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Why Rosita de Cacao is called the Funeral Tree? For how long does its fragrance last?

Funeral Tree - Quararibea funebris (Rosita de Cacao, Flor de Cacao) - Flower

Funeral Tree - Quararibea funebris (Rosita de Cacao, Flor de Cacao) - Flower

Funeral Tree - Quararibea funebris (Rosita de Cacao, Flor de Cacao) - tree

Funeral Tree - Quararibea funebris (Rosita de Cacao, Flor de Cacao) - tree

🧛 Why Rosita de Cacao is called the Funeral Tree? For how long does its fragrance last?
  • 😇 The Legendary Funeral Tree - Quararibea funebris (also called Rosita de Cacao, Flor de Cacao) got its name from the flower's extraordinary ability to retain its spicy, sweet fragrance for centuries.
  • 😇 These flowers were used in ancient funeral ceremonies, placed in crypts to preserve their aroma for generations. Even today, dried Rosita de Cacao flowers can hold their scent for decades, a testament to their remarkable endurance.


    • History and Legends

    Aztec names: Poyomatli, Xochicacaohuatl, Flor Cacahuaxochitl, Cacaoxochitl.
  • 😇 The species was at one time widespread and growing wild throughout the Oaxaca region of Mexico known for plants used in Shamanism.
  • 😇 Cherished by the Aztecs, the Rosita de Cacao was deeply intertwined with their rituals and daily life.
  • 😇 The flowers, known as Cacaoxochitl or "cacao flower," were blended with chocolate drinks like Tejate, a sacred, energy-rich beverage reserved for royalty and religious ceremonies. This frothy drink combined Cacaoxochitl with other ingredients like cacao, vanilla, and chili peppers to create what the Aztecs called the "drink of the gods."
  • 😇 Legend has it that Emperor Montezuma consumed up to 50 cups of xocolatl daily, infused with Rosita de Cacao, to fuel his energy and passion.


    • Medicinal and Spiritual Uses
  • 😇 The flowers of this tree were not just for flavor - they were also prized for their calming and medicinal properties. Natives used them to treat anxiety, fevers, and coughs, often mixing them with cacao for enhanced effects.
  • 😇 Modern studies suggest the flowers contain lactone alkaloids like funebradiol, which are known for their relaxing properties and are now being investigated for potential medicinal applications.
  • 😇 Beyond its rich history, Rosita de Cacao is an evergreen beauty with creamy white, aromatic flowers and large, leathery leaves. It's a perfect addition to any garden for those who want a piece of history, an enduring fragrance, and a touch of ancient legend.


📚 Learn more from previous posts:
Fruit of Money and Love
Fun Facts: Cacao beans

🛒 Shop Tropical Fruit Trees

#Food_Forest #Fun_facts #Nature_Wonders

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Date:

What is the most rare and unique plant of your collection?

Anthurium Black Dragon

🍸 What is the most rare and unique plant of your collection?

😈 Anthurium Black Dragon is a super exotic gem that brings a dash of dramatic flair to your rare plant collection!
  • 🖖Under bright filtered light, its bold, upright leaves turn a stunning black, while in shadier spots, they shift to a sultry dark-green with a reddish-black tint. With more light, they transform back to black, creating an ever-changing display.
  • 🖖This rare, herbaceous rosette also sports a brown spadix and dark-brown spathe, making it an unforgettable centerpiece and add a little magic to your indoor jungle.


🤡 What rare plants do you have in your collection? Share pictures with us!

🛒 Get your own Black Dragon

#Container_Garden #Shade_Garden #Nature_Wonders

🔴 Join 👉 TopTropicals

Date:

The first pictures ever! The rarest Ginger Borneo Pink (New Guinea)

Riedelia coralina - Coral Ginger Borneo Pink (New Guinea)

Riedelia coralina - Coral Ginger Borneo Pink (New Guinea)

Riedelia coralina - Coral Ginger Borneo Pink (New Guinea)

Riedelia coralina - Coral Ginger Borneo Pink (New Guinea)

Riedelia coralina - Coral Ginger Borneo Pink (New Guinea)

Riedelia coralina - Coral Ginger Borneo Pink (New Guinea)

Riedelia coralina - Coral Ginger Borneo Pink (New Guinea)

Riedelia coralina - Coral Ginger Borneo Pink (New Guinea)

Riedelia coralina - Coral Ginger Borneo Pink (New Guinea)

Riedelia coralina - Coral Ginger Borneo Pink (New Guinea)

Riedelia coralina - Coral Ginger Borneo Pink (New Guinea)

Riedelia coralina - Coral Ginger Borneo Pink (New Guinea)

☄️ The first pictures ever! The rarest Ginger Borneo Pink (New Guinea)

👆 For the previous post: more pictures of the rarest ginger - Riedelia coralina - Coral Ginger Borneo Pink (New Guinea)

🔥 This variety is virtually unknown in mainstream horticulture, making it a prized collector's item. Any plants in cultivation likely come from very limited nursery sources or specialty plant imports.

