In past blog posts, Ed Jones shared his insights on cultivating olives in Central Florida using Sunshine Boosters. Despite olives
having a reputation for slow growth and being uncommon in Florida gardens, Ed has
successfully grown not only productive but also aesthetically pleasing trees
in just two years. As seen in this winter photo, the trees are thriving!
Encouraged by Ed's success, we have decided to plant olive trees as well. They are low maintenance and tolerant to cold
temperatures. Simply heed Ed's advice, and you too can have a beautiful tree that produces your
own olives in the future.
1. Right variety. Select a vigorous grower for
in-ground planting, or a condo mango cultivar for growing in container. More info on varieties. 2. Soil must be well-drained. If planted in the ground, plant on a
little elevation (see How to plant a tree) 3. Full sun is a must. The more sun, the more flower and fruit. 4. Water. Keep mango tree on a dry side, water young trees regularly
but let top of the soil dry before next watering. Mango trees don't like wet
feet. 5. Air circulation is important for mango tree to eliminate
diseases. Allow enough space from other trees and buildings. 6. Fungicide. Mango leaves are very susceptible do fungal issues,
especially in humid climates likу Florida. Spray fungicide (Copper or similar)
according to the label, once a month. 7. Fertilize year around with every watering with liquid fertilizer
Sunshine
Boosters Mango Tango. Apply Micro-elements once a month and use other good supplements. 8. Shape. Check out Video: Tipping your mango tree - to shape the most vigorous and productive
tree. 9. Protect from hard freeze. Mango tree doesn't take freezing
temperatures well. In subtropical areas Mango can be protected. Alternatively, it can successfully produce in
container, if moved indoors during cold weather. 10. Fruit. Mango tree produces thousands of little flowers, many of
them can set fruit. Do not let a small, young tree to keep more than 1-2
fruit, remove extra, to avoid exhaustion. Allow 2-3 years for the tree to
establish until it produces a full crop. Apply Sunshine Honey supplement to your tree for sweeter fruit.
Wintertime does not just mean hard work for tropical gardeners. It is
also a time to enjoy the fruits of our labor. Winter-blooming plants and the visitors they attract - birds, bats and
butterflies - make the garden as enjoyable in winter as any other time of
year.
What a welcome relief: January daytime temperatures in the 70s, dropping to
the 60s at night. This is why I came to live in the subtropics of southern
Florida. The balmy climate of South Florida represents one of the few places
on the mainland United States where tropical plants thrive unprotected
outdoors.
But just as I had to leave behind so many of my favorite northern trees, so
too did I have to put behind me many of the so-called "rules" of
horticulture. These had worked well for me up north and I thought they would hold true
anywhere in the world. Florida's subtropical climate posed new challenges and
I soon realized that gardening in the Sunshine State would not be business as
usual... CONTINUE READING >>
Photo above: Noni is not just a useful fruit tree, but also a great ornamental for
both sun or shade. It is also great for interior floral design or as an exotic
addition to your room decorations in Winter! It fruits year round even
indoors! Order Noni
online.
To assist our customers in creating a happy and enjoyable gardening
experience this year, we consulted with our horticulturist to compile a list of
ten recommended items. Here are the results...
1. A favorite. Get yourself a favorite small flowering plant that is compact, manageable, and easy. Such as Ground
Orchid. Keep it in a pot or plant in the ground by the entryway where it can
be seen often and enjoyed. 2. A fruit of your labor. You need at least one (or one more) fruit tree for your
garden, or for container culture if you live in colder climate. Growing and
especially harvesting tropical fruit will make you happy. The Winner of the last
year was Cherry
Lolita - an easy, compact fruit tree that can produce almost year
around. Some fruit
trees will fruit right away! 3. Be exclusive. A rare plant is a must for every gardener. It can be a useful gem such as
Noni Tree
or an unusual-looking like a Bat Lily - Tacca. Show your friends and neighbors something different
they have never seen! 4. Make it cool. Finally plant that shade tree by your driveway. Yes it takes time to grow, but the sooner
you plant it, the sooner you get that shade! There are some fast growing species, some only take a couple of years to the mature
size. 5. Beauty. If you have an ugly fence or unwanted view in your yard,
cover it with a
flowering vine. Look at the beauty every day and make your life better.
Replace a boring standard hedge with colorful flowering shrubs that will make you smile. 6. Scent. Add some fragrant plants to your landscape and inhale their healing magic. 7. Tropical. For a shady corner, select a showy tropical with lush foliage such as Philodendron or Monstera, or
all time favorite
Banana. Get a feel of tropics. 8. Happiness of giving. Buy a gift plant for someone you care about but don't know how to thank them.
Live plant is the best expression of love and gratitude. If you are unsure
what plant to pick, ask our Team or simply buy a Gift Certificate that will never expire - let them chose the plant they
like. 9. Food for all. A set of quality liquid fertilizers is a must - try Sunshine Boosters that can be used year around. They will make your
plants healthy, strong, fast growing, cold hardy and disease-resistant. You can
choose formulas for different plant types from our selection, or simply buy online a Nutrition Kit of 8 bottles that will cover all your needs and save you
50% on fertilizer cost! 10. Share. Subscribe your friend to TopTropicals Newsletter so they can get a weekly Piece of Tropics in
their mailbox. Cool Cat Photos come as a bonus!
Make sure to always have on hand at least 2 main formulas of Sunshine
Boosters - Robusta for vegetative growth, and C-Cibus that will satisfy plant needs for both fruit production and
profuse flowering
Q: What fruit trees do you recommend that will start fruiting right away? I am 84 and I would really love to see the fruit sooner than later!
A: Most of grafted fruit trees will start producing the same year - such as Mango, Avocado, Peaches and other grafted trees. Besides, these are several garden favorites that start fruiting right in 1-3 gal container.
This Friday:Green Friday...
and every Friday and Saturday!
Welcome to TopTropicals B-Farm in Sebring
FL
Starting this coming Friday, November 25, our farm in Sebring (B-Farm)
will be open to the public every Friday and Saturday.
B-Farm is a 10-acre growing facility with hundreds of varieties of rare and
much wanted tropical plants. Fruit trees, flowering trees, shrubs, vines,
fragrant plants and rare collectibles - we grow the biggest selection of
tropical plants known in cultivation.
Come over to select the best Mango, Avocado, any other fruit tree or rare
spice for your edible landscape. Shop our biggest in the world variety of
flowering and fragrant tropical plants - directly from our growing farm!
Conveniently located right in the heart of Florida, Highlands County,
Top Tropicals B-Farm is within about an hour from most Florida destinations.
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.
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.
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...
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!
