Garden Blog - Top Tropicals

Date: 20 Aug 2024

How to make an exotic treat: Barbados Cherry Jelly

How to make an exotic treat: Barbados Cherry Jelly
🍒 How to make an exotic treat: Barbados Cherry Jelly

Barbados Cherry is a vigorous grower that starts producing right away, and by the second year you have so much fruit that you don't know what to do with it - you can eat only so much fruit out of hand! Earlier we shared a recipe of delicious Barbados Cherry Juice drink. The juice tastes very similar to Guava juice: it is very aromatic and tasty, and has a beautiful Baby-pink color. The Jelly recipe is even more exotic teat!

🎀 Barbados Cherry Jelly

  • ✔️ 4 cups cherry juice
  • ✔️ 5 cups sugar
  • ✔️ 1 package dry pectin
  • ✔️ 2 tbsp lemon juice

  • 🍷To fully ripen cherries, place them in plastic container, cover and leave overnight. Cherries will be dark, rich red color the next day.

  • 🍷To make juice: Place cherries in a pan, cover with water, bring to boil. Crush cherries and simmer for a few minutes. Strain.

  • 🍷Add pectin and bring to a boil again. Add sugar and lemon juice and boil for 1 minute. Remove from heat and skim off foam. Pour into sterilized glass and seal.


📚 From previous posts:

🛒 Order Barbados Cherry Tree

#Recipes #Food_Forest

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Date: 15 Sep 2024

How to add flowering vines to the landscape

Urechites lutea (Pentalinon luteum) - Yellow Mandevilla

🔍 How to add flowering vines to the landscape

  • 🍀 Vines, by their nature, are almost always climbers. There are also some that make good hanging flower vines for your baskets hanging under trees or on the front porch.
  • 🍀 Some vines are also in the fruit category. The Passiflora is a beautiful perennial climbing vine that has very showy flowers and then a fruit that can be eaten off the vine or made into a wonderful juice. It would make a nice fast growing vine for a fence or trellis. The Barbados Gooseberry also falls into this category.
  • 🍀 One of the most popular fast growing flowering vines is the trumpet vine - Allamanda. It is an evergreen vine and will take some cold without damage, although it is still considered a tropical flowering vine. It can be grown as a large shrub or small tree and makes a beautiful focal point in the landscape.
  • 🍀 If you have some large trees in your yard, a great climbing vine for shade that also produces a usable product is the Pepper family. Yes, they flower and yes some of them produce pepper that you can use in your kitchen. If you like to know what is in your food, grow your own!
  • 🍀 Another perennial, fast growing and evergreen climbing vine is the Monstera. Monsteras will climb the side of a large tree and can produce an edible fruit after a few years. It is very tropical looking, but will take some cool nights as it is protected under the canopy of the tree.


🎥 Urechites lutea (Pentalinon luteum) - Yellow Mandevilla

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#Hedges_with_benefits #How_to

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Date: 2 Nov 2024

What plant is a vine, a cactus, a tasty fruit, and a pretty flower at the same time?

Perescia aculeata - Barbados Gooseberry

🐰 What plant is a vine, a cactus, a tasty fruit, and a pretty flower at the same time? Barbados Gooseberry!



Perescia aculeata - Barbados Gooseberry is in full bloom all Fall through Winter, these flowers are so pretty!

📚 Learn more about this fruiting Cactus vine with pretty flowers and tasty fruit:


What is Barbados Gooseberry?

🛒 Plant Barbados Gooseberry

#Food_Forest #Hedges_with_benefits

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Date: 23 Nov 2024

Monkey Orange or Monkey Ear?

Monkey Orange (Strychnos spinosa)

Monkey Orange (Strychnos spinosa)

Monkey Orange (Strychnos spinosa)

Monkey Orange (Strychnos spinosa)

🐵 Monkey Orange or Monkey Ear? 🙉
  • 🍊 Besides bizarre Monkey Ear Tree that we mentioned earlier, there is another interesting Monkey Tree -
  • 🍊 The Monkey Orange (Strychnos spinosa) is a captivating fruit tree from tropical Africa and Madagascar, known for its vibrant yellow fruits and wide range of uses.
  • 🍊This small to medium-sized tree, has glossy leaves and thorny branches that make it visually striking.
  • 🍊 What does the Monkey Orange taste like?


    The fruits, size of an orange, have a hard shell that protects their sweet-tart pulp with interesting pleasant taste somewhat similar to mangosteen. Some people say it tastes like a mix of citrus and pineapple with a hint of fermentation.
  • 🍊Rich in vitamin C and B vitamins, the fruit can be enjoyed fresh or transformed into jams, juices, and even wine.
  • 🍊Its durable wood is prized for carvings, and its leaves and roots are used in traditional medicine and as natural insecticides.
  • 🍊Slow-growing yet resilient, this hardy tree thrives in full sun and well-drained soil, offering beauty, nourishment, and practicality - an excellent choice for tropical or subtropical landscapes.


🐒 Why is it called Monkey Orange?


The "monkey orange" likely gets its name from its appeal to monkeys that eat the fruit and distribute the seeds in their habitat in Africa.

🛒 Plant Monkey Orange

#Food_Forest #Remedies

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Date: 13 Nov 2024

Could Mango be the secret to youthful skin?

Could Mango be the secret to youthful skin?

🥭 Could Mango be the secret to youthful skin?



🙂 Packed with anti-aging and immune-boosting benefits, could this tropical fruit be the key to your skin's natural glow?

  • 😊 Mango for Rejuvenation: Mangoes promote rejuvenation and improve skin condition, according to the research.

  • 😊 Anti-Inflammatory and Anti-Aging Effects: Mango contains components with anti-inflammatory and rejuvenating properties.

  • 😊 Vitamin C Boost: Mango is rich in Vitamin C and ascorbic acid, which strengthen the immune system.

  • 😊 Better Iron Absorption: Mango fruit supports improved iron absorption in the body.

  • 😊 Collagen Support: Mango helps maintain collagen levels in connective tissues for healthy skin.


🔥 Plant a mango tree today and start growing your own path to health and vitality!

👍 What other fruit or plants are good for skin? Share in comments⬇️

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#Food_Forest #Remedies #Mango

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