🛒 Only a few plants available: Coral Ginger Borneo Pink

#Shade_Garden #Nature_Wonders #Container_Garden

🔴 Join 👉 TopTropicals

Date:

Finally - the first image on Internet: rare ginger Borneo Pink (New Guinea)

Riedelia coralina - Coral Ginger Borneo Pink (New Guinea)

😱 Finally - the first image on Internet: rare ginger Borneo Pink (New Guinea)
  • ❤️ Riedelia coralina - Coral Ginger Borneo Pink (New Guinea)
  • ❤️ This super rare ginger finally bloomed for us! We grew this rare specimen from seeds form the collection of Mark Hooten, S. Florida horticulturist. The species close related to Burbidgea. Riedelia coralina is so rare that published information about this exact species is extremely hard to find. Most references to it appear in specialized collector circles rather than in widely available horticultural or botanical literature.
  • ❤️ We have only a few plants, ginger collectors, hurry up!

It is so rare you can't even find images on Internet. This will be the first one!

📚 Learn more about gingers from previous posts:

🛒 Get collectible Coral Ginger Borneo Pink

#Shade_Garden #Nature_Wonders #Container_Garden

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Date:

What is the miracle behind the Miracle fruit?

Miracle Fruit, synsepalum dulcificum

🥰 What is the miracle behind the Miracle fruit?
  • 🍭 Miracle Fruit, synsepalum dulcificum is a small, red berry that can temporarily make sour foods taste sweet. The berry contains a protein called miraculin, which binds to taste buds and alters the way sour foods are perceived. Sour turns into sweet!
  • 🍭 Native to West Africa, this fruit has been used for centuries as a natural sweetener and is often enjoyed at "flavor-tripping" parties.
  • 🍭 It's also used by chemotherapy patients to help improve their sense of taste, as it can make bitter or metallic-tasting foods more palatable.


📚 Learn more from earlier posts:
How to make sour taste sweet and what causes the miracle?
Everyday Miracle - Grow the Dream!

🛒 Plant your own Miracle Fruit

#Food_Forest #Nature_Wonders #Remedies #Fun_Facts

🔴 Join 👉 TopTropicals

Date:

Are these new Christmas ornaments?

Akee, Ackee - Blighia sapida

Akee, Ackee - Blighia sapida

Akee, Ackee - Blighia sapida

Akee, Ackee - Blighia sapida

Akee, Ackee - Blighia sapida, fruit

Akee, Ackee - Blighia sapida, fruit

Akee, Ackee - Blighia sapida, tree

Akee, Ackee - Blighia sapida, tree

Akee, Ackee - Blighia sapida

Akee, Ackee - Blighia sapida

Akee, Ackee - Blighia sapida, fruit

Akee, Ackee - Blighia sapida, fruit

Akee, Ackee - Blighia sapida, fruit

Akee, Ackee - Blighia sapida, fruit

Are these new Christmas ornaments? Ackee monster fruit!
  • ⛔️ Ackee (Akee) is the national fruit of Jamaica and is known for its unique bizarre shape, resembling giant red pear.
  • ⛔️ When properly prepared, its soft, creamy flesh is a key ingredient in the popular Jamaican dish, "ackee and saltfish." The fruit makes a delicious nutritious meal tasting like eggs and potatoes.
  • ⛔️ The fruit is native to West Africa, but it was introduced to the Caribbean in the 18th century and has since become a symbol of Jamaican cuisine.
  • ⛔️ Akee is actually a vegetable growing on a tree! Akee tree is easy to grow, undemanding, fast growing, and fruits right away. Sometimes it fruits twice a year!


📚 More prom previous posts:
Akee deliciousness
What is number one tree-grown vegetable
Grow Your Own Food: Akee
📱 How to cook perfect Akee

🛒 Order Akee tree

#Food_Forest #Nature_Wonders #Recipes

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Date:

Why this Hibiscus is changing color?

