Date: 31 Oct 2025
Black and White Bat Lilies (Tacca chantrieri and Tacca nivea) side by side in bloom
How to Care for Bat Lilies
by Top Tropicals Plant Expert Tatiana Anderson
🌞 Light
- Bright, filtered light. Morning sun or dappled shade is perfect.
- Avoid direct midday sun outdoors — it can scorch the leaves.
- Indoors, place near a bright window with sheer curtains or use a grow light.
🌡️ Temperature
- Warm and stable, ideally 70-85 F during the day.
- Protect from cold drafts or sudden chills.
- Ideally, do not let temperature drop below 45 F, although Taccas can tolerate short period of upper 30's.
💧 Watering
- Keep soil evenly moist but not soggy.
- Water when the top inch feels barely dry.
- Use lukewarm water.
- Avoid letting the pot sit in water.
💨 Humidity
- High humidity (60-80%) is key.
- Mist leaves often, use a humidity tray, or keep near a humidifier.
- In greenhouses or bathrooms with a skylight, it thrives naturally.
🌱 Soil
- Use rich, loose, well-draining mix
- Combine bark, peat, and perlite for ideal airflow around the roots.
- Best mix for growing tropical Tacca in pots - soilless potting mix Abundance . It provides perfect drainage and has a texture similar to a jungle rainforest media.
🍽️ Feeding
- During growth season (Spring through Fall), feed with Green Magic controlled release fertilizer every 6 months. For even better results, you may apply liquid fertilizer Sunshine Boosters Rubusta.
- Stop feeding dry fertilizer in cooler months when growth slows. Liquid Sunshine Boosters are safe to use with every watering, year around.
🏡 Indoor Growing
- Great for bright bathrooms, sunrooms, or any warm, humid corner.
- Rotate pot occasionally for even growth.
- Keep away from heating vents and AC drafts.
🌴 Outdoor Growing (in warm climates)
- Partial shade or filtered light under trees.
- Excellent in large containers that can be brought inside for winter.
- Shelter from heavy rain and wind.
Sunshine: "So… it’s a diva?"
Smokey: "Exactly. But take care of it - and it rewards you with wings!"
Smokey and Sunshine: "Happy Halloween!"
🎥 Watch Short Videos:
🛒 Grow your own gothic masterpiece:
Shop Bat Head Lily Tacca
Date: 27 Nov 2025
Happy Thanksgiving from all of us at Top Tropicals!
Smokey: "We made a list of everything we are thankful for this year."
Sunshine: "I helped. Mostly by napping next to it."
Smokey: "And that is exactly why sunshine naps are on the list."
Smokey and Sunshine wanted to share a short Gardener Thanksgiving Message about what they are thankful for this year:
"We are thankful for warm laps during cold mornings.
Thankful for every gardener who stopped to scratch our heads between loading
carts.
Thankful for the smell of fresh soil, new plants, and boxes that make
perfect cat forts.
Thankful for mango season (even though humans never let us eat the
fruit).
Thankful for sunshine naps on potting tables and shade naps under
benches.
Thankful for all the tiny moments when gardens and people slow down
together.
And thankful that we get to share this tropical adventure with you."
From the whole Top Tropicals Team and PeopleCats, we wish you a warm, peaceful, plant-filled Thanksgiving 🙏 ♥️
Date: 21 Sep 2019
Shaping a tree and regrowing branches
Q: I have been so worried about the beautiful ligustrum on my property since my husband decided to "prune" it 2 days ago. He removed about 20 branches from the tree and completely altered the look of the canopy which was so full and lovely ðŸ˜. Please advise me if there is anything I can do to help this tree. Will any of the branches grow back? Will the canopy return? It looks practically bare to me now.... so heartbroken. Any advice and reassuring would be greatly appreciated.
A: The good news is, the tree will regrow new leaves and will
branch out. The question is, how soon. Ligustrum is pretty slow-growing species
and it may take a while until it gets to the shape that is close to the
original.
On the other hand, pruning is beneficial almost for every plant, it
promotes new growth and bushy shape.
So do not panic, your beautiful tree has good chances to become even
prettier.
To speed up the process of re-leafing and promote healthy new growth,
we recommend the following:
1) Provide extra watering, assuming you have a sprinkler system that covers the yard. Water additionally 1-2 times a week using a garden house, for 1-2 minutes, saturating the soil around the tree and up to a drip line.
2) Apply the following fertilizers:
Tropical Greenhouse Plus - Foliage Booster
Tropical Allure - Smart-Release Booster
3) In addition to fertilizers, we recommend these 2 supplements that
will enhance effect of fertilizers and make re-grow process even faster:
SUNSHINEâ„¢ SuperFood
SUNSHINEâ„¢ HumiHum - a natural humate vitamin for plant
4) Mulch well around the tree, keeping it 2-3"away from the trunk
This should help to get your tree back in shape!
