Garden Blog - Top Tropicals

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What is the best flowering shrub for a shady spot? A Top Tropicals Garden Blog post.

What is the best flowering shrub for a shady spot?

Aphelandra hartwegiana - Yellow Aphelandra

Aphelandra hartwegiana - Yellow Aphelandra

Aphelandra squarrosa - White Zebra Plant

Aphelandra squarrosa - White Zebra Plant

Aphelandra sinclairiana - Panama Queen

Aphelandra sinclairiana - Panama Queen

Aphelandra x panamensis - Scarlet Candle

Aphelandra x panamensis - Scarlet Candle

💐 What is the best flowering shrub for a shady spot?
  • 🚩 Aphelandra is hands down one of the best solutions for a shade garden where you want to see more colors. It is a great addition to a collectible tropical butterfly garden, can grow into 4-5" tall bushy specimen. Tolerates both sun and shade.
  • 🚩Aphelandras have beautiful lush foliage and showy, long terminal inflorescences throughout the warm season.
  • 🚩These flowers are loved by hummingbirds.
  • 🚩Aphelandra hartwegiana - Yellow Aphelandra. Yellow flowers emerge out of long orange stalks in the fall time. Pretty and unusual!
  • 🚩Aphelandra squarrosa Dania (Snow White) - White Zebra Plant. It is also one of the best house plants, not only pretty because of its white-veined "Zebra" foliage, but also for the apical inflorescence with its beautiful yellow bracts.
  • 🚩Aphelandra sinclairiana - Panama Queen, has extremely tropical look and fragrant flowers of unusual color combination: orange and pink.
  • 🚩Aphelandra x panamensis - Scarlet Candle - a rare hybrid with bright red flowers


📚 Learn more from previous posts:
Panama Queen
How to grow Zebra in container?

🛒 Shop Aphelandras

#Butterfly_Plants #Hedges_with_benefits #Shade_Garden

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What is our most favorite Ginger plant? African Princess! A Top Tropicals Garden Blog post.

What is our most favorite Ginger plant? African Princess!

Costus fissiligulatus - African Princess, Cameroon Costus

🎀 What is our most favorite Ginger plant? African Princess!
  • 👸 The most beautiful Ginger flower, in our opinion, is Costus fissiligulatus - African Princess, or Cameroon Costus - an amazing flowering Ginger from Gabon in West Africa.
  • 👸 Dazzling pink trumpet flower with a yellow throat. It is very floriferous with an inflorescence of numerous flower buds.
  • 👸 Low-growing plant only 3-4 ft that stands very erect.
  • 👸 Easy grower with similar growing requirements to other gingers.


💻 What is your most favorite ginger? Share in comments!

📚 Gingers from previous posts:
Most interesting edible gingers
5 most spectacular Ginger species
How to French Kiss the Red Button Ginger

🛒 Get your own African Princess

#Shade_Garden #Container_Garden #Hedges_with_benefits

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How to grow fragrant Cashmere Bouquet. A Top Tropicals Garden Blog post.

How to grow fragrant Cashmere Bouquet

Clerodendrum philippinum - Cashmere Bouquet, Scent Malli

💮 How to grow fragrant Cashmere Bouquet
  • 💐 Clerodendrum philippinum - Cashmere Bouquet, Scent Malli - is one of the most popular Indian fragrant flowers.
  • 💐 Fast growing bush with lush tropical foliage and very fragrant white flowers, carnation-like, coming in big clusters.
  • 💐 Shade tolerant, great for shade gardens and as an indoor plant to enjoy tropical fragrance year around.
  • 💐 This plant is fast growing in right conditions and can spread runners. Plant it in isolated corner or in keep in a pot unless you want to have a large size hedge in no time just from one plant within couple seasons...


📚 Learn more about Clerodendrums

🛒 Order Cashmere Bouquet

#Hedges_with_benefits #Perfume_Plants #Shade_Garden

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Lobster Claw - Simply Spectacular! A Top Tropicals Garden Blog post.

Lobster Claw - Simply Spectacular!

Heliconia rostrata - Lobster Claw.

Heliconia rostrata - Lobster Claw.

Lobster Claw - Simply Spectacular!

Heliconia rostrata - Lobster Claw. This exotic plant makes a bold statement with its parrot-like blooms. The colorful, dangling flowers last long and are perfect for bouquets. Growing up to 7 feet tall, it thrives in large pots or tropical landscapes, handling temperatures in the high 20s. Just give it room to stretch those stalks!

📚 Learn more from previous post:
How to grow Lobster Claw

🛒 Plant Lobster Claw

#Hedges_with_benefits #Shade_Garden #Nature_Wonders

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How Heliconias add tropical vibe to your garden. A Top Tropicals Garden Blog post.

How Heliconias add tropical vibe to your garden

Heliconia

🐠 How Heliconias add tropical vibe to your garden

Heliconia is a fantastic addition to any garden with its bold, tropical vibe! Known for its striking, colorful bracts in red, orange, or yellow, it attracts pollinators like hummingbirds. This low-maintenance plant thrives in warm climates, adds height and texture to landscapes, and grows well in partial shade or full sun. Plus, it's perfect for creating lush privacy screens or vibrant focal points.

