Garden Blog - Top Tropicals

Date:

One bite, your whole day of vitamin C: Barbados Cherry that outdoes oranges! A Top Tropicals Garden Blog post.

Malpighia glabra - Barbados Cherry, Acerola

🍒 One bite, your whole day of vitamin C: Barbados Cherry that outdoes oranges!
  • 🍒 Malpighia glabra - Barbados Cherry, or Acerola has 65 times more vitamin C than an orange! Just a single berry-sized fruit can provide your entire daily vitamin C needs, along with vitamins A, B1, B2, B3, carotenoids, and bioflavonoids. In short, this little cherry is one of the most powerful antioxidant fruits in the world.
  • 🍒 But it isn’t just about nutrition. Barbados Cherry is a compact, fast-growing shrub or small tree that starts fruiting young, often within its first year. It produces crops several times a year, and the bright red cherries are as beautiful as they are useful. The fruit is tangy-sweet and makes excellent juices, smoothies, jams, and jellies. It also freezes well without losing its vitamin content.
  • 🍒 Gardeners love this plant not only for its fruit but also for how easy it is to grow. Unlike many tropicals, it tolerates alkaline soils, is drought-resistant once established, and can handle light freezes. That makes it a surprisingly tough choice for a tropical fruit tree. Birds enjoy the fruit too, so planting one is also a gift to your local wildlife.
  • 🍒 It's also a beauty in the garden, covered in pretty pink flowers and bright red fruit, often both at the same time.
  • 🍒 If you are short on space, the dwarf variety Nana is a perfect choice. With tiny leaves, compact growth, and smaller fruit, it works well in containers, borders, or even as a bonsai. It's both ornamental and productive.
  • 🍒 Whether you want a reliable vitamin boost, a wildlife-friendly garden addition, or just a cheerful little tree with bright red fruit, Barbados Cherry has you covered.


📚 Learn more from previous posts:

🛒 Add this vitamin C tree to your garden

#Food_Forest #Discover #Remedies

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Date:

Climbing 10 feet for Vanilla Beans! A Top Tropicals Garden Blog post.

Vanilla Bean Orchid - Vanilla planifolia

⭐️ Climbing 10 feet… for Vanilla Beans!
  • ⚡️ One of our Vanilla Bean Orchids at TopTropicals has big ambitions - it's already climbed 10 feet up a pine tree! We’re waiting (impatiently!) for those elegant yellow-green flowers, which will hopefully turn into vanilla beans.
  • ⚡️ Vanilla Bean Orchid (Vanilla planifolia) is the plant behind that sweet, comforting vanilla flavor we all love. It starts off like any potted orchid, but soon sends out aerial roots and becomes a climber, wrapping itself around trees or trellises. In its natural habitat, it grows high into forest canopies, but in the garden it will happily scale any sturdy support you give it.
  • ⚡️ Once established, it flowers and sets the long green pods we call vanilla beans. Growing your own is a lesson in patience - from flower to dried bean can take month - but nothing beats harvesting your own vanilla for the kitchen.


📚 Learn more:

📱How to produce your own vanilla: secrets of hand-pollination.

🛒 Climb toward your own beans

#Shade_Garden #Container_garden #Food_Forest

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Date:

Homegrown coffee - the journey begins. A Top Tropicals Garden Blog post.

Coffee tree - Coffea arabica

☕️ Homegrown coffee - the journey begins!

Coffee trees (Coffea arabica) that you saw blooming at Top Tropicals in May with fragrant, gardenia-like flowers, now in August - they are loaded with fruit! We will update on them once they turn red and ripe...

🛒 Start your own coffee harvest

📚 Learn more:

#Food_Forest #Container_Garden #Shade_Garden

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🌸 Bauhinias – Orchid Trees for Every Garden

🌳 Large Yard – Shade Trees

B. alba – White Orchid Tree

  • Pure white blooms, most cold-tolerant orchid tree
  • Bloom: Late fall to spring
  • Size: 20–30 ft
  • Hardiness: USDA 9a–11

Bauhinia alba (candida), White orchid tree
2035 Bauhinia alba (candida), White orchid tree
Grown in
10"/3 gal pot

