Garden Blog - Top Tropicals
Date:
PeopleCats of TopTropicals. Cats of the day: Biggy's Cat Hospital
Biggy checking on patient Abu when he couldn't walk
During these challenging times for the whole planet, we receive kind letters from our customers checking on how our PeopleCats are doing, especially those that previously were ill. And since we promised to follow up on everyone, including heart-breaking story of Raja and Abu, today's report is about everybody's progress!
As we mentioned in our previous newsletter, several cats in TopTropicals
Cat Sanctuary had a coronavirus (we call it COVID-Cat-20), or simply a cat respiratory infection. Chiefy, Snitch, Marco and Biggy had it really bad, but some other PeopleCats surprisingly didn't
get it! Just like with humans. Lucky King didn't have a single sneeze!
Finally, everybody has recovered by now, but it has been a very stressful
couple of weeks for us, considering limited vet availability at this stay-home
time. On top of that, Lil S had an abscess and was also contained in a home hospital, away
from flu-quarantined PeopleCats. Our homes become real cat hospitals!
We are thankful to our customers support, especially Silvia who made
several donations for our PeopleCats, and also recommended antiseptic pads - those worked great for Lil S!
Abu and Raja's adventures were not over... After 2 weeks of seeing a
vet treating their infections and injuries, they got worse... Then after a
couple of weeks in another hospital (and a couple thousand more in bills) we were
suggested to put them down as hopeless since they would never walk again...
But Kristi did not want to believe it, she did not give up! The kittens heard
her. They won. Today, they are all better, walking, jumping and playing!
Thank you Kristi!
Never give up hope!
Stay safe and healthy with your PeoplePets!
TopTropicals PeopleCat Club
Thank you everybody for supporting us in helping PeopleCat Community!
Make
your kind donation today and receive a surprise gift from us. Every little
bit helps! Thank you and God bless you and your pets!
Date:
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
Date:
Cold protection of tropical container plants
Q: I am long time customer of yours, I live in San Diego California and while the summer and Fall temperatures are warm to mild, the winter temperatures dip to a point where some tropicals die off. We are experimenting with different variations of way to heat and insulate the pots we have the tropicals planted in as a way to keep them alive during the colder winter months. I was wondering if you knew of the ideal soil temperature for these tropical in order to look their best year round. All of the heaters we have installed have thermostats and temperature adjustments so we can now keep the soil anywhere between a range of between 65-75 degrees. Any advise you can provide would be greatly appreciated.
A: This is a very interesting concept you are working with.
Indeed, keeping pots/roots warm, may help a lot! We've been experimenting with
cold protection for a long time - for the above-ground plant parts. For sure
keeping roots protected (even with a thick layer of mulch) will benefit tropical
plants during winter. In case with container plants, this may help
dramatically.
The guideline is, tropical plants slow down or stop their metabolism at
65F. As long as you can keep soil above that temperature - this should work
great. Of course, the higher the better.
Optimum temperature for growing tropical plants in general - 70-85F.
Above 90F, metabolism stops too, unless it's a heat tolerant, desert
plant.
More information on winter cold protection of tropical plants and zone pushing:
Greenhouse in Virginia
Plumeria cold protection
Ghost Cold Protection
Seven rules of cold protection for tropicals
About Cold Protection
Cold protection - winter action for your plant collection
Tropical Treasures articles on zone pushing.
Date:
PeopleCats of TopTropicals. Cat of the Day: the mischievous Jim the Second
In May 2020 we celebrated 16th birthday of Jim the Founder - the Cat who established
TopTropicals. It broke our hearts when this Old and Wise Purrrson peacefully passed away
this August :(( We want to believe that he is now in Cat Paradise... but we
miss him terribly - both humans and PeopleCats. Google the Cat lost his appetite and went into a deep depression after
he lost his best buddy... To get him distracted from his separation stress,
we decided that Google needs... a Project.
Here he is. Jim the Second. About a month ago we found him in a Human
Society shelter. He was a tiny fur ball size of a palm of a hand. But he proudly
carries his Godfather's name, for a reason - he likes to EAT - just as much as
Jim the First. He eats 3 times more than Google, and he talks a lot. And of
course, he pulls everyone's tail, and kicks everything that is kickable...
The Veteran Google complains that young generation of PeopleCats nowadays
are nothing but trouble... but they've become friends anyway! Google feels
much happier now. He just took Jim Jr to his first walk outside to the lake and
showed him some fishing techniques...
Bon voyage Little Jim, you soon will master it all! As Mr Booster claims, Orange Cats Bring Happiness!
TopTropicals PeopleCat Club and Zoo
Thank you for supporting us in helping PeopleCat Community!
Make
your kind donation today and receive a surprise gift from us! Every little
bit helps. Thank you and God bless you and your pets!
