Plant Horoscope. Aries Zodiac lucky plants: Aloe and Erythrina
Aries - 3/21-4/19. Aries is a FIRE sign ruled by the planet Mars. Plants associated with this element and planet very often have thorns or prickles. They can be also spicy or bitter in flavor, or red in color.
Because Aries rules the head, eyes and face, the plants for Aries purify the blood, stimulate the adrenal glands, and/or are high in iron (Mars rules the mineral iron). Mars-ruled Aries is assertive, energetic and fearless. Mars rules the red blood cells, the muscles, and metabolic processes, as well as the motor nerves and the head. These plants help you when you want more get-up-and-go and the courage to take on the world.
🌴 Twilight in the garden. Smokey is holding a glowing
pumpkin. Sunshine is sipping cocoa.
Sunshine: "Smokey, why does that plant look like it wants to fly away?"
Smokey: "That’s the Bat Lily - Tacca. It’s rare, it’s
weird, and it’s in bloom just in time for Halloween."
Sunshine: "Figures. You always find the spooky ones."
Meet the Bat Lily (Tacca)
Tacca is also called the Bat Lily or Devil Flower. This
tropical wonder grows bat-shaped wings and foot-long whiskers. The black
form
(Tacca chantrieri) looks straight out of a gothic dream, while the
white
one (Tacca nivea) is ghost-like and elegant.
Some of our plants are blooming right now in the nursery — true
Halloween magic! Blooms are delicate and may not travel, but the plants are
strong
and will flower again soon in your care.
Black Bat Lily (Tacca chantrieri) with dark maroon wings and long
whiskers
White Bat Lily (Tacca nivea) in bloom with wide ivory wings
"The White Bat Lily (Tacca nivea) is bold and sculptural, with oversized
ivory wings that command attention. Its pale bracts stretch wide above
clusters
of deep maroon flowers, and long, silvery whiskers spill gracefully through
the foliage. In filtered light, the plant seems to glow from within —
elegant, crisp, and perfectly balanced between the strange and the
beautiful.
If I could pick, I’d go with the White Tacca. It feels more
architectural, more balanced — those oversized wings catch light in a
way that
shows off every vein and curve. It looks engineered by nature, almost like
an
alien design prototype that actually works.
The Black Bat Lily (Tacca chantrieri) feels alive with shadow. Its dark
maroon wings and wiry whiskers make it look like something that fluttered
out of
the jungle at dusk. The bloom’s layered structure and near-black sheen
give it a quiet power — mysterious, understated, but impossible to
ignore. But if I were designing mood lighting for a greenhouse at night, the
Black Tacca wins. It’s subtle, mysterious, like a secret only visible
up
close. Together, they’re perfect opposites — yin and yang of the
tropical underworld: white for daylight, black for moonlight." — says
Tatiana Anderson, Top Tropicals Plant Expert
Special Offer: Discounts on Rare Tacca Plants
Grow your own Bat Lilies — White or Black — at a special
Halloween price!
Get 25% OFF Tacca plants with code
TACCA2025
Min order $25 (excluding S/H), valid online only,
cannot be combined with other offers.
Hurry, offer expires
November 03, 2025!
🎃
Storewide Halloween Sale – For Everything Beyond Tacca
Not into spooky plants? Enjoy savings on all other tropical plants
across the store!
Get 15% OFF tropical plants with code
HALLOWEEN2025
Min order $100 (excluding S/H), valid online only,
cannot be combined with other offers.
Stop Sugar Crashes: 5 Tropical Fruit Hacks for Healthy Dessert
Exotic Tropical Fruits for Blood Sugar Management. Stop the sugar crash cycle. Learn how to manage glucose levels and insulin spikes using tropical fruits, healthy fats, and metabolic hacks for healthy dessert.
🍨 Stop Sugar Crashes: 5 Tropical Fruit Hacks for Healthy Dessert
The smarter way to handle sugar cravings - no restriction required
Tired of the post-cookie slump? Sugar cravings are a physiological response to blood glucose fluctuations, not a lack of willpower. Refined sugars trigger an insulin spike followed by a hypoglycemic crash, trapping you in a cycle of fatigue and hunger.
The secret to metabolic health is managing glycemic load. By choosing nutrient-dense tropical fruits, you satisfy your sweet tooth while maintaining stable energy homeostasis.
The solution is not to give up dessert. It is to change what dessert means. Here is how to use tropical horticulture to hack your biology and regulate insulin:
🍭 1. Choose fruit that comes with fiber
Whole tropical fruits deliver sweetness wrapped in fiber, water, and nutrients. That slows sugar absorption and keeps energy steady.
Try: · Mango, chilled and sliced
Mango Plant Facts
Botanical name: Mangifera indica Also known as: Mango
USDA Zone: 9 - 11
Highligths
· Sapodilla - naturally caramel-sweet · Mulberries by the handful · Loquat halves straight from the fridge · Dragon Fruit for light, clean sweetness
Same pleasure. Less crash.
🍭 2. Pair sweet with fat to blunt the glucose spike
Healthy lipids are a biological hack for your metabolism. Fats slow gastric emptying, ensuring a steady glucose release rather than an inflammatory spike. Furthermore, lipids trigger cholecystokinin (CCK) - the hormone that signals satiety to the brain - effectively "turning off" cravings at the source. · Avocado blended into a chocolate-style mousse: The monounsaturated fats create a creamy texture while blunting the sugar response.
