Fragrant Yesterday-Today-Tomorrow
Brunfelsia from Brazil
Grow Purrrple! Purrrfect houseplant...
by Alex Butova, the Witch of Herbs and Cats
...The magic of this flower is, Yesterday it opened deep purple, Today it changes color to pale lavender, and Tomorrow - will turn white!...
...One of the greatest features of all brunfelsias is shade tolerance. Most species prefer filtered light, stay happy
and bloom indoors even in low light conditions; they are also great candidates for shade locations where other flowering plants may not bloom. They add a great color and
fragrance to every shade garden... CONTINUE READING >>
Annona montana - Mountain Soursop
Grow Your Own Food
Exotic fruit, a cold hardy
alternative to a Soursop
Not only tasty, this exotic fruit has the most unusual
looks! This exotic beauty grows up to a pound and just look at these curious
and life-like spines! We guarantee that everyone who sees this fruit in your
garden will ask for seeds even before they taste the fruit. And you will have
lots of seeds to share because Mountain Soursop is very reliable producer
with many seeds in each fruit.
Mountain Soursop tastes similar to regular Soursop (better known as the
Guanabana), with slightly milder flavor. The pulp is highly scented, with good
aroma. It is eaten out of hand or can be used in milkshakes and smoothies. The
fruit is softball sized with orange-yellow flesh, somewhat smaller and
rounder than the regular Soursop. The tree is medium sized, with beautiful, large,
leathery dark green leaves that emit a strong aroma when crushed.
How to grow Mountain
Soursop?
Mountain Soursop is a very easy to grow, medium size
exotic fruit tree that is great for beginners. This species is much more cold
hardy than the Soursop, established trees can take temperatures a few degrees
below freezing, tolerating cold spells down to 24F when full grown. Mountain
Soursop tolerates a variety of soil types and will grow well in dry
conditions. Trees produce within just 2-3 years from seed, like many Annonas, and can
happily grow and produce in a large container.
...Scorpio is the "hottest" among aquatic...
...Scorpio loves plants very much, they can provide invaluable assistance
to this sign. Plants are able to calm Scorpio, transfer his attention and
passionate energy to himself and transform it, directing it into a creative
direction....
Scorpio is an aesthete. He loves flowers - unusual, bright, large - and
lovingly grows them if he has such an opportunity. Their favorite plants,
despite all their effectiveness, are often unpretentious and can grow in the most
unfavorable conditions...
Of particular importance in the sensual relationships of Scorpio with
plants is the smell to which this sign is extremely sensitive. Aromas of some
plants can affect Scorpio as an aphrodisiac... CONTINUE READING >>
Q: Most trees in my yard were destroyed by hurricane Ian and now
I have to start my landscape from scratch. So I decided to plant something
useful. Avocado is my favorite. In the stores I see two kinds, large green or
small black, but I was told there are many varieties. When I googled the best
variety of avocado I found your website. You have quite a selection! Now I
don't know which variety to chose. Can you please help? I have room for several
trees.
A: Indeed there are many varieties of Avocado (we grow over 50 kinds). Some avocado lovers try
to get as many varieties as they can fit in their yards because every variety
has its unique flavor and texture.
2 main Avocado kinds that we usually see in grocery stores are -
smaller black fruit with rich, buttery texture - Mexican and Guatemalan
hybrids
green avocado, some can be as large as a small melon, but they have
light texture - West Indian types
There are many hybrids. How to pick the right variety for your yard?
Check out our Avocado variety page and scroll down to see a chart that shows
characteristics of fruit, tree size, cold hardiness, and chose the right variety that
fits your needs.
Below are just a few picks from our horticulturist - our favorite
varieties that we enjoy and highly recommend to others.
Add a little Sunshine
to keep your plants looking their best
By Ed Jones, the Booster Guy
...Just like people, a little sunshine goes a long way in keeping them
happy. It is usually easier to keep a plant healthy than it is to fix it when
it is not well. Proper plant nutrition is often times the issue. The good
news is that it is easy to keep your plants looking good by following proper
nutrition practices...
...Feeding your plants with micronutrients that they just don't get in
regular fertilizers can prevent deficiencies. Let's get started on a regular
program of using foliar sprays to help keep your plants looking their best...
We recommend using three products in combination - the Complete SUNSHINE Microelement Supplement Kit that consists of:
We are recommending a foliar spray once per week to maintain optimal
health conditions. This is based on recent studies done in Ukraine by the scientist who invented Sunshine Boosters products... Continue reading to see an easy treatment schedule that will provide
your plants with:
- Increased photosynthetic activity
- Increased insect and disease resistance
- Reduced mineral toxicity
- Improvement of nutrient imbalance
- Enhanced drought and frost tolerance
- Enhanced plant growth
Sunshine Boosters are developed in Ukraine
and manufactured in the USA. We support Ukraine fight for freedom. All
profits from these fertilizers will be donated to support our Team in Ukraine.
I got an Akee tree from you last year for my tropical fruit garden
collection and honestly didn't know much about what it was. This year it started
growing real fast and branched out. In spring it was flowering like crazy and now I have about 20 bright coral fruit hanging off the tree that look like Christmas decorations. They are extremely
showy and can be seen from far away, I have neighbors stopping by asking what
kind of tree it is. I finally did more research on it and found a recipe how to cook the fruit. Only a few had ripened and
opened so far, but I already had a chance to try the meal. Cooked the arils and fried in a pan
with some butter. What a delicious surprise! To my taste, it is like a mix
of potatoes and eggs. Just through in some bacon and it will make a complete
breakfast! One of the coolest fruit I've tasted. Just wanted to share this with you.
