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Date:

When is the season for the Bleeding Hearts

Bleeding Heart Vine (Clerodendrum thomsoniae)

💔 When is the season for the Bleeding Hearts
  • ❣️ Bleeding Heart Vine (Clerodendrum thomsoniae) is named for its red and white flowers that look like dangling hearts.
  • ❣️ Native to tropical West Africa, this climber thrives in bright light and can be grown as a houseplant or trained on a trellis.
  • ❣️ It shows off its most spectacular blooms in winter, but with enough light, it'll happily flower year-round.


📚 More about Clerodendrums in previous posts:

🛒Get your own Bleeding Heart

#Butterfly_Plants #Shade_Garden #Fun_Facts #Hedges_with_benefits #Container_Garden

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Date:

What is your favorite Guava fruit for eating fresh?

🥇 What is your favorite Guava fruit for eating fresh?

💛 The sweetest and the most flavorful Cattley Guava variety is Hawaiian Gold (Yellow Pineapple Guava) - Psidium littorale var. Lucidum. This one is our favorite for eating out of hand!

📚 Learn more from previous posts:
Top 10 fast-fruiting trees: #2. Cattley and Tropical guava
How to always have lots of Guava Juice

🛒 Shop Cattley Guava

#Food_Forest #Guava

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Date:

New Year with New Plants: how to choose from 17 Tropical Paradise Resolutions

New Year with New Plants: how to choose from 17 Tropical Paradise Resolutions
📌 New Year with New Plants: how to choose from 17 Tropical Paradise Resolutions

✍️ "A garden is never so good as it will be next year..." - Thomas Cooper.

⚡️ As we step into a fresh new year, it's the perfect time to think about what exciting, special, and life-changing plants we can add to our gardens. The days are getting longer, and spring is just around the corner, so now's the time to make a plan and prepare for the season ahead. Let's take small steps each year to create the garden of our dreams. This winter, consider these fun resolutions:
  • 🚩🚩🚩🚩 Happy gardening in 2025!


#How_to #Quotes

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Date:

Seven most popular low-growing plants
for small gardens

Alpinia purpurata - Dwarf Red Cone Ginger

Photo above: Alpinia purpurata - Dwarf Red Cone Ginger - is a medium-growing, compact option for your garden, offering vibrant red flowers with minimal space needed. Its tropical appeal and tolerance for partial shade make it perfect for adding color without overwhelming your garden. Grows up to 4-5 ft.

Easy plants that can stay compact and short!

Q: I am looking for a few compact plants that I don't need to trim all the time. Can you recommend some low-growing pretty shrub to plant along my driveway (sun) and under an oak tree (shade)?

A: Here are a few most popular showy shrubs for you that can stay compact and require minimal if any pruning or maintenance!

Osmoxylon lineare (variegated) - Miagos bush, Golden Feather

Osmoxylon lineare - variegated Miagos bush, Golden Feather - is a compact and striking shrub perfect for adding an exotic touch to a small garden or indoor space. Its hardiness and low-maintenance nature, combined with its tolerance for various light conditions, make it an ideal choice for a small, visually appealing addition to your garden. Full sun or light shade.

Capsicum annuum x chinense - Biquinho Pepper

Capsicum annuum x chinense - Biquinho Pepper - amazing showy pepper, both ornamental and useful! Vibrant, compact plant that combines ornamental beauty with culinary use. Its small, bright fruits offer a burst of fruity, habanero-like flavor, making it a unique addition to any garden or kitchen, with little to no heat. Full sun: the more sun - the more peppers!

Lippia dulcis - Aztec Sweet Herb, Sweetleaf

Lippia dulcis - Aztec Sweet Herb, Sweetleaf - not only showy, but also scented leaves and useful herb right at your doorstep! This fragrant, compact elegant plant adds both beauty and function to your garden. Its sweet-tasting leaves are perfect for snacking or enhancing fruit salads, while also serving as a natural remedy for colds and coughs.

