TOP TROPICALS ONLINE STORE: Herbs, Spicery, and plants with Aromatic Leaves

Auntie Lilli's South Sea Salad Tree, known by the Latin name of Abelmoschus manihot, isn't a tree at all. It is in the botanical family Malvaceae, same as okra and the woody-stemmed hibiscus. It may have the growth of a shrubby tree due to its tropical nature, as it is native to tropical portions of Asia and also northern Queensland and can grow up to 9 feet tall when given the right conditions.
The South Sea Salad Tree has been a traditional green vegetable in Fiji for some time. It is grown as an tender ornamental perennial in Hardiness Zones 8-10. It does have a beautiful flower, but lesser known is the fact that both its flowers and leaves are delicious as well as nutritious! The laves are high in Vitamins A and C and Iron, and have 12% protein by dry weight. Leaves and flowers can be eaten raw in salads, and the leaves can also be lightly cooked similarly to spinach. Delicious, nutritious and a beautiful flower - talk about a perfect edible plant for tropical/subtropical landscapes and temperate annual gardens and patios.

Toothache Plant is a medicinal herb that has been used for generations to manage the pain of toothaches. Both the leaves and the attractive golden flowers can be used as a natural anesthetic. Simply chew the leaves or flowers for a few seconds then you will experience a tingling and numbing sensation in your mouth. Cooked leaves lose their strong flavor and may be used as leafy greens. Both fresh and cooked leaves are used in dishes such as stews in northern Brazil. Flavor is described as having an odor of citrus, herbal, tropical or musty odor, and its taste can be pungent, cooling, tingling, numbing, or effervescent. Acmella Oleracea extract is considered a natural alternative to Botox. Applied topically, Acmella Oleracea reportedly reduces muscle tension, reducing facial wrinkles caused by tense or contracted facial muscles.
The plant is a small, erect, it grows quickly and bears gold and red inflorescences. It is frost-sensitive but perennial in warmer climates. Can be grown in a container and as a houseplant.

Grains of Paradise, African Cardamom. Seeds of this rare Ginger are similar in flavor to cardamom and used as a pungent spice. This Ginger has many bioactives, great for digestive and intestinal health. The plant has many other medicinal values: anti-diabetic and anti-obese mechanisms, aphrodisiac and testosterone boosting properties. Aframomum melegueta may be promising for a spice to add to a diet in hopes of body recomposition. Studies show this spice increases sexual behavior.

Allspice, Jamaica Pepper, pimento tree. Leaves and bark also contain the allspice scent. Excellent container plant for indoor or greenhouse culture. This spice scent will be with you right away and will stay all the time, don't have to wait till bloom or fruit...
This plant has antimicrobial properties.

Narrow-Leaf Cinnamon Ginger. The plant is a low mounding ginger with glossy leaves, and amazingly fragrant foliage. Gently brushing the leaves is all it takes to release a spicy cardamom-like aroma. Rhizomes are ginger-scented with a touch of Cinnamon. The flowers are quite beautiful, and resemble those of shell ginger to which it is closely related. In a shady tropical garden, the glossy dense foliage is lush and beautiful.
Hardy to zone 7, it is very easy to grow, and will grow from a small rhizome division into an enormous specimen in just a couple of years. If not protected from freezes, it will die back to the ground, but it will re-emerge from the rhizomes in the Spring, as long as the ground doesn't freeze. Southeast Asian medicinal plant used to control hypertension, as diuretic, antifungal, and antiulcer. In Japan it is used as food preservative.

Betel Nut, Bunga, Pinang. This variety is reported to be semi-dwarf and can be grown in a large container.
This palm is the basis of a large industry in SE Asia, where the seed is chewed for its intoxicating properties, as well as its supposedly beneficial side effects, such as aiding digestion, and controlling internal parasites and dysentery.

Neem tree - used cosmetically and medicinally by many cultures for centuries, also offers an environmentally safe alternative to synthetic pesticides.

Freshwater Mangrove, Indian Oak, Indian Putat. Barringtonia acutangula is native to coastal wetlands in southern Asia and northern Australasia, from Afghanistan east to the Philippines and Queensland. The plant is used medicinally in fold remedies. Its bark contains potent opioid painkillers

Bay Rum Tree. This is a small sized tree related to the Allspice, with leaves containing and aromatic oil that somewhat resembles clove oil. This essential oil is distilled from the leaves and is used in perfumes. A type of cologne named 'Bay Rum' was historically made in the early 20th century by distilling the oil using rum and water, hence the common name of the plant. Leaves of can be used in cooking and tea. For generations, Bay Rum has been used in folk medicine. This spice scent will be with you right away and will stay all the time, don't have to wait till bloom or fruit...

Black pepper. Grow your own spice! Moderate growing vine that can be grown on trellis.
See Article about this plant.

This Pigeon Pea variety called Fuerte (meaning "strong"), was brought to Florida by a family from Holguin, Cuba, several decades ago. There, it is considered to be be finest of many cultivars which are widely cultivated.
True to its name, it is the largest, strongest, most long lived, and most productive variety we have trialed. Also, it regularly produces pods with more and larger beans than any other. This is a vastly improved variety, and likely one of the documented polyploid cultivars. Highly recommended!
Pigeon Peais popular food in developing tropical countries. Nutritious and wholesome, the green seeds (and pods) serve as vegetable. Pigeon Pea is hardy, widely adaptable, and more tolerant of drought and high temperatures than most other crops.

