Garden Blog - Top Tropicals

Date: 18 Jan 2026

Five steps to everblooming Rose Hydrangea

Dombeya seminole - Tropical Rose Hydrangea

🌸 Five steps to everblooming Rose Hydrangea

  • 🌸 Dombeya seminole - Tropical Rose Hydrangea: everyone who sees this plant falls in love at first sight. Exceptional rose-pink flower clusters cover the shrub, and butterflies and bees go wild over it. While it is considered a winter bloomer, here at Top Tropicals garden we regularly see it flower multiple times a year, with peak bloom from November through January and surprise blooms the rest of the year.
  • 🌸 Here is how to keep your Dombeya seminole happy and blooming more:


💋 1. Full sun


The more sun it gets, the more flowers it produces. Sun equals bloom power.
  • 💋 2. Adequate water


    Dombeyas are heavy drinkers. Regular watering fuels fast growth and heavier flowering.
  • 💋 3. Feed for flowers


    Use Sunshine Megaflor bloom booster with regular watering, or apply Green Magic controlled-release fertilizer every 6 months.
  • 💋 4. Trim after flowering


    Prune once blooms fade. A bushier plant means more flowering points next season.
  • 💋 5. Give it space


    This is a round, airy shrub. Allow at least 6 x 6 ft for good air circulation and even light exposure.


🌸 Quick facts you will appreciate:
  • 💋Often called Tropical Hydrangea because of its hydrangea-like flower clusters
  • 💋Blooms fall through spring, often all winter
  • 💋Reaches about 6-7 ft tall and wide, but can be kept smaller with pruning
  • 💋Thrives in full sun to partial shade and tolerates poor soil
  • 💋An excellent nectar source for butterflies

If you want a beautiful color that refuses to quit, this shrub earns its spotlight.

🛒 Add Beautiful Dombeya to your garden

📚 Learn more:


#Hedges_with_benefits #Butterfly_Plants

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Date: 9 Mar 2026

Golden canistel cream: quick-n-fun exotic recipes

Golden canistel cream

Golden canistel cream

Pouteria campechiana - Canistel, Eggfruit

Pouteria campechiana - Canistel, Eggfruit

🍴 Golden canistel cream: quick-n-fun exotic recipes


Golden Canistel Cream

Ingredients

  • 1 ripe canistel (eggfruit)
  • 2 to 3 tbsp milk
  • 1 to 2 tsp honey

Instructions

  1. Scoop the ripe canistel flesh into a bowl.
  2. Add milk and honey.
  3. Mash until smooth and creamy.
  4. Warm gently in a small pan if desired.
  5. Serve warm like a thick tropical porridge.

🌿 About the plant:


Also called Eggfruit, canistel has bright yellow flesh that is dense and slightly dry when ripe.

🏡 In the garden:


Grows well in warm climates with good drainage. Compact growth makes it suitable for small yards.

🛒 Plant Canistel Egg Fruit tree - grows well in container too

📚 Learn more:

Plant Facts

Pouteria campechiana
Canistel, Eggfruit, Chesa
USDA Zone: 9-11
Large tree taller than 20 ftSmall tree 10-20 ftFull sunRegular waterEdible plant

#Food_Forest #Recipes

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Date: 27 Feb 2026

Grilled star fruit slices: quick-n-fun exotic recipes

Grilled star fruit slices on grill pan

Grilled star fruit slices on grill pan

Averrhoa carambola - Star Fruit Carambola Tree

Averrhoa carambola - Star Fruit Carambola Tree

🍴 Grilled star fruit slices: quick-n-fun exotic recipes



Grilled Star Fruit Slices

Ingredients

  • 1 ripe star fruit (carambola)
  • 1 teaspoon honey
  • 1 teaspoon butter or coconut oil

Instructions

  1. Slice the star fruit crosswise into star-shaped pieces.
  2. Heat a grill pan or skillet and lightly grease with butter or coconut oil.
  3. Place the slices on the hot surface and grill briefly on each side.
  4. Drizzle lightly with honey as the edges begin to caramelize.
  5. Serve warm as a tropical side dish or dessert topping.