Justicia carnea Alba - White Brazilian Plume Flower

Justicia carnea Alba - White Brazilian Plume Flower is a compact, tropical beauty that thrives in full to partial sun and attracts hummingbirds and butterflies. Its stunning white flowers and lush green foliage make it a perfect choice for adding a tropical touch to your garden, and its relatively cold hardy!

Pedilanthus tithymaloides - Devils Backbone

Pedilanthus tithymaloides - Devils Backbone - thrives in toughest spots! Hardy, low-maintenance plant, offering striking pink flowers and showy, unique ziz-zag foliage. Easy care requirements, full sun and minimal watering.

Ground Orchids

Ground orchids are a fantastic choice for exotic flower beds and colorful borders, growing just 2-3 feet tall and blooming year-round. They offer a wide selection of colors and bloom year-round. Sun or shade, they thrive in both! And yes, they grow in regular garden soil, which is why they are also called Terrestrial Orchids.

Shop small perennials

Date:

New Year with New Plants:
Choose from 17 Tropical Paradise Resolutions!

Indoor garden and greenhouse

"A garden is never so good as it will be next year..." - Thomas Cooper.

Happy New Year, dear fellow gardeners! As we step into a fresh new year, it's the perfect time to think about what exciting, special, and life-changing plants we can add to our gardens. The days are getting longer, and spring is just around the corner, so now's the time to make a plan and prepare for the season ahead. Let's take small steps each year to create the garden of our dreams. This winter, consider these fun resolutions:

  1. Hang a bird feeder and install a rain barrel
  2. Order some tropical plant seeds for an early start
  3. Ask your grandparents about their favorite garden plants
  4. Build a raised bed for succulents
  5. Plant a fruit tree or two to have some crop this year
  6. Start a compost pile
  7. Switch to organic fertilizers and plant boosters
  8. Fill empty spaces with flowering trees, shrubs, and vines
  9. Add butterfly attractors to your garden
  10. Provide water for bees and butterflies to help them thrive and pollinate your fruit trees
  11. Get a bonsai starter to try bonsai art
  12. Enjoy meals outside as often as you can
  13. Teach a child how to plant a tree
  14. Plant berry-bearing shrubs like Tropical Cherries to feed the birds
  15. Rake up leaves for winter mulch
  16. Add a few exotic plants to your indoor collection or container garden
  17. Share plants as gifts all year long

Happy gardening in 2025!

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Cat with tropical plants

Date:

What is the most spectacular Clerodendrum?

Clerodendrum speciosissimum - Java Glorybower Mary Jane

✨ What is the most spectacular Clerodendrum?
  • 🌸 Clerodendrums are tropical favorites, easy to grow, and bloom year-round. Thriving in sun or shade, they're perfect for home gardens. Many bloom in winter, brightening dark days - even on a windowsill!
  • 🌸 One of our favorites is Clerodendrum speciosissimum - Java Glorybower Mary Jane. This fast growing bush blooms with bright coral flowers, virtually year around!


🎥 Clerodendrum speciosissimum - Java Glorybower Mary Jane

📚 More about Clerodendrums in previous posts:

🛒 Shop Clerodendrums

#Butterfly_Plants #Container_Garden #Perfume_Plants #Shade_Garden #Hedges_with_benefits

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Date:

Happy New 2025: The Year of the Green Wood Snake!

Happy New 2025: The Year of the Green Wood Snake!
🎆 Happy New 2025: The Year of the Green Wood Snake!

🙏 Happy New Year to our dear customers and gardening friends! Thank you for staying with us throughout 2024 and for sharing our passion for tropical plants.

  • 🎆 Here's to new plants, rejuvenated gardens, and ever-present beauty.

  • 🎆 Stay happy and healthy, cherish your plants and pets, and continue to journey with us into a flourishing 2025!