$49.95


Buy Bauhinia alba (candida), White orchid tree  from Top Tropicals

B. blakeana – Hong Kong Orchid Tree

  • Purple-magenta flowers, long bloom season
  • Bloom: Late fall to early spring
  • Size: 20–35 ft
  • Hardiness: USDA 9b–11

Bauhinia blakeana, Hong Kong Orchid Tree, Grafted
1310 Bauhinia blakeana, Hong Kong Orchid Tree, Grafted
Grown in
10"/3 gal pot, grafted

$49.95


Buy Bauhinia blakeana, Hong Kong Orchid Tree, Grafted  from Top Tropicals

B. purpurea – Purple Orchid Tree

  • Compact canopy, vivid purple flowers
  • Bloom: Summer to fall
  • Size: 15–25 ft
  • Hardiness: USDA 9b–11

Bauhinia purpurea, Purple Orchid Tree
1024 Bauhinia purpurea, Purple Orchid Tree
Grown in
6"/1 gal pot

$29.95


Buy Bauhinia purpurea, Purple Orchid Tree  from Top Tropicals

B. variegata – Pink Butterfly Orchid Tree

  • Pink petals with darker butterfly-like markings
  • Bloom: Winter to early spring
  • Size: 20–30 ft
  • Hardiness: USDA 9b–11

Bauhinia variegata, Pink Butterfly Orchid Tree
2728 Bauhinia variegata, Pink Butterfly Orchid Tree
Grown in
6"/1 gal or larger pot

$49.95
  
Sale $29.95


Buy Bauhinia variegata, Pink Butterfly Orchid Tree  from Top Tropicals

Small Garden or Container

B. madagascariensis – Red Butterfly Orchid Tree

  • Bright red flowers, great for container
  • Bloom: Summer into fall
  • Size: 6-12 ft
  • Hardiness: USDA 9b–11

Bauhinia madagascariensis, Red Butterfly Orchid Tree
6061 Bauhinia madagascariensis, Red Butterfly Orchid Tree
Grown in
10"/3 gal pot

$49.95


Buy Bauhinia madagascariensis, Red Butterfly Orchid Tree  from Top Tropicals

B. tomentosa – Yellow Orchid Tree

  • Sunny yellow bells, soft foliage
  • Bloom: Warm months
  • Size: 6-10 ft
  • Hardiness: USDA 9b–11

Bauhinia tomentosa, Yellow Orchid Tree
1025 Bauhinia tomentosa, Yellow Orchid Tree
Grown in
6"/1 gal or larger pot

$49.95


Buy Bauhinia tomentosa, Yellow Orchid Tree  from Top Tropicals

B. monandra – Napoleon's Plume Orchid Tree

  • Pink with speckled petals
  • Bloom: Summer to fall
  • Size: 6-12 ft
  • Hardiness: USDA 10–11

Bauhinia monandra, Napoleons Plume Orchid Tree
1368 Bauhinia monandra, Napoleons Plume Orchid Tree
Grown in
10'/3 GAL POT

$49.95


Buy Bauhinia monandra, Napoleons Plume Orchid Tree  from Top Tropicals

B. acuminata – Dwarf White Orchid Tree

  • Crisp white blooms, small plant
  • Bloom: Summer to fall
  • Size: 6–8 ft
  • Hardiness: USDA 10–11

Bauhinia acuminata, Dwarf White Orchid Tree
2032 Bauhinia acuminata, Dwarf White Orchid Tree
Grown in
6"/1 gal or larger pot

$39.95


Buy Bauhinia acuminata, Dwarf White Orchid Tree  from Top Tropicals

🌿 Vining Beauty

B. galpinii – Pride of De Kaap

  • Pink with speckled petals
  • Bloom: Summer to fall
  • Size: 8-12 ft
  • Hardiness: USDA 9b–11

Bauhinia galpinii, Pride of De Kaap, Nasturtium Bauhinia
2034 Bauhinia galpinii, Pride of De Kaap, Nasturtium Bauhinia
Grown in
10"/3 gal pot

$39.95
  
Sale $29.95


Buy Bauhinia galpinii, Pride of De Kaap, Nasturtium Bauhinia  from Top Tropicals

Read Garden Blog about Bauhinia

Buy Bauhinia Trees - Delivered to Your Door

Date:

