Garden Blog - Top Tropicals
Date:
How to get shade quickly... and stay away from oaks
Q: I just moved from Tennessee into a new house in Florida and there are no trees on the property, the yard is brutal hot. What can I plant so I have some shade real quick? I like Florida shady oaks, how long will they take to grow?
A: First
of all, do not rush into oak solution. Oaks are beautiful shade trees, however
they have at least 2 problems:
a) Oaks are slow growers and unless you are willing to wait some 20
years... you won't get that desirable shade that quickly.
b) We have hurricanes in Florida... sometimes. A hurricane can damage
any tree, however with oaks it may be the worse case scenario - the branches
of those giant trees are huge, hard and heavy and in unfortunate situation
when you need to remove or trim a broken tree, it may cost you... a few thousand
dollars.
These are solutions that are more economical and practical:
1) Selection. If you have room, get one of these most popular Florida shade trees: Royal Poinciana, Golden Shower, Hong Kong Orchid Tree, Red Kapok, Bottlebrush, and many others. See full list of fast growing shade trees. Or simply get a Mango Tree and have delicious fruit too! Many varieties of Mangos are very large and fast growing.
2) Do it right. Even if you are planting a smaller tree, 1-3 gal
size, it may become a nice shade tree within 2-3 years and start providing
your driveway with desirable shade. The keys for fast growth are -
a) Good soil. Dig as big hole as possible and fill it with good
rich soil containing compost. See planting instructions PDF.
b) Water. Do not rely on sprinklers and rains. Water your tree
daily for the first week, then at least twice a week for another month. After
that, irrigation system will be enough.
c) Fertilizer. Put a few handfuls of fertilizer in a planting hole. Then fertilize once a month during warm
season. Apply micro elements for even better results and faster growth.
3) Ask experts. Contact our office for advice. We will suggest the most suitable shade tree for your yard based on features of your property: location, soil, exposure, etc.
Check out fast growing shade trees
Date:
Full Sun Garden vs Shade Garden
"Someone is sitting in the shade today because someone planted a tree a long time ago." (Warren Buffett)
Q: I live in California and I have a large area of my garden in full shade. Are there any plants that will be happy there? I am looking for something colorful. I also have a smaller area in front of the house that has full sun almost all day long, but I am afraid this can be too hot for flowering plants? Can you recommend something?
A:
Full sun gardens have a strong, bright look while shade
gardens have cooler, subdued appearance. Both types of
gardens are fun to design and maintain as long as you pick
the right plants.
Full Sun Garden is the easiest to grow. Depending
on exposure, it may require some plants that can tolerate
the hottest summer days and the dry conditions in your
area. The good news is, the majority of tropical and
subtropical plants prefer full sun, so you have a large
selection to pick from - fruit trees, flowering trees,
shrubs, vines, and small perennials. The more sun, the
more flowers and fruit you will get! However, keep in mind
that sun gardens require more water, but generous mulching
will help to minimize watering.
Shade Garden is much more restful in appearance,
but sometimes may be a little more difficult to work with.
As shade trees grow bigger and thicker, it may become too
dark; nothing will grow in total darkness. In this case
you need to prune back some branches to let more light in.
Filtered sunlight or dappled light coming through the
leaves of the trees is beneficial and considered light
shade, which would be the best light conditions for shade
loving plants to thrive. Although shady cooler spaces
attract more insects and will require more attention to
control them, they also have some advantages over sun
gardens. You can enjoy working in cooler conditions, and
your garden will require less water. Many foliage plants
look more deeply colored and healthier than in full sun;
white flowers shine instead of looking washed out!
Our favorite shade plants are fragrant brunfelsias , clerodendrums, and of course
colorful gingers and heliconias. You
may also consider ornamental foliage of Calatheas, lush Alocasias, Colocasias, and colorful Cordylines. Check out our shade loving plant list for
more colorful suggestions. These are also great for indoor
gardens!
On the photo: Calathea lancifolia Rattlesnake
Date:
Quick shade for your driveway
Q: Please help! We just moved into a new house in Florida and don't have any mature trees yet, but the sun is already brutal! Can you suggest any super-fast growing shade tree that can make shade over my driveway as soon as possible?
A: Check out Giant Potato Tree - it is very fast growing, has very large leaves plus very pretty purple flowers as a bonus year round! The pictured tree was planted from 3 gal only 6 months ago, and already covers with shade the whole car. It is small to a medium size tree, but one of the fastest growing. If you are looking for a larger tree and willing to be more patient, here is the full list of tropical and subtropical fast growing shade trees. Most of them may take a few years until they reach a mature size, however, in order to enjoy your shade tomorrow, you must plant the tree today!
Date:
Forget the gym and get to gardening?
