😊 The fruit tree that every garden must have

• 🍎 Fig Tree (Ficus carica) is a great addition to your garden or patio, offering delicious fruit and attractive, lobed leaves with minimal care.
• 🍎 Delicious Fruit: Figs come in violet, brown, or black colors, offering a sweet flavor with health benefits.
• 🍎 Nutrient-Rich: High in Iron, Fiber, Potassium, and Calcium - perfect for a healthy treat!
• 🍎 Beautiful Leaves: Large, lobed, green leaves provide landscape value even when the tree isn’t fruiting.
• 🍎 Cold Hardy: Sensitive to frost during active growth but can withstand up to 10°F when dormant.
• 🍎 Low Maintenance: Grows easily with minimal attention, prefers alkaline soil (unlike most tropical plants!), and can tolerate wet conditions.
• 🍎 Prolific: Bears fruit from early summer to late fall, with fruits maturing quickly. It is self-fertile and low-maintenance, perfect for growing at home.

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⭐️ Carambola Jam recipe

😁 Ingredients:

• 
  · 4 ripe carambolas, washed and thinly sliced
• · 1 cup granulated sugar
• · 1/2 cup water
• · Juice of 1 lemon
• · 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger (optional)

📞 Instructions:

• 
  · In a saucepan, combine the water, sugar, and lemon juice. Bring to a boil, stirring until the sugar dissolves.
• · Add the sliced carambola and ground ginger. Reduce heat and simmer for 25–30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the fruit softens and the mixture thickens.
• · Remove from heat, let cool slightly, then transfer to sterilized jars.
• · Refrigerate and enjoy on toast, with yogurt, or as a glaze for meats.

🎁 This simple yet unusual jam highlights carambola’s unique star shape and tangy-sweet flavor! 😏

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😎 When young Carambola trees are covered with fruit

😇 Young Carambola trees, planted just last year (2024) at Top Tropicals garden, have been fruiting non-stop since fall! Though small, they’re loaded with fruit, and with so many trees, we’ve had more than we knew what to do with. So, we turned our bounty into jam - and it came out absolutely delicious! Stay tuned for the recipe in our next post. 👎

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😘 What are the flowers of Macadamia nuts

• 🌰 Macadamia trees are in full bloom now at our farm! The trees have stunning panicles of flowers.
• 🌰 Macadamia trees (Macadamia integrifolia) are known for their delicious flavor and high price tag, but you can grow these sweet nuts right in your garden!
• 🌰 Cold-Hardy and Productive: Thrives in all Florida soils, and can tolerate both flooding and drought once established.

Beautiful Flowers: The tree features stunning panicles of flowers, adding beauty to your garden.
• 🌰 Water & Soil Tolerance: Macadamia trees like water, but can become drought-tolerant once mature. Adapts well to all soil types.
• 🌰 Nutrient-Rich: Macadamia nuts are packed with healthy fats, vitamins, and antioxidants, promoting heart health, digestion, and more.
• 🌰 Fun Fact: The hardest-shelled nut in the world, macadamia nuts may help with weight management while offering numerous health benefits.

📚 More about Macadamia tree:
Ten best fruit trees to grow in Florida and Southern landscapes. # 6: Macadamia Nut Tree.
How to grow your own Sweet Macadamia Nuts

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💥 How to grow tons of fruit in limited space - it's incredible!

• 🍊 Yesterday we planted 100 Papaya trees in 6"x100" strip of the garden. That’s right - 100! This year, we’ll have BILLIONS and BILLIONS of fruit. Unbelievable! You should do it too. And here's how.
• 🍊 Want to grow more fruit trees? Different varieties? But look at your space - it's never enough! What can you do? Most people have no clue. But we do.
• 🍊 "Fruit cocktail trees" - great idea, right? Different varieties grafted onto one tree. Used to be very popular, especially citrus. But guess what? Doesn’t work well. The strongest variety takes over, dominates - very unfair.
• 🍊 The best solution? It's called "One Hole Planting." Genius! Just plant several varieties in the SAME hole. Each variety gets its own root system - no fighting, no losers. Just winners.
• 🍊 The absolute best candidates? Papaya Trees! (Carica papaya). They grow tall, straight, strong - just like a palm tree!
• 🍊 Here’s the trick: plant several varieties together. Both male and female trees (you thought male papaya was useless? Plant it in, and watch what happens!). It's the best way! Saves space, supercharges pollination, maximizes fruit production. You get different flavors, non-stop harvests.
• 🍊 Watch the video - 14 huge holes, 100 trees! It’s going to be HUGE! And guess what? We'll be back in just a few weeks - showing off the harvest! Stay tuned!

