Winter flowering trees and shrubs - all you need for winter color in your garden
🌺 Winter flowering trees and shrubs - all you need for winter color in your garden.
Many snowbirds ask what to plant when they’re here just for the season. The answer is simple: go for trees and shrubs that bloom in winter. Fall is the perfect time to plant them, so your garden bursts with flowers once the cool season arrives.
📱 We put everything in one place for you!
Check out this single YouTube Post with all our favorite winter-blooming trees and shrubs - your shortcut to a colorful garden this season: https://youtube.com/post/UgkxRWCHqNDqrRIIwK_BAeWjfi3spnZK0EbA?si=LbNv_RhkKGkc0rxv Save it for later and share it with your garden friends.
Q: Hope there is help for my beautiful amazing papaya tree! There
where a loooooooot of fruits on it, but it broke! First of all, it was
leaning and friends tried to straight my beautiful tree. What can I do? Will it
get fruits again?
A: A couple months ago we also had a Papaya tree loaded with
fruit that fell down (see photos). It was heart-breaking. We secured it and it
continued growing for a couple of weeks but unfortunately, at the end the tree
still died, leaving us a million fruit.
The Papaya tree has a very sensitive root system and is hard to
re-establish once the roots are damaged.
However, if it just has a broken top, it has a good chance to grow back
from the side shoots.
Of course, remove all the fruit so they don't take energy from the
recovering tree.
When a tree is loaded with fruit, it is important to provide support for
heavy branches and for the trunk if needed. Always support the fruiting tree to
prevent from possible falling BEFORE it starts leaning down and may become
broken by even a light wind.
In the photo, you can see how we fixed boards around, but it was already
after the tree fell. Unfortunately, it was too late since the roots got
damaged. Always need to stake the tree up before the branches get too heavy!
Fall is just around the corner, but Florida is still full of sunshine and
growing energy!
It’s one of the best times to plant - cooler days are coming, but
there are still months of warmth ahead for your garden to thrive. Our
nursery is bursting with big, healthy plants that grew all summer long -
loaded with blooms, fruit, and lush foliage, ready to shine in your
yard.
Come stroll the gardens with our PeopleCats,
enjoy the most beautiful season for planting, and let us help you find the
perfect picks for your space. Bring your friends and family for a weekend of
fun, color, and fresh ideas - this is your moment to plant, grow, and
enjoy!
30% OFF online prices
FREE plant with any purchase (including Guava)
Gift bags for first 25 customers with $50+ order
Special deals on select plants
Exciting raffle prizes
Green Magic fertilizer FREE samples
The LAST PERFORMANCE of the Famous Hand Pan Lady! (She is moving from
Florida)
See her previous performance at Top Tropicals - here
and here.
When northern gardens fade into gray, our tropicals wake up. Winter is
color season here - and even if you live up north, you can still enjoy these
same flowering trees indoors or on a sunny patio.
From the fiery Royal
Poinciana to the golden Tabebuia and
violet Jacaranda,
these eight trees prove that winter can bloom anywhere
How to Care for Winter-Flowering Trees
We're often asked, at Top Tropicals, “Can I really grow tropical
trees in winter?”
Yes — with the right light and care, you can.
Here’s what works best both outdoors and indoors, according to our
expert, Tatiana Anderson.
🌡️ Fall Planting Guide
Let’s talk about timing, because that’s the part most people
get nervous about.
Everyone asks: “Isn’t it too cool to plant now?” —
and the answer is no!
Fall and early winter are actually the best months for tropicals in Zones 9
to 11.
Here’s why: the air has cooled off, but the soil is still warm.
Roots love that combination. They quietly spread underground while the rest
of
the plant takes a break.
By spring, those roots are ready to feed a burst of new growth — and
that’s when you’ll see the first big flush of flowers.
Pick a sunny spot that gets plenty of light — six to eight hours
if you can.
Loosen the soil and mix in compost or pine bark so it drains well.
Dig a hole about twice as wide as the pot and just as deep.
Set the plant level with the ground, backfill, and water it deeply to
settle everything in.
Then add mulch — two or three inches is plenty — but keep it
away from the trunk so it can breathe.
Tatiana’s tip: “Fall planting builds roots while everyone
else is resting. By spring, your tree wakes up ready to grow.”
🌳 Outdoor Care (Warm Climates Zones 9–11)
Now, let’s talk about what happens after planting — because
real gardening starts once the plant is yours. Tropical trees thrive on
routine: steady sunlight, deep watering, and just a bit of attention.
Water them about once a week when the weather is mild, more often if
it’s dry or windy.
Always check the soil first — if it feels dry two inches down, go
ahead and water.
Mulch helps more than most people realize — it keeps roots cool in
summer and warm in winter, and it saves you from watering as often.
Now, for those of you in Zone 9, here’s the truth: your trees can
take a chill, but they don’t love surprises.
A quick night in the upper 20s F won’t hurt mature plants, but young
ones appreciate a little help — a frost cloth or being planted at the
south side.
And don’t underestimate the wind. Cold, dry gusts can burn leaves
faster than frost.
Use fences, hedges, or taller shrubs as windbreaks, and take advantage of
microclimates — those warm pockets next to the house, brick patios, or
corners that get extra afternoon sun.
Tatiana’s tip: “A tropical garden in Zone 9 isn’t
about fighting nature — it’s about cooperating with it. Find the
warm corners, protect from the cold wind, and your trees will thank you with
flowers all winter.”
🏚️ Indoor & Patio Care (Cooler Climates)
For our northern friends — yes, you can grow tropicals indoors!
You just need good light, warm air, and a little attention.
Pick a large pot, with drainage holes and a light tropical soil mix.
Place it in a bright window — south or southwest if you can —
or under grow lights for about 12–14 hours a day.
Keep temperatures between 65 and 85 F, and water when the top inch of soil
dries out.
Misting helps keep leaves clean and adds humidity.
Rotate the pot every couple of weeks so all sides get sun. In summer, move
your plant outdoors gradually so it can enjoy real sunlight — then
bring it back in before nights drop below 40 F.
Tatiana’s tip: “Don’t be afraid of growing trees in
pots. They adapt beautifully — just select the right trees and pay
attention to their needs.”
🌴 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.
How to Care for Winter-Flowering Trees