Date:
PeopleCats of TopTropicals. Cat of the Month: Moishe, the Google Intern with a Sweet Tooth
Just a few months ago we introduced our new Little Purrrson Jim II that we got as a "toy" for intellectual
Google the Cat, to cheer him up after he lost his friend Jim I... Jim II, the fluffy goofball, grew up in no time and in his turn,
requested entertainment, since Google bored him with his technical lectures... So
we got a toy for Jim-the-toy... and he turned out to be - another
mini-Google!
Moishe is very busy young individual, spending his day solving math
equations and discovering laws of physics... Google appreciates the new generation's input. Jim II is simply glued to the little guy. He follows Moishe everywhere, including boring seminars by Google. Jim loves his new little brother with all his heart!
Moishe's favorite things are - gravity experiments, reading scientific manuscripts, and eating JAM for breakfast! No toast required.
TopTropicals PeopleCat Club and Zoo
Thank you for supporting us in helping PeopleCat Community!
Make
your kind donation today and receive a surprise gift from us! Every little
bit helps. Thank you and God bless you and your pets!
In the photo: Moishe the Scientist and Jim the Hopeless Romantic
Date:
Container mango - Condo varieties
Q: What are the good varieties of mango trees available for container grow? Can you please share the details?
A: There are some great varieties of Mango selected specifically
for container culture, they even have a nick-name - "condo mangoes". They
have compact growth habit and respond well to pruning to keep them in small
size. Here are a few of our favorites that we currently have in stock:
Glenn
Ice
Cream
Cotton
Candy
Mallika
Manilita
Pram
Kai Mai
Mun
Kun Si
Maha
Chinook
You can see more condo mangoes on this page.
Related articles:
How to grow a Dwarf Mango tree
Choosing the right Mango for your garden
10 secrets of successful Container Mango growing on a balcony.
Condo Mango
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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
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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:
Healthy Plants: Q&A from Mr Booster
Ylang Ylang leaves after winter
Q: Hi, I purchased ylang ylang tree a couple of years ago. It's grown quite well in my Greenhouse but I'm having some trouble figuring out if I'm watering it too much not enough or if it has an insect. Can you please take a look at my photos and maybe give me a suggestion of what my problem might be?
A: It is normal for Ylang Ylang tree to get dark spots during
winter time. Sometimes Cananga gets whole branches darkened (especially dwarf variety fruiticosa), some may even fall off. But they will be replaced
with new growth in Spring-Summer. There is nothing wrong with your plant, it is
just a reaction to cold and short day light when you keep this plant indoors. These leaves eventually will fall
off as the weather warms up, and will be replaced with a new fresh green growth.
Luckily, Cananga is not susceptible to insects and diseases, but its leaves
can look unattractive in winter.
Make sure to keep watering at minimum until temperatures raise to 80's.
Start fertilizing as soon as new growth appears. We recommend SUNSHINE Pikake
- Fragrant Flower Booster, an ultimate fertilizer for fragrant plants.
Date:
Healthy Plants: Q&A from Mr Booster
Dragon Fruit Magic Tricks
Q: I purchased two sweet red pitayas, that arrived and were planted on May 28, 2020, they were damaged but not serious. my question is this one pitaya is a beautiful green, and has grown 6or 8 " already, the other is bigger and is a grayish green and has not shown any sign of growth at all in six weeks, how long do I wait before I throw it out and buy another?
A: Being a cactus, sometimes Pitaya slows down its growth waiting
for more favorable conditions. If one of your plants doesn't show any new
growth, just give a it some more time and make sure the plant stays happy. To
make pitaya happy, provide the following:
- Water. Unlike most cacti, Pitaya prefers regular watering (but not
a wet soil). Make sure it is planted in well-drained media. Do not water
again if soil remains moist, wait until it dries out on the surface. During hot
weather, Pitaya enjoys light daily watering.
- Light. Unlike most cacti, Pitaya benefits from a filtered light
especially while establishing. Try to create a temporary shade over the plant
until it starts active growth (if grown in the ground), or move the pot in
filtered light. Dull color or dry spots are signs of sun burn. Once the plant
shows new growth, you may remove sun protection, or move the pot gradually into
the full sun.
- Food. Pitayas are heavy feeders. Use the following fertilizer:
SUNSHINE C-Cibus - Crop Nutrition Booster
Q: I've been growing dragon fruit cuttings from Okinawa, Thailand and Vietnam for several years in pots and cannot get them to fruit. Any fertilizer suggestions? I live in Northern Virginia so I bring the massive pots in the garage under lights and a heater for the winter but back outside once the temperature warms up.
A: There is a little trick to get Dragon fruit to flowering and
fruiting. This plant likes flowering when it is attached to a strong support.
In commercial plantations, they use special trellises/frames made out of
logs, but you can make one yourself using simple materials.
See article: Do-It-Yourself Support Structure for Dragon Fruit.
And of course, don't forget a special plant food for tropical fruit - Sunshine C-Cibus.
You can successfully get your Dragon fruits to fruit in pots, providing
bright light in Summer. In Winter, keep the plants on a dry side to give them
some rest and a chance to hibernate before the next fruiting season.