Avocado Plant Facts
Botanical name: Persea americana, Persea gratissima Also known as: Avocado, Alligator Pear, Aguacate, Abacate
USDA Zone: 9 - 11
Highligths
· Banana with nut butter: Combining fast-acting fruit sugars with dense protein and fats. · Pineapple with raw nuts: The bromelain in pineapple aids digestion, while the fats in nuts provide long-lasting satiety. · Mango mixed into full-fat yogurt: The combination of probiotics, protein, and lipids turns a simple fruit into a complete, low-glycemic snack.
When fruit is balanced with fat, cravings calm down instead of escalating.
🍭 3. Use naturally rich fruits in place of sugar
Some tropical fruits taste like dessert already. · Jackfruit has candy-like sweetness · Sapote is creamy and custard-like · Guava brings floral depth · Cherries add brightness · Mash Banana into baking instead of white sugar. · Blend Mango into yogurt instead of syrup. · Top oatmeal with Mulberry instead of brown sugar.
Dessert stays. The crash disappears.
🍭 4. Balance sweet with tart
Adding contrast reduces the urge to overeat sweetness. · Carambola adds crisp tang. · Pineapple brightens the palate. · Loquat gives gentle acidity.
Balanced flavors satisfy faster.
🍭 5. Start the day right
Skipping breakfast increases late-day sugar cravings.
A morning smoothie with Avocado, Banana, and Mango prevents the afternoon energy dip. Hydration also matters - thirst often disguises itself as a sweet craving.
🍭 In essence
Dessert is not the enemy. Refined sugar is.
When sweetness comes from nature's bounty, it nourishes instead of draining energy.
You do not need to quit dessert.
You just need to let nature handle it.
Consult with a healthcare professional before making significant dietary changes, especially if you have diabetes or metabolic conditions
📅 Do Not Miss: March 21
- Spring Equinox Plant Market
🍩 Saturday, March 21, 2026: 9 am - 4 pm
Sunshine: Smokey, look at me! See what I can do on my bike? I'm
practicing to give people what they like: coffee and donuts.
Smokey: You'd be perfect for a Gulf beach cafe. But gardeners don't
come here for donuts.
Sunshine: Really? Then why do they come?
Smokey: Some gardeners lost plants to the freeze. Others want trees
that will handle winter better. Cold-hardy avocados. Macadamia. Grumichama.
And some just come for fun - to see the PeopleCats. Sunshine: And my charm... and my donuts will make it more fun.
🐱King is
back on gate duty - inspecting every vehicle for proper
plant-hauling capacity.
😺Paisley
is rearranging freeze survivors and new arrivals like a design
consultant.
😼Snitch is
supervising recovery efforts from a comfortable chair.
😸Persephone
is checking under tables for "hidden spring energy."
😻Sushi and
Loki are
preparing for guided garden tours - recovery edition.
This is not just a plant market. This is the spring reset.
👍 Why You Should Come
It is finally warm in Florida. After several nights of hard freeze, some
plants survived - and some didn’t. This event is your chance to see
real freeze champions in person.
If you lost plants, you are not alone. If you are ready to plant
smarter, this is your moment.
Walk the gardens.
See proven winter survivors.
Discover cold-hardy fruit trees and resilient ornamentals.
Get practical advice about replanting after freeze. This is rebuilding -
Florida style.
♥️ What Makes This Event Special
We are featuring:
Verified freeze survivors
Cold-hardy fruit trees
Tough flowering trees and shrubs
Replacement plants for damaged landscapes
Smart layering ideas for frost-resilient gardens
You will see which species handled 25F with wind and multiple nights of
freeze - with no protection.
Real-world test. Real results.
Cold hardy fruit favorites include:
Cold-hardy Avocado varieties, including varieties, which are cold hardy
to 15-20°F: Joey, Fantastic, Mexicola, Poncho, Brogdon and more.
Botanical name: Caesalpinia mexicana Also known as: Mexican Bird of Paradise, Dwarf Poinciana
USDA Zone: 9 - 11
Highligths
🎉Event Highlights
30% OFF online prices
FREE plants with purchase
$5-10 specials
Exciting raffle prizes
🌳Don't just mow - grow!
Start your food forest, beat rising prices, and plant a future your
family will thank you for.
🌿 Friendly Reminder
Just a quick reminder before we go: Sunshine Boosters are still
shipping free.
If you were thinking about stocking up for the season, now is a
great time to do it while the offer is still active.
CAT BREEDS:
European Shorthair - a cat that came from the wild...
By Alex Butova, the Witch of Herbs and Cats
Q: I saw your beautiful cats in your garden and now I know you are not only plant experts, but also cat experts. Do you now what is the classic color of European shorthair cat?
A: You are right, here at Top Tropicals we have a whole PeopleCats garden with all sorts of cats, and we can tell stories about each breed and personality! In fact, our cat expert Alex Boutova just started a series about cat breeds.
With European shorthair cat breed, there is a twist! Sometimes, people get confused because European shorthair covers lots of different cats found all over Europe. It's not just one type of cat, but a whole bunch! You've got cats with two colors, including bicolor cats (including tuxedo cats), multicolor cats, and even cats with just one solid color like black, grey, ginger, or tabby...