CONTAINER GARDEN

Costus igneus, Chamaecostus cuspidatus - Insulin Plant, Fiery Costus, Spiral Flag.
It is known as the insulin plant because it may help lower glucose levels for some people with diabetes. Researchers believe it can help lower blood sugar level. The plant has large, fleshy, smooth turmeric-like spiral leaves that are dark green on top with light purple undersides. The undersides of these large, smooth, dark green leaves have light purple shade. The leaves are spirally arranged around the stem, forming attractive, arching clumps arising from underground rootstocks. The flowers are orange in color, appear to be cone-like heads at the tips of branches. Flowering occurs during the warm months.
10 benefits of insulin plant:
- Helps to reduce high blood glucose level
- Improves digestion
- Reduces cholesterol level
- Increases energy level
- Promotes weight loss
- Good for skin health
- Prevents heart diseases
- Relieves stress.

Anthonys Rick-Rack. This curious epiphyte is grown for the strange leaves which lend it the common name Ric-Rac Cactus, Zig-Zag or Fishbone Cactus. In the wild it attaches itself to trees, clinging by little aerial root filaments along the zigzagging succulent leaves, but is adaptable to terrestrial habits. It loves strong yet indirect lighting. It does not need a lot of water and should be permitted to dry out entirely between waterings. It is nightblooming and its flowers last only a single night in spring.

Unusual color for tropics - Deep Sapphire! Blue Ginger is a wonderful, tropical-looking plant which resembles ginger in growth and habit. It is a great addition for a shade garden, can be grown as a container and indoor plant. In warm environment, the plant is evergreen and doesn't go dormant.

This is a very cute and unique plant from the Philippines and SE Asia that belongs to Hoya and Dischidia family. It's a vigorous growing vine with boat shaped leaves. Very easy to grow and it is a really good bloomer! A lot of Dischidias don't have the most showy flowers, but this plant has very cute fuchsia colored flowers, and the buds never fully open up! They look like little bulbs or dildos. Great as a house plant that doesn't need much maintenance. Grows well in hanging baskets in shade/filtered light and doesn't need a lot of water. The potting soil should be very well drained and porous.

Disocactus ackermanni, also called the Red Orchid Cactus, puts on a jaw-dropping show with huge, blazing red flowers that can reach 6 inches wide! It's a cactus that acts nothing like one - and then bursts out in flowers the size of your hand.
It blooms from spring through summer and steals the spotlight every time. The plant grows like a lush, green fern with flat stems that drape and cascade like a living chandelier.
It may be a cactus, but it loves water and shade - more diva than desert. Native to the tropical forests of Mexico, this epiphyte thrives in a hanging basket and turns heads wherever it grows.
Why do collectors search for it? Because it's rare, eye-catching, and just plain fun to grow. No spines, no drama - just bold flowers and easy charm. This is one of those plants that visitors always ask about. If you're a collector, it's not a want - it's a need. In cultivation, it has been confused with Disocactus jenkinsonii, a hybrid between D. phyllanthoides and D. speciosus.

Showy, variegated formThe Lucky Bamboo Plant which is an extremely popular houseplant and candidate for some aquariums, terrariums, and paluadariums. It is not actually closely related to bamboo grass, although its common name comes from its resemblance to bamboo grass. While not a true aquatic plant, the Lucky Bamboo Plant is extraordinarily popular and can often be applied to aquarium, terrarium, and paludarium setups! It should be positioned upright with its leaves clearly out of the water. There isn't really a well known reason for how this common name came about, although Dracaena sanderiana grows easily in water and the canes of the plant have a similar appearance to real bamboo stalks, it has no true connection with Japanese culture.

Dwarf Golden Tabebuia. Small tree, good for container culture. Late winter to spring the leafless tree is covered with bright yellow flowers. Perfect for small yard or patio. Very cold hardy plant, at least to 26F for a few hours

Dwarf Golden Tabebuia. Small tree, good for container culture. Late winter to spring the leafless tree is covered with bright yellow flowers. Perfect for small yard or patio.

One of the most spectacular and easiest orchids to grow, Orange Reed Ground Orchid produces brilliant clusters of orange and gold flowers atop upright reed-like stems. Unlike many orchids, it grows happily in the ground, thrives in heat and humidity, and can bloom for much of the year. The fiery flowers attract butterflies and hummingbirds, adding movement and color to the garden.
Also known as the Crucifix Orchid because of the tiny cross-shaped structure in the flower, this orchid naturally produces roots along its stems, making it easy to propagate and form large, colorful clumps over time. A cheerful, low-maintenance plant that brings the warmth and energy of a tropical sunrise to your garden.
Epidendrum is a diverse neotropical genus that has flowers characterized by a frilly or fringed lip. This feature is occasionally diagnostic to distinguish between species. These orchids are widely cultivated and may be hybridized with Sophronitis, another South American genus. The flowers are usually small and delicately colored, and borne on a dense inflorescence. Many species have a fragrance.

This crazy little cactus makes a wonderful hanging basket specimen and quite the conversation piece with its twisted, arching limbs. A night bloom epiphytic cactus with curly twisting leaves, Epiphyllum curly locks is an example of a cactus that uses its stems to capture more moisture and light. The plant has curly, curved stems which are the result of a mutation of a plant called Epiphyllum guatemalense. The name for this mutated cactus is Epiphyllum monstrosa - a jungle cactus native to Guatemala and will attach itself to a tree and live off of the composting debris that collects in the crook of the tree. Commonly called Orchid Cactus due to the blooms resembling orchid blossoms. The flowers are fragrant and usually open at night. Oval, bright pink seedy fruits form once blooms are pollinated. These fruits are juicy and edible. The plant is also self-pollinating and fruits can form even without the intervention of insects and mammals.
Epiphyllum are sensitive to being moved so choosing spot in bright, indirect light would work best. Epiphyllum will also only bloom when root bound, so take this into consideration when repotting.