🌸 Orchid Tree - Bauhinia: Winter Blooms & Year-Round Beauty

Collage showing Bauhinia blakeana with magenta flowers, Bauhinia variegata var. candida with white blooms, and Bauhinia monandra with pink speckled flowers; all suitable for gardens, with some varieties adapted to container growing if trimmed.
Bauhinia blakeana, Bauhinia variegata var. candida, and Bauhinia monandra – Orchid Trees in Bloom

Sometimes a plant stops you midwalk. Flowers so bright they almost glow, leaves shaped like butterflies — that’s a Bauhinia, the Orchid Tree. These fast growers bring color when many gardens are quiet, with some blooming in the heart of winter.

🌟 Why Grow Bauhinia?

  • Exotic blooms in colors from white to deep magenta
  • Distinctive leaves — nature’s own butterfly design
  • Many varieties flower in the cooler season
  • Fast growth, easy shaping, more blooms after pruning
  • Varieties for large yards, small gardens, and sunny patios
  • Tolerant of heat, drought, and poor soils

Bauhinia Care Tips

🌞 Outdoor

Full sun for best flowering, well-draining soil, deep watering once established. Light pruning after bloom keeps shape and encourages more flowers. Protect young plants from frost. During the growing season (Spring - Fall), apply a balanced fertilizer - like top-dress slow release fertilizer or controlled-release Green Magic. Liquid fertilizer Sunshine Boosters Megaflor can be used year around - to promote vigorous growth and abundant blooms.

🏡 Indoor / Patio

Bright sun (south window or outdoors in warm months), large pot with drainage, even moisture during growth, and a bloom-booster feed in season. Feed regularly with a balanced fertilizer controlled-release Green Magic. Liquid fertilizer Sunshine Boosters Megaflor can be used year around - to promote vigorous growth and abundant blooms. Bring indoors before frost.

🍂 Seasonal Note – Bauhinias are Deciduous

Bauhinias drop their leaves in winter — even in warm climates. This is normal and part of their rest cycle. Bare branches in the cool season will leaf out again in spring, often just as flowers begin.

📝 Quick choice guide

Shop Bauhinas

Date:

Why every garden has this one Purple Spray Tree. A Top Tropicals Garden Blog post.

Tibouchina granulosa - Glory Tree or Purple Spray Tree

💜 Why every garden has this one Purple Spray Tree
  • 🟪 Tibouchina granulosa - Glory Tree or Purple Spray Tree - is the one you'll see in every Florida garden!
  • 🟪 If you love purple flowers, this one's a no-brainer. From late summer through winter, it's covered in velvety purple blooms that form giant flower sprays. The whole tree lights up with color, and it's impossible to ignore!
  • 🟪 In Highlands County, Florida (where Top Tropicals farm is), you'll see this tree in garden after garden - and everyone says the same thing: You've gotta have one!
  • 🟪 It's tropical, eye-catching, and makes any landscape feel lush and vibrant. A true gem for southern gardens.


📚 Learn more:
💋How this addictive purple took over yards in Central Florida

🛒 Everyone has one - get yours today!

#Hedges_with_benefits #Trees

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Why every garden needs a banana tree (or three!) A Top Tropicals Garden Blog post.

Bananas

🍌 Why every garden needs a banana tree (or three!)
  • 🍌 Peel this: Banana secrets revealed.

    • The truth about bananas is - Bananas are everyone's favorite snack. Sweet, nutritious, and loaded with potassium. They're great for muscle cramps, post-workout recovery, and quick energy. But did you know you can grow your own bananas, even in a small backyard or container?
  • 🍌Banana Trees (Musa x acuminata) are:

  • 🟡Super easy to grow
  • 🟡Fast-growing and low maintenance
  • 🟡Clumping and self-reproducing
  • 🟡Beautiful and tropical-looking with their big, tropical leaves and showy, exotic flowers

  • 🍌Dwarf varieties fit in tight spaces, and rare types like Red Bananas or the creamy Banana Ice Cream bring flavors you’ll never find at the grocery store. Plus, your own bananas are organic, fresh, and way tastier.
  • 🍌 Start your banana patch today - and enjoy your own homegrown fruit all year long!