Date: 8 Aug 2019
How to grow Parijat indoors in winter
Q: I purchased Parijat plant last year spring. It had good growth in Summer, after that I kept the plant inside the house in winter. A couple of weeks it was ok, after that the plant lost leaves. What is a better idea for growing Parijat plant indoors in Winter?
A: Nyctanthes arbor-tristis, Parijat - is a semi-deciduous plant, which
means, it may lose its leaves during unfavorable conditions such as drought,
cold, low light and/or humidity. In your case, the plant dropped leaves because
of the stress of moving indoors that includes reducing light and humidity
levels. When a tropical plant loses leaves during winter, this means it goes
into a dormant stage. If this happens, you need to reduce watering and keep the
plant on a dry side, water in only when the top level of the soil feels dry
to touch. Do not fertilize.
Try to place the plant in a well-lit spot such as a windowsill. If the
windowsill and the window glass feel too cold for touch during wintertime,
you may place a sheet of a Styrofoam underneath the pot, and a sheet of a
bubble-wrap between the plant and the window glass, to create an extra barrier
from cold. The plant may re-leaf during wintertime; if not, it may wait until
spring, be patient.
Bring it back into outdoor light when minimum temperatures rise above
65F and resume fertilizing.
Recommended fertilizers for fragrant plants:
Pink N Good Daily Plant Food - Flower Booster
Plumeria Top Dress - Smart-Release Booster
SUNSHINE SuperFood - microelement supplement
Date: 30 May 2019
Selecting the right jasmine
Q: Would you please help me select the right jasmine? I want to find a jasmine that smells like lily of the valley or honeysuckle or roses, not the one that smells like gardenia. I'm in Missouri, zone 6, so I want a jasmine for my deck for the summer, so I want it to bloom this season.
A: There are 3 major types of tropical flower fragrances - Sweet, Fresh, and Fruity (including Lemony). Below are the most interesting fragrant tropical flowers, excluding Gardenias (which are sweet type). These are all same-year bloomers, so you can enjoy the fragrance this year assuming proper care and bloom booster feeding.
* - The fastest growers that can be treated as annuals. Others can be grown in a pot and brought inside for winter, and be enjoyed every year.
Sweet
*
Aloysia virgata - Almond Bush
*
Cestrum diurnum - White Chocolate Jasmine, Day Blooming Jasmine
*
Cestrum nocturnum - Night blooming jasmine
*
Heliotropium peruviana - Turnsole, Cherry Pie
Portlandia Cubanola domingensis - Cubanola (Warm white Chocolate)
Portlandia grandiflora - Glorious Flower of Cuba (Warm white Chocolate)
Fresh
Beaumontia grandiflora - Easter Lily Vine
*
Brugmansia Jean Pasco - Yellow Angels Trumpet
*
Brugmansia Variegated Orange Angel Trumpet
*
Brunfelsia americana - Lady of the night
*
Brunfelsia lactea - Lady of the night
*
Brunfelsia nitida - Lady of the night
Crinum Queen Emma - Spider lily
*
Eucharis grandiflora - Amazon Lily
*
Hedychium coronarium - Butterfly Ginger
Hiptage benghalensis - Helicopter Flower
Hoya odorata - Fragrant Hoya
Ixora hybrid Sea Green
Ixora odorata - Fragrant Ixora
*
Jasminum azoricum - River Jasmine
*
Jasminum Molle - Indian Jui
Jasminum nitidum - Star Jasmine
*
Jasminum officinale Flore Pleno - French Perfume Jasmine
*
Jasminum polyanthum - Pink Winter Jasmine
*
Jasminum sambac Belle of India
*
Jasminum sambac Grand Duke
*
Jasminum sambac Maid of Orleans
*
Polianthes tuberosa - Tuberose
*Sclerochiton harveyanus - Blue Lips, Mazabuka (Lavender-violet-like)
Fruity
Aglaia odorata - Chinese Perfume Plant (Lemony)
Artabotrys siamensis - Climbing Ylang-Ylang (Lemony)
Cananga fruticosa - Dwarf Ylang-Ylang
Carissa grandiflora - Natal Plum
Cerbera x manghas hybrid - Enchanted Incense
*
Jasminum dichotomum - Rose Bud Jasmine
*
Lonicera japonica - Japanese Honeysuckle
Magnolia figo - Banana Magnolia (Banana-like)
Magnolia x Alba grafted (Bubble-gum-like)
*
Mirabilis jalapa - Four oclock plant
Oxyceros horridus, Randia siamensis
*
Quisqualis - Rangoon Creeper
*
Radermachera Kunming - Dwarf Tree Jasmine
*
Stephanotis floribunda - Bridal Bouquet
Strophanthus gratus - Climbing Oleander
Telosoma cordata - Pakalana vine (Lemony)
Fertilizers for profuse flowering:
Pink N Good Daily Plant Food - Flower Booster
Tropical Allure - Smart-Release Booster
SUNSHINE-Superfood micro-elements