Hibiscus mutabilis Cotton Candy - Mallow Hibiscus

Hibiscus mutabilis Cotton Candy - Mallow Hibiscus

Hibiscus mutabilis Cotton Candy - Mallow Hibiscus

Hibiscus mutabilis Cotton Candy - Mallow Hibiscus

Hibiscus mutabilis Cotton Candy - Mallow Hibiscus

Hibiscus mutabilis Cotton Candy - Mallow Hibiscus

Hibiscus mutabilis Cotton Candy - Mallow Hibiscus

Hibiscus mutabilis Cotton Candy - Mallow Hibiscus

🌸 Why this Hibiscus is changing color?
  • 🌸 Hibiscus mutabilis Cotton Candy - Mallow Hibiscus - is an amazing winter bloomer that chances flower color! It opens pure white than gradually shifts to baby pink to dark pink over three days, much like the Yesterday-Today-Tomorrow plant (Brunfelsia).
  • 🌸 As the blooms age, they take on a rich, deep pink hue, creating a stunning rainbow of colors on the bush all at once.
  • 🌸 Blossoms reach up to 5 inches across!


📚 From previous posts:
How hibiscus plant acts like a chameleon
How to make your Hibiscus plants thrive and bloom

🛒 Order Cotton Candy Hibiscus

#Hedges_with_benefits #Nature_Wonders

🔴 Join 👉 TopTropicals

Date:

How big does the Monkey Ear Tree grow?

Enterolobium cyclocarpum - Monkey Ear Tree

🐵 How big does the Monkey Ear Tree grow?

🐒 Enterolobium cyclocarpum - Monkey Ear Tree, is a lightning-fast grower, shooting up into a big, beautiful tree in no time. If you’re looking to enjoy a large, shady tree within just a couple of seasons, this one’s your perfect pick!

🙉 See more pictures of the Monkey Ears in earlier post.

🛒 Get your own Monkey Ear Tree

#Nature_Wonders #Trees

🔴 Join 👉 TopTropicals

Date:

Does Red flowering banana produce fruit?

Musa coccinea - Scarlet Red Flowering Banana

Musa coccinea - Scarlet Red Flowering Banana

💄 Does Red flowering banana produce fruit?
  • 🌷 Musa coccinea - Scarlet Red Flowering Banana - is a rare, small size tropical banana tree native to China and Vietnam, known for its vibrant red flower bracts that surround delicate yellow blooms.
  • 🌷 With glossy, dark green leaves resembling classic banana foliage, this plant makes a striking addition to a rare plant collection.
  • 🌷 Although it doesn't produce edible bananas, it grows small orange fruits that enhance its ornamental appeal.
  • 🌷 The plant's pseudostems die back after flowering, but new shoots (banana pups) emerge from the roots, ensuring its continued growth.
  • 🌷 Compact and easy to grow, it's perfect for small gardens, pots, or as a colorful indoor arrangement.


🛒 Order Scarlet Red Flowering Banana

#Container_Garden #Shade_Garden #Nature_Wonders

🔴 Join 👉 TopTropicals

Date:

This is why its called Heaven Lotus Tree - fragrant and edible!

Gustavia augusta - Heaven Lotus, flower

Gustavia augusta - Heaven Lotus, flower

Gustavia augusta - Heaven Lotus, tree

Gustavia augusta - Heaven Lotus, tree

Gustavia augusta - Heaven Lotus, flower

Gustavia augusta - Heaven Lotus, flower

Gustavia augusta - Heaven Lotus, flower close-up

Gustavia augusta - Heaven Lotus, flower close-up

Gustavia augusta - Heaven Lotus, fruit

Gustavia augusta - Heaven Lotus, fruit

💐 This is why it's called Heaven Lotus Tree - fragrant and edible!
  • 🪷 Gustavia augusta - Heaven Lotus - is a stunning, small tropical tree from Brazil that looks like it stepped right out of a tropical paradise. The spectacular, perfumed flowers resembling Lotus are as beautiful as they are unique.
  • 🪷 These large, striking blooms with white-and pink petals and a magic sweet fragrance are so eye-catching that the central crown almost looks good enough to eat!
  • 🪷 Straight, often unbranched trunk, with a single cluster of leaves at the top, gives it a palm-like vibe. As it grows older, it may sprout a few large branches, each with its own leafy crown. The leaves are huge - no other tree around has leaves quite as big, except maybe a palm. They're long, narrow at the base, and broad at the top, making them a real showstopper.
  • 🪷 The rounded, pear-shaped fruit grow directly on the trunk (a trait called cauliflory, see earlier post) and contains delicious yellowish-orange pulp that can be boiled and resemble meat in taste. The leaves, when boiled into a decoction, are said to cure intoxication.
  • 🪷 Truly an exciting, one-of-a-kind tree, a gem for collectors! Can be grown in containers.


🛒 Enjoy your own Heaven Lotus Tree

#Container_Garden #Trees #Nature_Wonders #Perfume_Plants

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