Calories Burned Gardening
Fun workout? We never have enough time to go to the gym or do an exercise so it's good to know that just doing something that you love can give you a workout. We all know that when we are out in the garden it gives us a bit of exercise but we do not realize how much exactly. Working out in the yard is a healthy hobby for many reasons, the high number of calories burned gardening being one of them. When you do this kind of physical labor, you carry out a wide variety of movements that most definitely burn calories, and may even tone. The best part about it in terms of physical activity is that if you enjoy yard work at all, you aren't watching the clock or counting down the minutes until you are done (the way that many people do while they are on a treadmill). You can easily spend a whole afternoon or an entire day working without feeling as though you are putting yourself through a mentally grueling workout. Finding physical activities that you enjoy are key to maintaining a healthy weight throughout your lifetime, and this hobby is a perfect example of that scenario for many people.
Research says that three hours of gardening can have the same effect as an intense 1-hour gym session. The study was carried out with a group of 100 gardeners who were asked to monitor the amount of time spent doing a series of common gardening tasks over a four week period. Gardening tasks that were monitored included weeding, digging, mowing the lawn, hedge trimming, trimming shrubs and trees, raking, planting shrubs, and moving garden waste using a wheel barrow. Here are some facts and numbers:
- Just doing half an hour weeding can burn up to 150 calories and tasks that handle heavy electrical equipment such as hedge trimming will give you a good workout burning 400 calories per hour.
- Spending a day or five hours each week in the garden will burn up to around 700 calories
- Over a gardening season that works out at 18,772 calories per year, equivalent to running seven marathons
- The gardening hobby could help burn a million calories over a lifetime.
Calories burned with only 1 hour of:
340 cal - Chopping wood, splitting logs, gardening with heavy power tools, tilling a garden, chain saw. Mowing lawn, walk, hand mower. Shoveling by hand.
272 cal - Carrying, loading or stacking wood, loading/unloading or carrying lumber, digging, spading, filling garden, composting, laying crushed rock or sod. Clearing land, hauling branches, wheelbarrow chores.
238 cal - Operating blower, walking. Planting seedlings, shrubs, trees, trimming shrubs or trees, manual cutter. Weeding, cultivating garden.
224 cal - Raking lawn, sacking grass and leaves
136 cal - Picking fruit off trees, picking up yard, picking flowers or vegetables. Walking, gathering gardening tools.
102 cal - Walking, applying fertilizer or seeding a lawn
34 cal - Watering lawn or garden, standing or walking
Sources: DailyMail, CalorieLab, FitnessBlender.
Date:
Forget the gym and get to gardening?
Fun workout? We never have enough time to go to the
gym or do an exercise so it's good to know that just doing something that you
love can give you a workout. We all know that when we are out in the garden
it gives us a bit of exercise but we do not realize how much exactly.
Research says that three hours of gardening can have the same effect as an intense
1-hour gym session. The study was carried out with a group of 100 gardeners who
were asked to monitor the amount of time spent doing a series of common
gardening tasks over a four week period. Gardening tasks that were monitored included weeding, digging, mowing the lawn, hedge trimming, trimming shrubs and trees,
raking, planting shrubs, and moving garden waste using a wheel barrow. Here are some facts and numbers:
- Just doing half an hour weeding can burn up to 150 calories and tasks that handle heavy electrical equipment such as hedge trimming will give you a good workout burning 400 calories per hour.
- Spending a day or five hours each week in the garden will burn up to around 700 calories
- Over a gardening season that works out at 20,000 calories per year, equivalent to running seven marathons
- The gardening hobby could help burn a million calories over a lifetime.
Calories burned with only
1 hour of:
340 cal - Chopping wood, splitting logs, gardening with heavy power tools, tilling a garden, chain saw. Mowing lawn, walk, hand mower. Shoveling by hand.
272 cal - Carrying, loading or stacking wood, loading/unloading or carrying lumber, digging, spading, filling garden, composting, laying crushed rock or sod. Clearing land, hauling branches, wheelbarrow chores.
238 cal - Operating blower, walking. Planting seedlings, shrubs, trees, trimming shrubs or trees, manual cutter. Weeding, cultivating garden.
224 cal - Raking lawn, sacking grass and leaves
136 cal - Picking fruit off trees, picking up yard, picking flowers or vegetables. Walking, gathering gardening tools.
102 cal - Walking, applying fertilizer or seeding a lawn
34 cal - Watering lawn or garden, standing or walking
Radio Top Tropicals Live
Webcast upcoming event: Saturday May 20, at 11 am EST.
Topic: Come Ride My Peninsula! Discusses the REAL Florida. Our plants, the Everglades, how all of the wonderful plants Top Tropicals has to offer are grown in South Florida.
Our Host Robert Riefer - Internationally Certified Crop Adviser and Weed Scientist - answering all your gardening questions.