This is an extremely rare variety of the European Holistic Medicinal Plant - Golden Tendril. It has showy variegated leaves and makes a beautiful houseplant on top of its medicinal value. It tolerates wide range of conditions and requires very little water; takes both bright sun or shade and is very fast growing and easy. Leaves will turn purplish at the edges when placed in bright light. It has small, white fragrant flowers arranged in clusters of three. This is a good groundcover for mild, moderately dry climates, as well as a nice container or hanging basket plant. With a good care Callissia fragrans can reach more than 3 feet high as an indoor plant. In this case, you need to make a support to it that the plant wouldn't break under its own weight. The plant has wide medicinal use in Europe and Russia, literally every household, millions of Europeans use this plant as a home remedy. According to scientific research, active biological substances from steroid group contained in this plant can struggle with any types of infections, stimulates metabolic processes, strengthens immunity and circulatory system, has a positive influence on growths and much more... some people consider it a virtual panacea. Whether it works for everybody or not, it is definitely fun to own such a legendary plant!

Spicewood, Pale Lidflower. Flowers appear at the beginning of the rainy season. Their fragrance escapes from hundreds of tiny blossoms to form a cloud that hovers over the area.

An exceptionally distinct pepper, it is likely an ancient hybrid of Capsicum annuum (bird pepper) and Capsicum chinense (habanero group).
While of small size (something around an inch or so long), these oddly shaped bright orange to finally red fruits are prolifically produced along the branches of compact plants with small leaves.
What separates this variety from others is its unique flavor which packs quite a bang! Not because of its heat (because our strain has either no heat what-so-ever, or so little it is hard to even detect), but because of its intense fruity habanero flavor.
If one who knows that distinct habanero super fruit flavor (which is then normally followed by the heat blast), then tries a biquinho pepper, the flavor is so distinctly habanero that when the heat blast doesn't occur, it is a strange event.

Wiri Wiri Pepper. A variety from Guyana, the Wiri Wiri pepper is the illustrious gem; hard sought and rarely found. This plant produces good yields of small 1/2" berry shaped hot peppers. Peppers grow upright, are very hot, and turn from green, to orange, to red when mature.
What makes it so much different than any other hot pepper grown in the garden or bought at the store?
Hot? Yes, it is important that hot peppers are, but the people who really know, know that it is not just about heat, it is about flavor! And that is exactly what makes this little red gem so special. Guyanese dinners will only take one of those meals for you to never forget! The secret of their food is the flavor, and one of the cornerstone ingredients in many of their dishes is the Wiri pepper. The Guyanese population claim that it is not just a key ingredient to their diet, but also to why they are so good looking, live so long, and have such great skin.

Clinacanthus nutans, or Phaya-Yor in Thai, has been traditionally used in Thailand for the treatment of Herpes infections. In addition this herb also exhibits an excellent and rapid-acting anti-inflammatory activity which makes Clinacanthus nutans topical product a good natural product for the relief of minor skin inflammation and insect bites well.

Butterfly pea, Asian pigeonwings. Perfect vine! Blooms year-round, fast growing, easy, not invasive, controllable, not messy, curious bright blue flower - Clitoris-like flower shape, hence name of the plant. Fast-growing climber with fine foliage, pinnate leaves.
Besides being a great ornamental, this plant has some practical and medicinal value. The seed pods are edible, as well as the flowers. The flowers are used for blue food dye for rice and teas. It is also a nitrogen fixer and helps prevent E-coli.
See article about healing properties of this plant: Blue Tea from the Magic Clitoria.

Spice Turmeric, Longevity Spice, Indian Saffron, Tumeric. Turmeric powder might well be the healthiest spice on Earth. Made by grinding the dried root of the Curcuma longa plant, this ancient superfood and key ingredient in curry powder has been used by Indian Ayurvedic healers for centuries. In recent years, also the scientific community has begun to show interest in the potential health benefits of the turmeric root. Turmeric can be consumed in its original powdered form through culinary additions to other foods.
This plant is deciduous through winter-spring.

Lemon grass - versatile performer in the kitchen where it can be used in teas, beverages, herbal medicines, Eastern inspired soups and other dishes.

Citronella grass, Nardus, Nard grass, Mana grass. It is grown in Sri Lanka, India, Burma, Indonesia and Java. Citronella is the source of the commercial citronella oil, used in perfumery and as an insect repellent. The essential oils extracted from citronella grass are much used in aroma therapy as a stimulant when inhaled or rubbed on the skin, and an antiseptic that can be used to sterilize food preparation surfaces.

Lemon Eucalypt. A very fast growing evergreen tree. Leaves have a strong lemony scent when crushed. Leaves yield lemon-scented oil used in perfumery. In the landscape, trees are pretty hardy and tolerate frost.

Bright purple leaves with orange flowers! A great groundcover, vining or hanging basket plant. Takes both full sun or shade and is very easy! Gynura aurantiaca is a perennial vine with velvety-purple-hairy stems and leaves. The orange flowers are 1 inch across, look impressive on purple foliage background. The more sun it receives the richer the color.
Great indoor plant.