Blue sage, blue eranthemum - bright gentian blue - an unusual color in the tropics, winter bloomer, shade lover.
Learn more about Eranthemum pulchellum: Blue Sage: Winter Wonder.

If you are looking for something truly different, this is it: Eucrosia bicolor is a rare Peruvian bulb that turns heads instantly when in bloom. And it blooms in shade! What starts as a simple, quiet bulb suddenly transforms into a striking display of bright red flowers with long, fine, golden stamens that burst outward like a perfectly frozen firework.
This is the kind of plant people stop and ask about.
Even between blooms, it stays attractive with soft, broad, lush leaves similar to lily of the valley, giving it a refined, tropical look in your collection.
Unlike typical bulbs, it follows a natural rhythm - active growth followed by a dry rest period. Once you understand this cycle, it becomes easy to grow and reliably rewarding.
Perfect for containers, collector gardens, and anyone who wants something rare, unusual, and memorable.
Give it warmth, bright light, and a proper dry rest - and it will put on a show that few plants can match.

Surinam Cherry, Pitanga - vigorous and quick to fruit, often producing the same year or by the next. This plant is a seedling from Black Surinam Cherry Lolita, known for its very sweet, juicy fruit with no aftertaste. The fruit is relatively large at about 1-1.2 inches, starting red and turning deep black when fully ripe. In our garden, these seedlings have come true to seed with black fruit, though some reports suggest they may occasionally produce red fruit as well.
Pitanga is a reliable producer with an upright, freely branching growth habit. It is also quite cold hardy, tolerating short periods of frost. Once established, the plant can handle temperatures in the upper 20s without damage.
See video about Pitanga.
Learn more: Surinam Cherry and Bermuda Christmas Pie

A fascinating terrestrial orchid that surprises many gardeners with how easy it is to grow, Chinese Crown Orchid produces tall, elegant spikes of unusual greenish-yellow to brownish miniature flowers with a striking purple lip, giving each bloom a delicate, exotic look. Unlike many orchids that cling to trees, this one grows in the ground from underground bulbs, forming attractive clumps of grassy foliage.
Native to Asia and now naturalized in parts of Florida, Eulophia graminea thrives in warm climates and adapts well to containers or garden beds. Flower spikes can rise 2-4 ft above the foliage in summer, creating a graceful display that looks almost wild and tropical at the same time. It enjoys bright light to partial shade and regular watering, and once established it proves surprisingly tough and easygoing.
An unusual orchid for collectors and tropical gardeners alike - perfect for adding something unexpected to your garden or patio collection.
Keep in a dry side; plant in orchid mix. Do not overeater. Bright light.

Red spurge, Mexican shrubby Spurge, Caribbean Copper Plant. unique looking small multi-stemmed tree or large shrub up to 10 feet. Wine red foliage and small white flowers. The red leaves stand out against the pale bark.

Snows of Kilimanjaro, Pascuita, Snowflake Tree. Rare unusual shrub with tiny small leaves (decorative white bracts), white on top, reminding popular Poincettia. Unlike many other euphorbias, this plant is fragrant. When it is in bloom, the air around is filled with a sweet pleasant smell. Attracts butterflies.
This plant completely loses leaves for winter, re-leafs in spring.

Ficus altissima Lemon Lime is a very rare cultivar without variegation, leaves a bright neon lemon-lime color.

Rock Fig, Rock Ficus, Texcalamate, Lava Fig. Very showy velvet leaves with purple veins. Forms a caudex, good for bonsai. If planted in ground, grows in a small tree. The more water you give this plant the bigger it will grow and vice versa. This plant has nice caudex. In winter may drop some leaves.

Also called "First Love" (sometimes misspelled as YAshioka), this cultivar is one of the darkest green of all gardenias, it has a 3 to 5 inch bloom so perfect, it looks artificial. It was developed by Tadaoki Yoshioka while he lived in Hawaii, and he later brought it to Florida when he moved to Ft. Lauderdale with his family in 1954. The gardenia was named after his daughter, Aimee (Aimee Hironaka), who died in a plane crash in Dallas on August 2, 1985 (Delta Flight 191). Aimee gardenia grows openly and upright and blooms twice a year and slightly later than others. Flower Size 3 - 5".
See picture of flower,
page about gardenias, their cultivation and varieties.
See picture of actual plant for sale (1-2013).

This Dwarf Miniature Creeping Gardenia offers nearly all the beloved traits of larger gardenias - lush evergreen foliage, heavenly fragrance, and elegant white blooms - in a compact, manageable form. Its modest size, spreading habit, and relative tolerance make it an excellent choice for container gardening, small landscapes, or even bonsai enthusiasts. With attention to soil acidity, drainage, and consistent moisture, this little plant can deliver big delight.
See page about gardenias, their cultivation and varieties

This hybrid is very rare and hard to find. The intoxicating sweet fragrant blossoms are creamy white works of art. Huge double flowers up to 5-6" in diameter, large glossy oval leaves.

This shrub or small tree is native from Angola to KwaZulu-Natal. This species has fragrant white blossoms turning yellow with time, long narrow leaves, with wavy margins - very curious plant.

Colorful plant from South East Asia with variegated green and white leaves, with an irregular dull green pattern extending from the mid vein to almost the edge of the leaves. Evergreen tropical shrub to 6 feet, but can be kept to 3 feet as a greenhouse or indoor plant. Flowers are tubular, reddish-purple. Best with bright light and moist soil. Use in tropical landscape beds or in mixed containers. A lightly shaded position is ideal.