Garden Blog - Top Tropicals

Date: 2 May 2019

How to propagate plants from cuttings. Top (Tropicals) secrets.

Q: After pruning my jasmine, I have so many branches and I don't have a heart to through them away, can I use them to make more plants? Please tell me what size cuttings and do I need to remove leaves? Should I just stick them in the ground? Will they root? I don't know if you will be willing to share your secrets?

A: We are always happy to know that you grow more plants, and make our World better! These are some useful tips for the propagation of tropical plants using cuttings:

- Cuttings and leaves. Use cuttings 2-5" long. Strip leaves from the bottom. Cut larger leaves in half to reduce evaporation.
- Soak cuttings for 15-30 min in SUNSHINE solution.
- Mix. Use special well-drained mix with lots of soil conditioner: we have a special professional propagation mix for cuttings.
- Mist. Put community pots or trays with cuttings in mist, or if you don't have mist - cover the pot with a clear plastic bag to create a mini-greenhouse.
- Shade. Keep propagation pots in bright shade and never allow direct sun rays.
- Rooting hormone: yes, use it if you have it. Not only it promotes root formation but also prevents from fungus so the cuttings won't rot. We use Dip-N-Grow.
- Rooting and food. Check in 2-3 weeks for roots. Once you see the little roots, begin fertilizing with a special Baby-Plant Food and make sure never exceed recommended doze otherwise you may kill the cuttings.
- Establishing. Once roots start growing, plant in 4" pots in a well-drained potting mix and watch the beauty grow! Gradually move to the full sun only when little plants establish and start new growth.

If you are lucky to make more rare plants than you can use, contact us, we will buy them from you or trade for your dream plants! In fact, one of our customers from many years ago started selling us baby plants that he propagated from our plants, and now has a successful business (Karma Nursery); we buy a lot of plants from him every month!

For more ideas on tropical plant propagation, see also:
- Secrets of turtle tank propagation
- 5 secrets of propagation

Date: 18 Oct 2019

Meet PeopleCats of TopTropicals. Cat, Pet & Plant Community

Marco watching Dobi Duck; King & Marco with their Pet Frog

Barcy, Wesley and Coconuts at sweet liquor tasting

Anyone knows the name of this creature? He feeds on our Jasmines!

Date: 6 Dec 2019

Meet PeopleCats of TopTropicals. Cat of the Day: Kevin Coconuts, brother of James Coconuts

Many of you know well James Coconuts who has been in charge of our Customer Service. Only recently James discovered a twin brother! Kevin Coconuts lives with Sue and Mark (our horticulturist) and helps Mark to grow all his exclusive rare plants. Here is Kevin's story told by Sue...

"...One fall day about a year ago we had a visit from a gangly little stray who seemed drawn to our home. We originally thought he was the kitty from across the street, as his markings are almost identical. We repeatedly shooed him off but the next day, there he was again. His unassuming, humble personality drew us in. Upon closer observation we could see he was a male, while the one across the street is female, so we realized he did not belong over there. He seemed to have nowhere else to go...
With his silly playful attitude, Kevin wormed his way into our hearts and we decided to accept him as one of ours. Upon entering our house for the first time, he seemed to know his way around, and within a couple hours he was fast asleep on the couch. Our two other cats (Amun & Midnight) did not seem perturbed, which is very unusual for CATS, as anyone with cats knows! We have enjoyed Kevin's warm and comical demeanor and could not imagine life without him. He is a bright light that lifts the hearts of all who meet him!"

Check out and more Cat of the Day stories.

Date: 16 Nov 2019

Meet PeopleCats of TopTropicals. Charlie, the Indoor Hunter

Carlie was a kitty drop off with LadyBug, Rickie, and Purry.
Charlie is Jamie's baby. She has an attitude of a teenager, one minute she loves you and the next - wants nothing to do with you. Carlie stays with the inside PeopleCats, she says it's too big in the outside world for her and she gets scared. Carlie has a fun game (fun to her): she plays around 2:00 am in the morning, she loves to drag random items down the hall (socks, toys, shirts, even blankets) in her mouth MEOOOWWWING as loud as she can. She then sets the items down on her human's bedroom rug and waits for her human to say thank you. We're pretty sure her hunting instinct is off...

Check out and more Cat of the Day stories.

2019, from Top to Bottom: Moe, Charlie, Bagheera, and Snitch. 2016: Charlie

From left to right: Purry, LadyBug, Charlie, and Ricki - 2016

Date: 3 Dec 2019

Ghost Cold Protection

Q: Has anyone ever tried using heat packs under frost blankets to protect tropical plants from frost?