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Date:

Last Day of the Year Tropical Fruit Tree Sale

Last Day of the Year Tropical Fruit Tree Sale
🛍 Last Day of the Year Tropical Fruit Tree Sale

🎉 Celebrate the season with a sweet deal! For the last few days of the year, we're offering an instant 10% discount on all fruit trees. It's the perfect time to add something special to your garden or gift a tree that will grow into a lasting memory. No minimum order required - just enjoy the holiday savings and bring home your favorite fruit tree today!

❗️ Instant 10% discount!

No min order. Exp. 1-1-25

🛒 Shop fruit trees with instrant discount

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Date:

What is the most popular Winter-flowering shrub?

Tropical Hydrangea - Dombeya x wallichii

💋 What is the most popular Winter-flowering shrub?
  • 🌸 Tropical Hydrangea - Dombeya x wallichii - is a Queen sister of the popular Princess - Dombeya seminole that we introduced in our earlier post.
  • 🌸 Tropical Hydrangea is a stunning winter bloomer with fragrant, pink, hydrangea-like flowers that will turn heads and attract pollinators.
  • 🌸 Spectacular blooms: Clusters of fragrant, pink flowers brighten the landscape in winter and draw in bees and butterflies.
  • 🌸 Lush foliage: Large, heart-shaped leaves add tropical charm year-round.
  • 🌸 Fast-growing: Quickly creates a multi-stemmed bush, perfect for screening or covering unwanted views.
  • 🌸 Versatile landscaping: Ideal for hedges, garden accents, or a statement plant in any tropical or subtropical garden.
  • 🌸 With its beauty and utility, Tropical Hydrangea is a must-have for creating a vibrant, pollinator-friendly garden with minimal effort!


🛒 Shop Dombeyas

#Hedges_with_benefits #Butterfly_Plants

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Date:

What is the best fruit for summer drinks and wine?

🍸 What is the best fruit for summer drinks and wine?

  • 🍋 Hands, down, Costa Rican Guava, or Cas Guava (Psidium friedrichsthalianum) takes the crown! This tropical gem from Central America is known for its intense flavor, making it perfect for refreshing beverages and creative drinks. The tree is incredibly productive - even young ones yield abundant fruit!

  • 🍋 We discovered this fruit last Summer. The tree was so productive (on the second year!), we didn't know what to do with so much fruit! So we made a concentrated drink and have been drinking it since then. It looks like the juice has antibacterial properties so it doesn't need to be canned, it stores for months in refrigerator.

  • 🍋 Plans for 2025 season crop: Homemade Cas Guava wine!

Next summer, we are going to try making wine with Cas Guava. Its bold, tangy flavor is sure to produce a delicious, unique brew!

💯 Why choose Cas Guava?

  • • Packed with vitamin C - four times more than lemons - for a powerful immune boost.
  • • Rich in antioxidants to combat stress and inflammation.
  • • Hardy and low-maintenance, thriving in poor soils and resisting pests.

  • 🍸 Recipe: Cas Guava Juice Concentrate


    • Ingredients:

•  Fresh Cas Guavas
  • •  Sugar (to taste)


    • Instructions:
  • • Wash the guavas, cut in half and place them in a large pot with enough water to cover.
  • • Add sugar to taste and bring to a boil. Simmer for 5-10 min until the fruit softens.
  • • Let sit for a few hours so the fruit softens more.
  • • Strain the liquid through a colander to remove the pulp.
  • • Bottle the concentrate and refrigerate.
  • • To serve, dilute with water to your liking for a flavorful, tangy drink!


    • This concentrate doesn’t need sterilizing/canning and stays fresh for months, thanks to Cas Guava’s natural antibacterial properties.


🍸 Traditional Favorite: Agua de Cas

Cas Guava is the key ingredient in Costa Rica's famous Agua de Cas, a blend of cas juice, water, and sugar. It's a refreshing, slightly acidic drink that's perfect for hot days.

With its vibrant taste, rich nutrients, and endless possibilities, Cas Guava is a must-have for gardeners and culinary adventurers alike!

📚 Learn more:

🛒 Order Cas Guava

#Food_Forest #Recipes #Guava

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