🌿 About the plant:


Carambola, or Star Fruit, is a small tropical tree with glossy leaves and crisp, juicy fruit that slices into perfect stars.

🏡 In the garden:


Thrives in zones 9-11. Likes sun, regular water, and protection from strong winds. Dwarf varieties do well in large containers.

🛒 Plant Star Fruit Carambola Tree

📚 Learn more:

Plant Facts

Averrhoa carambola
Carambola, Starfruit, Five-finger, Balimbing
USDA Zone: 9-11
Small tree 10-20 ftSemi-shadeFull sunRegular waterEdible plantSubtropical plant. Mature plant cold hardy at least to 30s F for a short time

#Food_Forest #Recipes

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Date: 31 Jan 2026

Pitomba pop cups: quick-n-fun exotic recipes

Frozen pitomba pops with mint

Frozen pitomba pops with mint

Eugenia luschnathiana - Pitomba

Eugenia luschnathiana - Pitomba

🍴 Pitomba pop cups: quick-n-fun exotic recipes



Pitomba Pop Cups

Ingredients

  • 1 cup pitomba pulp
  • 1 teaspoon honey
  • 1 tablespoon water
  • Fresh mint leaves (optional)

Instructions

  1. Scoop pitomba pulp into a small bowl.
  2. Mix with honey and a little water to soften the texture.
  3. Spoon the mixture into small cups or molds.
  4. Freeze until icy-soft.
  5. Serve topped with fresh mint for a refreshing tropical snack.


🌿 About the plant:


Pitomba (Eugenia luschnathiana) is a tropical fruit native to Brazil, prized for its bright, citrusy pulp with a sweet-sour kick. The flavor is often compared to a mix of apricot, citrus, and mild resin, making it refreshing and snack-worthy straight from the fruit.

🌱 In the garden:


Pitomba grows as a small to medium-sized slow growing tree with glossy evergreen leaves. It thrives in warm climates, prefers full sun to light shade, suitable for USDA zones 10-11, it can also be grown in large containers and responds well to pruning, making it manageable for home gardens.

🛒 Plant exotic Pitomba cherry in your garden

📚 Learn more:

Plant Facts

Eugenia luschnathiana, Phyllocalyx luschnathianus
Pitomba
USDA Zone: 9-11
Small tree 10-20 ftFull sunModerate waterRegular waterWhite, off-white flowersEdible plant

Eugenia luschnathiana - Pitomba - in Plant Encyclopedia

#Food_Forest #Recipes

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Date: 6 Jan 2017

6 easiest fruit trees and 5 spices to grow in containers indoors

Q: This is why I want to move so that I can grow absolutely anything I want from your catalogue. Prefered Puerto Rico. Right now I live in New York and there is absolutely nothing I can grow there.

A: Of course living in Puerto Rico brings more opportunities to grow tropical species. However, you can create your unique tropical paradise even living in New York. We have many customers from up North who successfully grow tropical species (and get them to flower and fruit) in greenhouses, and even indoors.
Here are a few suggestions of tropical fruit trees that adapt well for container/indoor culture - for both beginners and advanced gardeners.

Top 6 fruit trees great for indoors / container culture / beginners
1. Mango (Mangifera indica). Select from one of smaller mango varieties
2. Sugar Apple (Annona squamosa)
3. Guanabana, Soursop (Annona muricata)
4. Miracle Fruit (Synsepalum dulcificum)
5. June Plum (Spondias cytherea)
6. Guava (Psidium guajava)

5 top spice plants (the spice will be with you right away, you don't have to wait for it to grow)
1. Allspice (Pimenta dioica)
2. Cinnamomon or Campor tree
3. Bay Leaf (Laurus nobilis)
4. Mint Tree (Satureja vimenea)
5. Vanilla orchid (Vanilla planifolia)

See a brief article of growing tropicals outside of tropics.

Don't forget to get some SUNSHINE boosters for your plant collection - for both successful indoor culture and cold protection!

See also our magazine Tropical Treasures) - Pushing the Limits of Tropical Gardening, with list of issues.