take short period of light freeze as long as they well established. This means, for the first year or two you need to protect them from freeze. Keep in mind that if you have hard freeze every night for several weeks, then even cold-hardy Avocados must be grown with cold protection. It is possible to do by creating a greenhouse/conservatory around plants in the ground, see example from one of our customers in Virginia. Even better - grow them in large pots. This way plants will be easier to handle and move around as needed. See the photo above of avocado production in pots.

Fast-fruiting trees?

Photo above: Annona reticulata - Red Custard Apple

Q: More of a question than a review, but a review regarding your catalog, it would be easier for us buyers, if we could search for plants that produce fruit in 2 years or less, I don't have the patience to wait longer than that for fruit. I'm trying to buy for a fairly good sized garden but want some fast growers and fruit produced in 2 yrs. Can you help me out?

A: Fruiting time depends on many factors (established size, growing conditions, fertilizing, and even specific variety), this is why we can not just put a simple icon "will fruit within 2 years".
However, most grafted and air-layered fruit trees, including all Mango, Avocado, Loquat, Sapote, Sapodilla, Lychee/Longan, Peaches and Nectarines - will fruit right away. If you see in our store "grafted" or "air-layered" in plant description - these trees will fruit soon. Some of them already flowering and fruiting.
Some non-grafted trees or seedlings like Annona, Artocarpus (Jackfruit), Eugenia, Guava, Banana, Dragon fruit, Mulberry, Blackberry/Raspberry - will fruit within 3-4 years from seed or even sooner (Banana, Mulberry, Dragon fruit, Blackberry-Raspberry - within a year). Usually it says in description that this plant can produce fruit soon.
Bigger size plants are more established and have more energy to produce, so try to get larger size plants if your budget permits, and especially if you can pick up bigger plants rather than shipping them - obviously, shipping has size limitations.
In addition, all spice trees like Bay Leaf, Bay Rum, Allspice and many more - they will produce spice for you right away, so you don't need to wait at all!
If you have questions about fruiting time on any specific plant you put your eye on, don't hesitate to ask!

Photo above: Pimenta dioica - Allspice

Healthy Plant Food: Q&A from Mr Booster

How to make pineapples fruit?

Q: I have purchased a Sugar Loaf Pineapple from you a few months ago, it is growing well and producing little babies around the main plant! I am so excited to have my own Pineapple plantation! How soon will they fruit and is there anything I can do to make them fruit faster? Can I give extra fertilizer just like I do for other garden plants?

A: It takes a year or two until a pineapple plant gains enough energy to be ready to fruit. However the total time depends on growing conditions and availability of all necessary nutrients.
Pineapples, like all other plants from Bromeliaceae family require very delicate fertilizer; traditional fertilizers, if overdosed, can harm Bromeliads and even kill them. At the same time, Pineapples require extra Magnesium for good production, and not every fertilizer has it, or contains it in well-accessible compounds / proper proportions.
Sunshine Ananas Booster is a scientifically formulated, mild fertilizer, designed especially for tender Bromeliads, containing Magnesium just in perfect concentration. Its amino-acid based ingredients are natural and work perfectly for edibles and organic gardens. Just follow the label instructions and speed up the fruit production 3-4 times!

In the photo: Mr B checking his Sunshine Boosters inventory before shipping to his Good Customers.

TopTropicals from Bird's Eye

Watch new video: Top Tropicals Garden Retreat Events

Join us every 1st Saturday of the month for an Open Air Market showcasing luscious tropicals, rare exotics, fruiting trees, fragrant perennials and much more!
San Carlos Park Music will be playing their hearts out and creating amazing music from 12:00 - 3:00 p.m. beneath our lovely Royal Poinciana! More events will be posted soon to our Facebook Event page. Keep up with our updates!

Stay updated with TopTropicals Videos by subscribing to our channel at YouTube.com/TopTropicals and get our latest video news of what is fruiting and blooming!

PeopleCats of TopTropicals. Story of Raja: Love at First Sight and Survivor Spirit

The story below about Little Raja is heart breaking and yet teaches us many lessons of life. Since the first columns about Raja and her brother Abu were published in our Blog, we have been getting many letters from gardeners-slash-cat-lovers asking questions about those heroic kitties... what have they been through and what happened after?.. So we asked Kristi to tell us the whole story in full. Here it is, the Raja's lessons of Life... Part 1...