Listen to Radio Top Tropicals, every
Saturday, at 11 am EST! You may use our website radio player DURING AIR TIME. To ask questions using live chat, you need to log in
at Mixlr.com or simply
call our office 239-887-3323 during air time!
If you missed a live webcast, you may listen to recording by following Showreel item link.
Check out our upcoming radio shows and get your gardening questions
ready!
Date:
Grow Your Own Food...
Affordable for everyone!
Grow Food Not Lawns - this is the theme for our Garden party. But it's much more than that. It's a philosophy and a
state of mind. One that more and more people are adopting as the world's food
supply continues to dwindle and get more expensive...
Like all things plant and garden related, each of us can adopt this state
of mind at whatever level we're capable of and comfortable with. Many of our
customers just want to start small and see what it's all about. After all, the
world of tropical plants can be more than just beautiful, it can be
sustaining as well!
Growing your own food is more than just about price, it's also about quality, choices and availability. As you watch the choices, and quality of store bought food go down and prices continue to go up, maybe it's time to grow more of your own food?
Fun Facts
- A mature mango tree can produce 200 to 300 fruit per year
- A single avocado tree is capable of producing 500 avocados in one
year
- A mature papaya plant can produce as many as 100 fruits per
growing season
- One longevity spinach plant can provide you with a fresh supply of
healthy spinach leaves all the time!
At Top Tropicals we offer a wide selection of fruit, including mango and avocado, and even spinach to get you started and to continue down the road on your own self sustaining journey. Even better, to help you with your food project, we have not only added to our varieties, but we have reduced prices on many items to make it even more affordable and enjoyable!
Who is cutting prices in today's world?! - We are, because...
...it's important that we do what we can to make it easier for our customers!
We have Avocados starting at only $49.95 and Mangos as low as $79.95, with dozens of varieties in stock! Use our discount coupons to save even more, and if you're local or in Fort Myers, stop by our Garden Center and save even more!
Date:
Top Tropicals is now in Telegram!
Welcome to our new Telegram
Channel!
We finally did it, and excited to connect with all of you on this amazing
platform. After using Telegram for a few years for both business and personal
communications, we realized it is a winner of the modern Social Media!
In Top Tropicals Telegram Channel you will find much more than on our website or Newsletter: Fun Plant Facts, Nature Wonders, Amazing Plant Videos, Gardening How-to Tips, Exotic Recipes, Contests, Sweepstakes, Give-aways and so much more. Plus, of course, your favorite PeopleCats!
Telegram is a messaging app with a focus on speed and security, it's super-fast, simple and free. You can use Telegram on all your devices at the same time - your messages sync seamlessly across any number of your phones, tablets or computers. It's perfect for sharing your comments, photos, videos, even making calls.
You can watch news, browse your interest, message to friends and colleagues, save your files, create groups, make phone calls, and the most amazing thing - Telegram works where nothing else works, no WiFi or cell service! It proved to be more reliable than any other apps and (surprise!) even works in airplane without wifi connection - proved!
The platform has its own cloud and offers limitless storage. And the last and not least - it's ad-free! Telegram is free and will stay free - no ads, no subscription fees, forever. It's a clean, clear and easy to use for all ages and applications. Try it yourself and discover how easy and pain-free it is!
Telegram is for everyone who wants fast and reliable
messaging and calls.
See you in Telegram!
Date:
Butterfly Garden from Anna Banana
Butterfly facts
1. There are approximately 20,000 different species of
butterflies, the largest of which is the Queen Alexandra
Birdwing with a wingspan of 11 inches.
2. Female butterflies can lay over 1000 eggs during their
short lifetime.
3. Butterflies lay their eggs on host plants which usually
hatch within a few days, then turning into caterpillars.
The caterpillar will then eat until it sheds it's skin
several times, called instars, finally emerging from the
chrysalis as a beautiful butterfly.
4. Butterflies are born to breed, their goal being to mate
and begin the cycle again. Most live only a few days
except the Monarch which can live up to six months.
5. Monarch butterflies migrate to Mexico every fall and
remain there until spring when they make the return
migration.
6. Due to the continuing destruction of the rain forests,
where the largest population of butterflies are found,
their numbers are dwindling. We encourage you to plant a
butterfly garden!!
Remember:
- A sunny, less windy location is best, however, Zebras
love to float in the shade of bushes and trees.
- The more host and nectar plants you have, the more
butterflies will be attracted to your garden.
- Butterflies "puddle". They like a wet sandy area where
they congregate and sip minerals and nutrients from the
wet sand and water.
- Rocks to rest and enjoy their beautiful garden, and
don't forget a bench or hammock for yourself.
FREE butterfly garden guide from Anna Banana
For our local Florida customers, it is a perfect time now
to start a garden with plants for butterflies that will
appear first thing in Spring. Establish these plants now
for the Spring blooms that will attract the Beauty into
your garden!