📚 Learn more from previous post:
How to grow Lobster Claw

🛒 Plant Heliconias and gingers

#Hedges_with_benefits #Shade_Garden

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The number one flower for shady spots! Every tropical gardener wants Brunfelsias: the magical, fragrant shrubs of Day and Night. A Top Tropicals Garden Blog post.

The number one flower for shady spots! Every tropical gardener wants Brunfelsias: the magical, fragrant shrubs of Day and Night

Brunfelsia lactea

Brunfelsia lactea

Brunfelsia australis

Brunfelsia australis

Brunfelsia grandiflora

Brunfelsia grandiflora

Brunfelsia manaca

Brunfelsia manaca

Brunfelsia grandiflora

Brunfelsia grandiflora

Brunfelsia paucifolia

Brunfelsia paucifolia

🌗 The number one flower for shady spots! Every tropical gardener wants Brunfelsias: the magical, fragrant shrubs of Day and Night.
  • 💠 Brunfelsias are truly enchanting tropical flowers. There are two groups - purple-flowered and cream/white-flowered.
  • 💠 All Brunfelsias are wonderfully fragrant.
  • 💠 Perfect flowering shrub for shaded areas; ideal for growing in containers.
  • 💠 Compact and graceful growers.
  • 💠 Purple-flowered are known as Yesterday-Today-Tomorrow for their magical color transformation from purple to lavender to white over three days. Examples: B. grandiflora, B. paucifolia, B. australis.
  • 💠 White-flowered: intensely fragrant at night, earning the name Lady of the Night.

  • Examples: B. americana, B. nitida, B. plicata, B. manaca.
  • 💠 Hybrids: A standout hybrid is Brunfelsia isola, that we mentioned earlier. It is blending the best of both purple and white varieties, inheriting purple color from the purple parent and night fragrance from the white one.


📚 Learn more about purple Brunfelsias:
Yesterday-Today-Tomorrow, Brunfelsia from Brazil

🛒
Shop different Brunfelsias

#Perfume_Plants #Hedges_with_benefits #Container_Garden #Shade_Garden

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Index of TopTropicals Telegram Channel. A Top Tropicals Garden Blog post.

Index of TopTropicals Telegram Channel

Index of TopTropicals Telegram Channel
🗂 Index of TopTropicals Telegram Channel

Follow these tags to find your interests:

#Butterfly_Plants - Butterfly attracting plants.

#Container_Garden - Plants suitable for container garden and indoor culture.

#Fertilizers - All the truth about fertilizers, plant food supplements, and our recommendations for different types of plants.

#Food_Forest - Fruit trees, Spice plants, and Edibles.
Including: #Avocado, #Mango, #Papaya, #Guava, #Jackfruit, #Loquat

📖 #Fun_Facts - interesting plant facts and legends.

🌳 #Hedges_with_benefits - Practical approach to your landscape and how to properly select showy and useful plants for your yard.

♍️ #Horoscope - Plant Horoscopes and Cat Horoscopes. Did you know that cats also have their Zodiac signs?

🛠 #How_to - Q&A about growing plants, tropical garden lifehacks.

👀 #Nature_Wonders - Unusual, amusing, outrageous, bizarre plants...

🐈
#PeopleCats - our Favorite PeopleCats (and some PeopleDogs, too).

🌸 #Perfume_Plants - Fragrant plants and perfume trees.

✍️ #Quotes - Interesting quotes.

#Recipes - Exotic recipes for tropical fruit and edibles.

💊
#Remedies - Medicinal plants.

☁️ #Shade_Garden - Plants suitable for low light conditions.

🌼 #Tree
s - Spectacular flowering tropical trees.

🏆 #Win - Contests, Sweepstakes, and other specials.

Join and share with friends👇🏵
TopTropicals

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What is the bluest flower of the Tropics? A Top Tropicals Garden Blog post.

What is the bluest flower of the Tropics?

Eranthemum pulchellum - Blue Sage, Lead Flower

Eranthemum pulchellum - Blue Sage, Lead Flower

Eranthemum pulchellum - Blue Sage, Lead Flower

What is the bluest flower of the Tropics?

Eranthemum pulchellum - Blue Sage, or Lead Flower is brightest gentian blue - very unusual color in the tropics!
  • 💙 Winter heavy bloomer
  • 💙 Attracts butterflies and bees 🐝
  • 💙 Compact shrub, responds well to pruning.
  • 💙 Shade lover. Will happily bloom in the shade!


🛒 Order oline

#Fun_Facts #Hedges_with_benefits #Shade_Garden #Butterfly_Plants

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We Grow Happiness

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How can you use Elephant Ears? A Top Tropicals Garden Blog post.

How can you use Elephant Ears?

🐘 How can you use Elephant Ears?