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TopTropicals PeopleCat Club and Zoo

Thank you for supporting us in helping PeopleCat Community!
Make your kind donation today and receive a surprise gift from us! Every little bit helps. Thank you and God bless you and your pets!

The best Loquat varieties with big, sweet fruit

Q: I'm interested in loquat and read through the varieties you offer but wanted your recommendation. I'm looking for a variety that is big, sweet (not tart) with 1 seed. Of the varieties you offer... Which variety would you recommend?

A: From our experience, the most popular Loquat variety is Christmas. It is an early ripening type hence the name Christmas. Fruits are very large for a loquat, they are bright yellow with a tangy apricot flavor.
Another good variety we recommend is Yehuda - it has a large fruit and very small seed Also, variety Oliver for many years has been considered the best loquat for South Florida. The fruiting season is March to May. It has medium to large fruit. The fruit is very sweet with only one-two seeds.
Loquats are very cold hardy tropical fruit trees, easy to grow, drought tolerant, fast growing. Fruit is great for eating fresh or making jam.

Check them out while they are on sale!

Healthy Plant Food: Q&A from Mr Booster

Encouraging blooms on the Hawaiian Sunset Bell Vine

Q: Please can you advise how to encourage the Stictocardia beraviensis the Hawaiian Sunset Bell vine blooms? Mine is all beautiful leaves and full sun in Miami.

A: Providing full sun, Stictocardia blooms profusely. In your area, it should be happy and thriving. However, keep in mind that these flowers can be seasonal (meaning, not ever-blooming). The good news it, Hawaiian Sunset Bell usually blooms several times a year on and off. In our garden, we have a large plant growing in the ground and covering a whole fence; we see flowers 3 times a year:
- Early Spring
- Summer (sporadically)
- Late Fall to early Winter

Make sure to provide proper fertilizer to encourage blooms. It is especially important if you grow this plant in container (where nutrients are very limited). We suggest the following fertilizer for your Stictocardia:

SUNSHINE Megaflor - Bloom Nutrition Booster

Tropical Paintings by Olena Light

Talent Introduction

Exotic flowers, amazing tropical birds, cats and even portraits... all look alive by Olena Light

Check out Olena's page and her private collection of exclusive art that TopTropicals is honored to have especially for you, Tropical Garden connoisseurs, at introductory price. Hurry up, Olena is getting famous!..

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Healthy Plant Food

How to make Mango tree fruit

Q: Hello, I have a five-year-old Lemon Meringue tree that has only given me fruit one year. It put out about 50 mangoes and has done nothing for the past three years. Do you recommend any vitamins or any of the nutrients that you guys sell to help with this for next season?

A: We've had very similar problem with our Nam Doc Mai Mango tree, fruited once and no more next year. Usually the reason is nutrients deficiency, here in Florida we have poor soils. We applied Mango-Tango tree booster and it started flowering within a couple of weeks.
Generally, Mango flowering season is over by now, however, we recommend to feed the tree starting now, during active growth season. This way it will get better established before winter and also will store away all elements necessary for triggering flowering and fruiting. So by late Fall through Winter it will be ready to flower.
Along with the fertilizer, additional micro-element supplements will be beneficial. For improving fruit quality and increasing number of flowers, we also recommend to use SUNSHINE-Honey - sugar booster

Memory Garden: Do It Yourself Paradise

by Frank La Rosa, Del Mar, CA

...I term my garden one of memories because almost every plant in it have been given to me by some person that I cared for. The Sicilian jasmin came from a nice lady who brought it from Sicilia in her purse, and she in turn gave me a cutting from which I have propagated three more plants. The Mermaid rose came from my father-in-law a rosarian, who "bootlegged" it, actually (in his boot) in the trunk of his car as he drove from Texas where he lived. Today that rose reaches up up the second story and covers the arch out front...
I have made four stone arches in this Memory garden. One is the entrance to the Chapel of All Good Spirits. It took me two years to build it from stones I collected from many loved places...

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