Stop by our Garden Center to check out our Butterfly Plants display, or
simply call Anna Banana for a free consultation on
Butterfly Garden at 239-771-8081.
Hurry up while butterfly plants are on 4-day sale!
Date:
True love of Night Blooming Jasmine
By Onika Amell, tropical plant specialist
Q: I live in New Cumberland, West Virginia. I love the smell of Night-Blooming jasmine. Is it possible to grow it in the northern panhandle of West Virginia? Do I have to plant it every year or do I keep it in a pot and take it inside during the winter months?
A: Technically, Night Blooming Jasmine is not a true jasmine
(those plants belong to Oleaceae, or Olive family). Night Blooming Jasmine
belongs to the Solanaceae family, also known as the Nightshade or "Potato" family
of plants. Yes, this sweet fragrant flower called Jasmine for its perfume is
related to potatoes and tomatoes!
Night Blooming Jasmine - Cestrum nocturnum - is loved by many gardeners for its beautiful
fragrance at night. It is one of the most fragrant tropical evergreen shrubs
available. Cascading clusters of tiny, tubular pale yellow to white flowers open at
night and release a heavenly fragrance throughout the garden, especially on
warm summer evenings. The fragrance is much lighter during the day.
Night Blooming Jasmine is grown year-round in zones 9-11. It is at its
happiest in a sunny to a partially sunny spot in your garden in well-drained soil
but can be grown in cooler climates as a container or greenhouse plant.
You would absolutely be able to enjoy this plant during the warm months
in West Virginia, but it will most certainly not survive outside during the
winter. You will have to bring it inside. Take it outside again only once you
are confident there is no more possibility of frost. When grown indoors, be
sure to give it the sunniest, South facing window in your home. When grown in
a container, you will need to re-pot it every two to three years so it
doesn't become root-bound.
For those who are lucky to live in frost-free areas, in ideal growing
conditions outside, it can easily reach 8 feet with a spread of 5 feet. It has
a lovely informal look that can soften a more manicured garden. Add organic
matter to the planting hole when you plant to enrich the soil around the root
ball. Water well in the summer, but allow them to dry out a bit between
watering in the winter. Plant this Jasmine near pools, porches, doors, windows,
and walkways where its lovely fragrance can be enjoyed. The shrub is also an
excellent plant for privacy hedges and screens. When grown as a hedge, plant 3
feet apart.
Trim lightly after a bloom cycle to shape and then do a hard pruning in
fall or spring to control the size of this plant. Fertilize 3 times a year -
in spring, summer, and autumn - with a good quality granular fertilizer.
Recommended fertilizers:
Pink N Good Daily Plant Food - Flower Booster
Tropical Allure - Smart-Release Booster
Interesting facts:
Night-blooming jasmine is an excellent mosquito repellent. The powerful
scent of the flowers attracts moths and bats that feed on mosquitoes and
other small insects.
The flowers of the Night Blooming jasmine are widely used in India and
other countries of South Asia for perfumery, medicinal applications and in
religious ceremonies.
Limited time special offer:
Instant $5 off Night Blooming Jasmine
Date:
Our sales, news and updates
Radio Top Tropicals Live Webcast upcoming event: Saturday February 18, at 11 am EST.
Topic: WEED OR WONDER PLANT?
We will explore plants considered invasive species, or weeds, here in Florida, and reveal interesting and not-so-well-known facts about them.
1) Schinus terebinthifolius - Brazilian Pepper, or Florida Holly. This species is essential for migratory birds, bears, and other critters. Berries are used in China for medicine. Used as a spice in Italy, as well as here in the US.
2) Phyllanthus amarus - Seed on the leaf. A scourge of nurseries, it may yet lead to the cure of Hepatitis B & C.
3) Melaleuca leucophylla - Punk tree, Paper tree. One of the finest trees for raising of epiphytes. Tiger Balm brand ointment is made from these trees. An excellent timber source as well.
Our Host Robert Riefer - Florida State Certified Crop Adviser, and Weed Specialist - answering all your gardening questions.
Listen to Radio Top Tropicals, every Saturday, at 11 am EST! You may use our website radio player DURING AIR TIME and see the pictures of plants we are talking about. To ask questions using live chat, you need to log in at Mixlr.com or simply call our office 239-887-3323 during air time!
If you missed a live webcast, you may listen to recording by following Showreel item link.
Check out our upcoming radio shows and get your gardening questions ready!
New Article: Aphrodisiacs of the plant world.
Last Saturday, the topic of our Webcast was Plants of Love - Aphrodisiacs (click to listen to recording).
Today, we are introducing an article by Kristi, our Meet the Gardener host - Aphrodisiacs of the plant world.