🛒 Explore Banana Varieties

📚 Learn more about Banana varieties:

📱Red Leaves, Red Fruit, Real Wow Banana

#Food_Forest #Bananas

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"> Two people in blue shirts cutting open a large 37-pound Jackedak Jackfruit on an outdoor table, revealing bright yellow fruit inside.

🍈 We Cut Open a 37 lb Jackfruit - You Won't Believe What's Inside!

🍈 Cutting into a 37-pound Jackedak Jackfruit with Chiane and Ashley!

🍈 Join us at Top Tropicals as we explore one of the largest fruits on Earth - the mighty Jackfruit. From golden, juicy bulbs bursting with tropical sweetness to edible seeds and the soft “rag” with hints of bubblegum, pineapple, and custard, this giant fruit has more surprises than expected.

  • ✔️Learn how to cut and clean a jackfruit
  • ✔️See which parts are edible (you might be surprised!)
  • ✔️Why it's a favorite for exotic fruit lovers
  • ✔️Hear our taste-test reactions: bubblegum, custard, pineapple?

🍈 Whether you're into exotic fruits, cooking, or growing your own tropical trees, this is one tasty experience you don't want to miss.

🍈 Want to grow your own Jackfruit? We've got you covered!

Read Garden Blog about Jackfruit

Buy Jackfruit Trees - Delivered to Your Door

Date:

Tuxedo cat planting tropical tree with Sunshine Boosters bag, orange cat waving to kitten with backpack by school bus in sunny garden scene.

🌺 Back to School and Back to Planting – Cats in the Garden

Back to School, Back to Planting – Why August Works for Tropicals

Planting Season Isn't Over Yet

August is still a good month for planting tropicals in warm climates. The soil stays warm enough to push root growth, and late-summer weather gives plants time to settle in before winter. In drier areas, regular watering will keep them moving along just fine.

Tropicals in warm climates aren't usually harmed by cooler Winter weather, but as days get shorter, growth may slow down. This is why planting in late Summer-Fall lets roots grow during this last warm stretch, so the plant enters winter already established.

By spring, those roots are ready to drive new shoots, flowers, and fruit. There's no lost time to transplant shock - plants can get straight to blooming and fruiting earlier in the season.

August Planting FAQ

How can heat be prevented from harming new tropicals?

Water in the morning so plants start the day hydrated. Warm soil is good for root growth, but don't let it dry out.

How should new plants be protected from strong sun?

For the first couple of weeks, use a shade cloth or even a white bed sheet to soften midday sun and prevent leaf scorch.

What fertilizer works best for planting in summer heat?

Controlled-release types are best. We use professional grade Green Magic. You may pair it with Sunshine Boosters for steady, gentle feeding through the warm months.

Which tropicals grow best when planted in August?

Most tropical plants do well when planted in warm end-of-summer conditions, including Mango, Avocado, Guava, Jackfruit, Annona, Bananas, Orchid Trees, Jasmines, Allamanda and most of flowering trees, shrubs and vines.

Can tropical trees planted in August produce fruit next year?

Many can, especially fast growers, since they have established roots by the time spring growth begins.

How can tropicals be kept healthy when planting in August?

Mulch around the base to help prevent soil from drying out too quickly. Water deeply in the morning to help plants handle the heat.

Shop Flowering trees

Shop Fruit trees and edibles

Date:

Why your gut is begging for papaya. A Top Tropicals Garden Blog post.

Papaya fruit and trees (Carica papaya)

🍊Why your gut is begging for papaya
  • 🌴Papaya (Carica papaya) is more than just a tasty tropical fruit - it's a natural remedy for your gut. Thanks to an enzyme called papain, it helps with digestion, bloating, and even supports immune health with high levels of vitamin C and A.
  • 🌴But here's what makes papaya a must-have in every garden: it's fast, space-saving, and super productive. Many trees start fruiting within a year!
  • 🌴Dwarf varieties only reach 6-8 feet but still give you full-sized fruit that's easy to harvest.
  • 🌴Grow it in the ground or in a container - it thrives in sun, handles light freezes, and even stands strong in high winds.
  • 🌴Low effort, high reward. Sweet fruit, strong plant. What more do you need?


📚 Learn more from previous posts:

🛒 Your gut will thank you - plant Papaya

#Food_Forest #Papaya
🟢 Join 👉 TopTropicals
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