About Akee (Blighia
sapida)
This showy fruit, a close relative of Lychee, Longan, and Rambutan, is a
National fruit of Jamaica. It is indeed very exciting one, and what is also
important, the tree is easy in cultivation, fast growing and can be maintained compact. I it is
not bugsy or picky about soil/water conditions, and is relatively cold tolerant for
being a tropical tree. You can find delicious akee meals only in Jamaican restaurants. But no
need to search for it - grow your own tree, it can't be easier. It will start
fruiting for you the next season, you don't have to wait long. Sometimes it
fruits twice a year! However, remember, the fruit is used as a vegetable, and is not eaten raw. It must be
picked after the fruit has opened naturally so the flesh is fully exposed to
light. When the fruit has "yawned", discard the seeds (or better plant them to
grow more trees - to share with your friends!). The arils, while still fresh
and firm, are best parboiled in salted water or milk and then lightly fried in
butter. Then they are really delicious! Read
more about this tree...
Grow your own food:
Pouteria campechiana - Canistel
The curious heart-shaped Egg Super-Fruit
by Alex Butova, the Witch of Herbs and Cats
...You will be surprised how many health benefits this fruit can
offer! Yet is is a beautiful, curiously shaped piece of Nature's Art, and the
tree is super easy to grow. It is relatively cold hardy and fast growing,
providing with the first crop within a year or two...
10 greatest health benefits of Canistel
fruit
1. Canistel is good for the heart
2. Canistel lowers the risk of diabetes
3. Canistel lowers the risk of cataract
4. Canistel treats osteoarthritis
5. Canistel prevents cancer
6. Canistel is immunity booster
7. Canistel is great for digestion
8. Canistel prevents anemia
9. Canistel promotes healthy bones
10. Canistel reduces the risk of Alzheimer's
A letter from a gardener:
"We just want our paradise back!"
"...My name is Ian, and I am a 21 y/o Natural Resource Management
student at South Dakota State University. In 2006, my family found a small
barrier island lush with foliage and virtually untouched by the modern world, and
we fell in love. Little Gasparilla Island became a piece of our family and
now after 16 years, we still spend months out of each year enjoying the
island's natural beauty.
Enter Hurricane Ian.
With the eye of the hurricane traveling directly over the island, many
homes and materialistic items were destroyed, but more importantly, the once
beautiful "jungle" is now more comparable to a barren desert.
This is where I was hoping to get some help... to restore the beauty of
Little Gasparilla. After almost 3 weeks, neither the county nor FEMA has made it
out to survey our island. And it is almost as if we feel forgotten. After
fending for ourselves for clean-up, I am ready to get to work on landscaping.
Plants are my passion and it pains me each day to wake up and see that 90% of
our Australian and Norfolk Island Pines are completely gone, along with most
foliage and palms.
We just want our paradise back, and many of us will work for it by any
means necessary..."
We replied to Ian who suffered from Ian... We are willing to help his
beautiful island, as well as everyone who is looking for help restoring our
Florida beauty. Check out our deals and re-leaf discounts we send in our Newsletters. Remember to attend our Garden Festival on Nov 19, with some big discounts as well as free
plants for after-Ian re-leaf!
We will make Florida beautiful again.
We will call it Project Ian!
This Fall Special:
Avocados and Champakas in large containers
The clean-up and restoration after Hurricane Ian continues for many of
us across Florida and the Southeast. Some people In SW Florida lost their
homes, and almost every home owner lost a tree or even the whole garden.
TopTropicals is here to help. We started introducing special Re-Leaf offers to help
local gardeners replace broken trees. When it's time to restore your garden,
we have 15-25 gallon
Avocado trees in many varieties and oversized Magnolia Champaca trees available for pick up at our Fort
Myers Garden Center or B-Farm in Sebring.
These trees are 6-8 feet tall (some larger)
and ready to bear fruit!
Q: I know that I am not supposed to fertilize plants in winter.
But I just bought several ground orchids from you, they are blooming now and I wonder if I can
give them some food to support their bloom energy? When should I do the last
application of fertilizer? I will keep them in a sun room during Winter until
Spring.
A: Traditionally, end of October to November is the time when we
give the last dose of fertilizer to our tropical plants. Liquid fertilizers,
and especially amino-acid based Sunshine Boosters, are safe to apply year around. This means, you can
continue feeding your plants with Sunshine Boosters through the Winter without
risk of over-feeding or burning roots. Why?
The answer is very simple: even with their metabolism slowed down in
Winter, plants will use all that food.
Sunshine Boosters have special mild formulas that are scientifically
designed and based on Amino Acids. Plants will use all essential elements from the
solution as needed.
Liquid fertilizer is diluted in water, and will be applied only when you
water the plant. During Winter, water needs are lowered = watering times are
less frequent, with less amount of water = the plants will get less water and
less fertilizer accordingly.
Importance of micro elements
in combination with plant food during winter
In the photo: winter chlorosis on Kumquat
leaves that is very hard to treat and should be prevented instead
Keep in mind that feeding your plants regularly during Winter will help
to avoid "winter chlorosis" and other deficiency problems. So called
"cool-temperature-induced chlorosis" (CTIC) is especially common in Spring on young,
actively growing leaves. Unless chlorosis is prevented by micro-element
applications, affected leaves may remain in this condition for the rest of the
growing season.
Make sure to select proper type of fertilizer for your over-wintering plants. We have
special formulas for foliage, flowering plants, fruit trees, young seedlings, even
for for orchids and bromeliads. Check out our selection!