📚 Learn more from previous posts:

• 🟡 How to have fresh Papaya fruit year around
• 🟡 Top 3 most wanted Papaya varieties
• 🟡Carefree Garden: practical Guide to Growing Papaya.
• 🟡10 best fruit trees to grow in Florida and Southern landscapes. # 7: Papaya Tree.
• 🟡more posts about #Papaya

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🌸 What is the most beautiful winter flowering tree for Florida snowbirds?

• 🌸 It's not a cherry blossom! It's one of the most beautiful Florida trees - Tabebuia impetiginosa - Dwarf Pink Tabebuia, Pau DArco, Taheebo. It is in full bloom now, and it's a spectacular view!
• 🌸 This tree is a Florida favorite that's sure to make your garden stand out. This beauty is a winter-spring bloomer that'll have your landscape looking fabulous with bright pink flowers and a splash of yellow in the throats.
• 🌸 These gorgeous blooms pop up before the tree even puts out new leaves.
• 🌸 Perfect for smaller yards, this compact tree brings a burst of color without taking up too much space. Plus, it's the ideal choice for snowbirds visiting Florida in winter - when you're craving some color!
• 🌸 But this Tabebuia isn't just pretty - it's also practical! This tropical beauty is cold-hardy down to the upper 20’s, making it a great fit for Central Florida.
• 🌸 It's been a prized medicinal tree for centuries! Pau DArco (Taheebo) bark is brewed to make a smooth, earthy, and subtly sweet tea that contains compounds like lapachol and quercetin, used for centuries by indigenous South American tribes. A tree that's not only lovely to look at but also useful? That’s a win-win!
• 🌸 Starts flowering in very small size - see next post ⬇️

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🤘 How easy to grow is Pigeon Pea

• 🍿 Cajanus cajan - Pigeon Pea - is a bushy perennial shrub with pretty yellow flowers and abundant production of beans!
• 🍿 It is very fast growing, free branching, easy to grow and very low maintenance plant. Cold hardy to light frost. The plant tolerates poor soils, drought tolerant, improves soil quality like many other beans. Can be grown in container
• 🍿 Provides flavorful, nutritious, and healthy super-food. The beans used in rice dishes, soups, stews, tempeh, tofu. Unripe pods eaten in curries, leaves and young shoots cooked as a vegetable. Rich source of fiber, protein, vitamins (B, C, E, K), and minerals (calcium, iron, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, potassium, zinc). It has many medicinal uses.

📚 Learn more from previous posts:
What was discovered in the Pyramids
Pigeon Pea - an Ancient Superfood

🛍 Grow your own Pigeon Pea Superfood

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🚩 What are the most beautiful ornamental Banana varieties and which one should I plant?

Continued for the previous post🔼

❤️ The most popular ornamental banana varieties

• 
  🔥 Blood Leaf, Musa x sumatrana Zebrina Rojo - a striking banana variety with green leaves splashed with red, burgundy undersides, and small red fruit, thriving in containers and overwintering well in colder climates.
• 
  🔥 Musa coccinea - Scarlet Red Flowering Banana - is a rare, compact tropical banana from China and Vietnam, prized for its stunning red flower bracts with yellow blooms, glossy green leaves, and small ornamental orange fruits, making it a vibrant choice for gardens, pots, or cut arrangements.
• 
  🔥 Bordelon, Red Striped - a hardy ornamental banana variety with 10-15' tall stalks, striking red-striped leaves, and red undersides, discovered in Bordelonville, Louisiana, and capable of flowering and producing seeded fruit if protected in winter.
• 
  🔥 Banana Red Leaf, Musa x sumatrana - is a striking ornamental banana with large variegated leaves, red stems, and a solid maroon underside, growing 3-5 feet in containers or up to 8 feet in the ground, making it a stunning focal point or tropical backdrop.
• 
  🔥 Banana Siam Ruby - a striking ornamental banana with beautiful ruby-red leaves splashed with bright lime green, intensifying in color with sun exposure, thriving in hot, humid areas, and perfect for tropical backdrops or large patio containers.

