Garden Blog - Top Tropicals

Date: 4 Jun 2025

Flowers of whimsical Bunnies

Adenium White Rabbit

🐰 Flowers of whimsical Bunnies



📸 Adenium White Rabbit for the previous post 👆

🛒 Shop adeniums

#Nature_Wonders #Container_Garden #Adenium

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Date: 12 Mar 2026

How to learn the secret meanings behind Thai flower names

Cats Smokey and Sunshine in Thai Adenoium garden

Cats Smokey and Sunshine in Thai Adenoium garden

How to learn the secret meanings behind Thai flower names 🔮

If you have ever looked at names of Adeniums or Plumerias from Thailand, you may have noticed something interesting. Many of them sound poetic, mysterious, or even magical. That is not accidental.
Thai plant breeders often give their hybrids meaningful names connected to jewels, wealth, beauty, and mythology. Instead of simple numbers or codes, the plants receive names that sound like something from a legend - Jade Swan, Golden Lotus, Rainbow Diamond.

Once you learn a few common Thai words, these names suddenly start to make sense. It is almost like decoding a secret language of flowers.
Below are some of the most common words you will see in Thai plant names.

🔠 Glossary of common Thai words used in plant names



Gems and precious stones 💎

Anyamanee - precious jewel or rare gem.
Gaew / Kaew - crystal or glass-like jewel.
Manee - jewel or gemstone. A classic word in elegant Thai names.
Noppakao - nine gems, a symbol of royal power and prosperity.
Petch - diamond. Symbol of brilliance and beauty.
Ploy - gem or precious stone. Often used for plants considered rare or jewel-like.
Yok - jade.

Wealth, luck, and prosperity 💰

Boon - merit, blessing, good karma.
Chok - luck or good fortune.
Kanjana / Kanjamapon - golden or noble.
Mongkol - auspicious or lucky.
Paruay / Pa Ruay - to become wealthy or prosperous.
Ramruay - to become rich or prosperous.
Sap / Sab - wealth or treasure.
Sedthee - wealthy person.
Tawee / Taweechok - to increase or multiply.
Thong - gold.
Yod - the best, the peak, or the finest.

Mythology and cultural symbolism 🐉

Bua - lotus.
Chai / Chai Lai - victory or triumph.
Hassadee - derived from the mythical Hatsadiling, an elephant-bird creature in Thai mythology.
Hong - mythical swan or phoenix.
Jai - heart or spirit.
Maha - great or grand.
Moradok - heritage, treasure, or legacy.
Orathai - heart of Thailand or beloved Thai.
Pratum / Pratuma - lotus blossom.
Siam - Thailand, the historic name of the country.

Colors and visual descriptions 🎨

Chompoo - pink color.
Lai - patterned or striped.
Lueng - yellow.
Moung / Muang - purple color.

Nature and poetic imagery

Chaba - hibiscus flower.
Dao - star.
Doung - heart, soul, or central essence.
Fah - sky. Example: Sai Fah - sky-colored.
Nam - water.
Namwhan - sweet water or sweetness.
Natee - river or flowing water.
Sai - thread, line, or ray.
Sairung - rainbow.
Sang Aroon - dawn or sunrise.
Suree - sun or sunlight.

🌸 Examples of plant names built from these words



Once you know the meanings, the names start to read like short poems.

Hong Yok - Jade Swan
Ploy Nappan - Celestial Jewel
Thong Hassadee - Golden Mythical Elephant
Ped Sairung - Rainbow Diamond
Som Paruay - Golden Prosperity
Sai Fah - Sky Blue
Pratum Thong - Golden Lotus
Ramruay - Becoming Rich
Chok Dee - Good Luck
Thong Yod - Peak of Gold

You will see these words frequently in the names of Thai-bred Adeniums, Plumerias, Orchids, and other tropical flowers. Once you recognize them, plant names become much easier - and more fun - to understand.

🛒 Explore Exotic Thai Adeniums

📚 Learn more:


#Container_Garden #Adeniums #Horoscope #How_to #Discover

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Date: 18 Apr 2020

Fast-fruiting trees

Grafted trees, including Mango and Avocado, will start flowering and fruiting right away

Q: It would be easier for us buyers, if we could search for plants that produce fruit in 2 years or less... I don't have the patience to wait longer than that for fruit. I'm trying to buy for a fairly good sized garden but want some fast growers and fruit produced in 2 yrs. Can you help me out?