  • 🟢 Alocasias and Colocasias, or Elephant Ears, are both remarkable and popular plants that can bring a touch of tropical elegance to any garden.

  • 🟢 Striking Foliage: large, lush foliage. The leaves can be enormous, resembling the shape of elephant ears, hence the common name. The foliage is usually rich green, but there are also varieties with hues of purple, black, or variegated patterns. These vibrant leaves create a dramatic focal point.

  • 🟢 Tropical Aesthetic: large, architectural leaves add a sense of drama and create a stunning backdrop for other plants.

  • 🟢 Versatility: work well in containers, making them suitable for patio gardens. In larger landscapes, colocasias and alocasias can be planted directly in the ground, either as standalone specimens or as part of mixed border plantings. They can also be utilized around water features or in bog gardens since they enjoy moist conditions.

  • 🟢 Low Maintenance: thrive in full to partial shade. Regular watering and occasional fertilization will help them grow vigorously.

  • 🟢 Impressive Size: Some varieties can grow several feet tall, creating a stunning vertical element in the garden.


📸 Colocasia esculenta Jacks Giant: This astonishing elephant ear is well-named, it really does look like something that would grow for the giant! The foliage is absolutely massive, many feet long and wide, with a glossy texture, prominent ribbing, and a rich blue-green cast that lightens to chartreuse around the edges.

📚 Learn more from previous posts:
What to plant by the pond?
Pharaoh Mask with stunning 3D effect
Mojito Elephant Ears
Colocasia vs Alocasia - what is the difference?

🛒 Shop Colocasias

#Shade_Garden

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What is the most beautiful ginger? 5 most spectacular Ginger species. A Top Tropicals Garden Blog post.

What is the most beautiful ginger? 5 most spectacular Ginger species

Hedychium flavum x coronarium - Yellow Butterfly Ginger

Hedychium flavum x coronarium - Yellow Butterfly Ginger

Costus arabicus (amazonicus) variegata - Variegated Spiral Ginger

Costus arabicus (amazonicus) variegata - Variegated Spiral Ginger

Zingiber Zerumbet - Pine Cone Ginger, Shampoo Ginger

Zingiber Zerumbet - Pine Cone Ginger, Shampoo Ginger

Costus vargasii - Spiral Ginger Raspberry Yogurt

Costus vargasii - Spiral Ginger Raspberry Yogurt

Costus fissiligulatus - African Princess, Cameroon Costus

Costus fissiligulatus - African Princess, Cameroon Costus

🎋 What is the most beautiful ginger? 5 most spectacular Ginger species.

Ginger is famous for its culinary and medicinal uses, and many species are also strikingly beautiful, making them perfect centerpieces for tropical gardens or potted plant collections, especially in shaded spots. Here are a few of our favorite cultivars.
  • 🍭 Hedychium flavum x coronarium - Yellow Butterfly Ginger, Nardo Ginger Lily - rare hybrid of White Butterfly ginger we mentioned earlier, it is more vigorous and tall than its parent. With attractive long green leaves with a slight fuzziness, this ginger has open long spikes of pastel yellow flowers with a beautiful heady aroma. Exquisitely fragrant!
  • 🍭 Costus arabicus (amazonicus) variegata - Variegated Spiral Ginger - is a show stopper! Very popular in Hawaii and Florida. Spiraling stems rise with a strong white variegation and topped with green and white cone like flowers. Vigorous grower, it prefers shade, moist soil and lots of water.
  • 🍭 Zingiber Zerumbet - Pine Cone Ginger, Shampoo Ginger - is probably the most popular one. All parts of this ginger are spicy fragrant. The cone shaped flowers are long lasting and useful for cut flower arrangements. It is in fact used as a shampoo in Asia and Hawaii, and as an ingredient in several commercial shampoos! Pinecone ginger is considered a "canoe plant", that is, a plant introduced throughout the Pacific by the ancient Polynesian settlers.
  • 🍭 Costus vargasii - Spiral Ginger Raspberry Yogurt - The name refers to the colorful raspberry colored stem, but that's not the only colorful thing about it: the leaves are dark green, long and glossy with velvety deep purple undersides. The inflorescence is a vivid red with tight bracts and bold yellow flowers. The butterflies love to drink the nectar from the flowers. Large vigorous ginger, growing up to 5-6 ft tall.
  • 🍭 Costus fissiligulatus - African Princess, Cameroon Costus - from Gabon in West Africa. It has a dazzling pink trumpet flower with a yellow throat. It is very floriferous with an inflorescence of numerous flower buds on a shortish plant of 3-4 ft that stands very erect. It is an easy grower


📚 More gingers in previous posts:
Alpinia formosana x zerumbet Variegata - Variegated Ginger
Costus spicatus x woodsonii - Red Button Ginger, French Kiss
Hedychium coronarium - Butterfly Ginger
Kaempferia angustifolia - Laos Silver Stripe

What is your favorite Ginger? Share in comments👇

🛒 Shop Gingers

#Shade_Garden #Container_Garden #Food_Forest

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