📚 More about ornamental Bananas:
Musa Zebrina Rojo - Blood Leaf Banana

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🍌 What are the best varieties of edible Banana and which one should I plant?

Continued for the previous post🔼

🔥 The most popular edible banana varieties:

• 
  🍌 Truly Tiny - is a compact banana variety growing 2-3 feet in pots and up to 5 feet in the ground, perfect for small spaces or container gardening, producing 4-5 inch fruit with a distinctive pineapple flavor.
• 
  🍌 Cuban Red Dacca - a vibrant tropical banana variety with reddish-purple, plump, and short bananas that are sweeter and richer in flavor than common yellow bananas, thriving in warm climates and reaching 8-15 feet tall.
• 
  🍌 Double Mahoi - is a Cavendish banana variety that typically produces a double stalk of bananas in its second year, boosting the harvest.
• 
  🍌 Dwarf Cavendish - a hardy, vigorous banana variety growing under 5-8 feet, producing large, flavorful fruit with minimal care, making it a popular backyard banana in Florida and one of the most common Cavendish types for hobbyists and container gardens.
• 
  🍌 Gran Nain - is the true Chiquita banana, growing under 5-8 feet tall and producing large bunches of fruit, making it a staple of commercial banana production.
• 
  🍌 Ice Cream (Blue Java) - a cold-tolerant hybrid of Musa balbisiana and Musa acuminata, vigorous banana growing 10-15 feet tall and producing 40-60 lb bunches of stout, bluish-skinned fruit with sweet, vanilla-flavored, cream-like flesh that can be eaten raw or cooked.
• 
  🍌 Banana Lakatan - a popular Philippine banana cultivar prized for its sweet taste, rich aroma, and firm texture, making it a top choice for dessert bananas.

🆒 Banana #Fun_Facts

• 
  🟡Bananas are rich in potassium, which helps regulate blood pressure and supports heart health.
• 🟡They provide a quick source of energy and are great for post-workout recovery.
• 🟡The fiber in bananas aids digestion and promotes gut health.
• 🟡Eat them fresh, add to smoothies, bake into breads and desserts, or use in various savory dishes.
• 🟡Rubbing the inside of a banana peel on mosquito bites can reduce itching and swelling.

Learn about ornamental Bananas in next post 🔽

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🍌 How many varieties of Bananas can I grow?

• 💛 At Top Tropicals, we have a few dozen varieties of Bananas (Musa sp.) - ranging from popular commercial and plantain types to spectacular ornamental bananas with colorful, tropical foliage.
• 💛 Banana plants are a favorite in Southern gardens, indoor plant collections, and greenhouses in cooler climates. Fast and easy to grow, they transform any space into a tropical paradise in just one season and can produce fruit for you in as little as 8–18 months after planting.
• 💛 Bananas are a powerhouse of nutrition, packed with potassium for heart health, fiber for digestion, and vitamins B6 and C for immunity. They’re a natural energy booster, great for snacks, smoothies, and even baking. Plus, their tryptophan content can improve your mood, and their low sodium helps regulate blood pressure.
• 💛 With so many delicious and unique varieties, growing different types of bananas lets you enjoy a range of flavors, textures, and uses - whether fresh, blended, or cooked - making them a must-have in any tropical or indoor garden!

Discover the most popular edible and ornamental bananas in our next post 🔽

🎥 Banana selection today at TopTropicals farm. Come over to pick the best one!

📚 More about Banana from previous posts:

• 💋Top 10 fruit you'll ever need for your health benefits: #5 Banana growing and fun facts
• 💋How to make tasty Carambola Banana Whip
• 💋Why Bananas? They are good for you and are fun to grow
• 💋Bananas help you feel fuller and enhance your mood

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