A: The reality is, the heat packs used for shipping do not have enough heat capacity to create efficient warming effect. From our own experience, the best way is to use small 25W incandescent bulbs which produce lots of heat (considering observing all safety precautions and fire safety). Some gardeners use Christmas lights. See picture of our plants in the ground during a cold night. We called them Ghost Cold Protection! ;)

See more columns on cold protection:
Seven rules of cold protection for tropicals
About Cold Protection
Cold protection - winter action for your plant collection
Tropical Treasures articles

Date: 6 Dec 2018

Seven rules of cold protection for tropicals

Q: I was always wondering how you guys manage to grow true tropical trees in Florida? I live in Puerto Rico and we have Breadfruit trees growing here in a wild... but my sister lives not far away from you, in Orlando, which is much colder, and I wonder if I can get her a Breadfruit tree for Christmas?

A: Your sister can grow a Breadfruit tree in Orlando either in a pot (and bring it indoors during cold periods) or in the ground inside a structure (an elclosed conservatory with heating system). See our customer's Greenhouse in Virginia. Cold protection of tropical plants is a lengthy subject and we have many interesting publications about it in our managine Tropical Treasures and on the website. In a nutshell, when growing tropicals outside of tropical climate, you need to follow these 7 rules:
1. Cut watering to a minimum. Cold+wet kills tropical roots.
2. Water thirsty plants before a cold night. Jucy leaves have fewer chances to be cold-zapped.
3. Wind protection is more important than a temperature drop. Plant tropicals close to a house or surrounded by other trees.
4. Duration of a cold period is more critical than the cold itself. If expecting long cold hours, bring up all available protection resources. Christmas lights or propane heaters - as long as there is a heat source, everything helps!
5. Remove plastic covers during the daytime so plants don't get "cooked" in the sun. Fabric covers are better than plastic.
6. Grow ultra-tropicals in containers and bring them inside the garage or even indoors during the cold.
7. Use SUNSHINE plant boosters and feed your plants well during Summer to improve cold hardiness.

Related topics:
About Cold Protection
Cold protection - winter action for your plant collection
Improving cold hardiness before winter: fertilizer and micro-elements
Cold hardy tropical fruit trees

Date: 27 Nov 2019

Meet PeopleCats of TopTropicals. Cindy's Purry - Jackson's Nanny

Purry came in the same litter with LadyBug, Ricki, and Charlie.
She now lives in Cindy's house as an indoor cat. She is the most lovable and purring purrrrson.

Purry (or Pursey) has a little ward she faithfully looks after... Her soft purrs put Baby Jackson Michael every time to sleep!

Check out and more Cat of the Day stories.

Purry - 2016

Date: 14 Oct 2019

Meet PeopleCats of TopTropicals. Cat of the Day: Ricki

The Smallest Cat

Ricki is a tiny little cat. He is already 3 y.o. but still feels shy because he always has been the smallest one... He arrived to TopTropicals as a little kitten, along with his 3 sisters, Charlie, Purry, and LadyBug, in a box. Ricki was the last kitten in the littler and almost half the size of other kittens! But his ears were the biggest. So he became a very Wise Puuurson who knows how to Listen.

Not only Ricki was the smallest, but he also was pretty sick when we first got him at the age of 4 weeks. He had a bad infection in both eyes and could hardly see anything... His 2 sisters got adopted by employees, but no one wanted to adopt poor Ricki... so he stayed at TopTropicals. Almost 2 weeks of therapy finally helped him to get all better. Now he is one of the cutest Little People!

Ricki has his own spot at the corner of a dinner table. He is not interested in stealing any food (unlike Wesley), he just wants to be involved in a dinner conversation...

Ricki likes treats and remains very shy, staying indoors. If you visit our Garden Center, you may bring him a small treat - his favorite "Temptations".

Wesley and Ricki at Dinner conversation

LadyBug, Purry, and Ricki, 2016.

Date: 25 Dec 2019

Meet PeopleCats of TopTropicals. Cat of the Day: Klaksa - the Mini Cat

Klaksa is a miniature 6 lb cat that lives together with Jim and Google. You can see all three of them wishing you Merry Christmas at the top of this Newsletter. Klaksa is the tiniest Purrson and yet she is the most energetic one. It is almost impossible to take a picture of her because she never stops moving for a second!
Klaksa came in 2016 as a little kitten, but she never grew up since! She saw Google and Jim and said she could be a good addition to this "Man in Black" team. So she stayed.
Klaksa likes to attach/cling to someone. The boys can't avoid her company even if they wanted too! But who can say no to woman's attention?

Check out and more Cat of the Day stories.

Date: 11 Oct 2019

Meet PeopleCats of TopTropicals. Cat of the Day: Chief

Shipping Department Supervisor

Chief is one of the oldest PeopleCats at TopTropicals. And of course the most experienced one. So he is in charge of the Shipping Department.
Chief likes to chill out in front of the nursery gate together with Marco, Lil S*t and Dobi Duck.
Chief doesn't like car rides to his vet and when it happens, he is very loud. The sound he makes is "Oy-yo-yo-yooooy!!!"
Chief likes milk. He has a white spot on his black face - from drinking so much milk! No matter how much milk we buy for him, there never seems to be enough. Chief even has a refrigerator for his milk. If you come to visit Chief at TopTropicals Garden Center, you may bring him a small bottle of fresh milk!
Thank you for your purrrrrrchase for Chief!

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