A: Fruiting time depends on many factors (growing conditions, fertilizing, and even specific variety), this is why we can not just put a simple icon "will fruit within 2 years". However, most grafted and air-layered fruit trees, including all Mango, Avocado, Loquat, Sapote, Sapodilla, Longan, Peaches and Nectarines - will fruit right away.
If you see in our store "grafted" or "air-layered" in plant description - these trees will fruit soon. Some of them are already flowering and fruiting!

Some non-grafted trees will fruit within a couple of years or even sooner (those from cuttings, root division or even seedlings) - such as: Annona, Artocarpus (Jackfruit), Eugenia, Guava, Banana, Dragon fruit, Mulberry, Blackberry/Raspberry. Banana, Mulberry, Dragon fruit, Blackberry-Raspberry - usually fruit within a year. You may refer to our store directory page for fruit specials.

Also, all spice trees like Bay Leaf, Bay Rum, Allspice and many more - will produce spice for you right away, so you don't need to wait at all!

Annonas start fruiting within 3 years from seed and are the most popular fruit trees for both container culture and small gardens.

This Jackfruit started fruiting on the second year after planting in the ground.

Carambola

Date: 14 Jul 2019

Dwarf and Condo mangoes - easy mangoes

Q: We leave in zone 6a, could you tell us what is the list of different types of mango plants that could be planted indoor and that they can bear fruits?

A:There is a large group of mangoes called "Condo Mango" - they literally can be grown in your apartment! Those are dwarf varieties that can remain compact in containers with minimal pruning and successfully bear fruit providing bright light and proper care, including plant food.

The best dwarf and semi-dwarf varieties are: Carrie, Cogshall, Cushman, Fairchild, Graham, Ice Cream, Julie, Mallika, Nam Doc Mai, Pickering, Irwin, Jahangir, Juliette, Lancetilla, Little Gem, Manilita, Sia Tong, Torbert, Pim Seng Mun, Super Julie.

They produce juicy, fiberless sweet fruit. Julie is also a very popular dwarf variety, however, it is very cold sensitive and not the easiest to grow. If you get a 3 gal size mango, step it up to 7 gal when the plant reaches 4 ft; you may use a bigger container as the root system grows, up to 15 gal or even 25 gal, space permitting. Trim the tree under 6-8 ft after production season is over (summer-fall).

See more information on growing condo mangoes

RECOMMENDED FERTILIZERS:

Mango-Food - Smart Release Fruit Tree Booster
Fruit Festival Plant Food - Super Crop Booster
For sweeter fruit, use SUNSHINE-Honey - sugar booster

Date: 10 Apr 2016

Growing by the sea

Q: Please recommend me some interesting plants that can grow on my waterfront property and can withstand some salt wind. All my neighbors have Sea Grape trees and bougainvilleas, and I want something different and special. I would love to have some colorful or fragrant flowers, or fruit around my paradise home.

Q: Considering your neighbors successfully grow Sea Grape (Coccoloba), and Bougainvilleas, you have a mild, frost free climate. There is a number of spectacular and useful tropical plants that are salt tolerant. Orchid Trees - Bauhinias, Poincettia - Delonix, and Geiger trees - Cordias, are very showy flowering trees. For large size bushes, try Dwarf Poincianas - Caesalpinias, and Scarlet-Coral Erythrinas. Frangipani - Plumeria, come in different colors and bring you perfume fragrance from Hawaii. And of course, Desert Roses - Adeniums, can be grown and showy specimens anywhere in your yard, both in the ground or as potted bonsai.

Most palms, especially popular Coconut Palm, source of tasty fruit and drink, are highly tolerant to salt breeze. If you are looking for something that nobody has, Lipstick palm, or Sealing wax palm - Cyrtostachys lakka, is definitely the most spectacular palm you can find. It is a stunning feather palm that develops a brilliantly red trunk. Palm is originally from Malaysia, but has been introduced to Costa Rica and other tropical areas of the world. Sealing Wax Palm seeds are very slow to germinate, up to a year, and large specimens are very rare and hard to find even in rare tropical plant nurseries. This palm will require a good overhead light, and constant warmth (above temperature 55F). It is definitely worth an effort to grow this beauty.

You may add more tropical accents to your landscape by the sea with many varieties of showy heliconias.

See full list of salt tolerant trees