Garden Blog - Top Tropicals

Date: 30 Oct 2019

Meet PeopleCats of TopTropicals. Fearless Mr Barcy, the Boss

Mr Barcy is the Boss. He owns the property, the street, the neighborhood, and the City of Ft Myers. Once he told us that he owns the whole State of Florida too but he won't go any further... for political reasons he preferred not to disclose.
Along with Chief, Mr Barcy is one of the oldest cats of TopTropicals.
His story is, some 10 years ago, he was sitting in Animal Control shelter in Sebring, FL with no one wanting to adopt him... His "time" expired and he was supposed to be put down on Friday... Someone sent us his picture in a shelter cage and... on Wednesday, we picked him up (along with a few other "scheduled" cats). Since then, Mr Barcy has been living with us, running the business, and being the smartest Purrrson we ever met.
As a Boss, Mr Barcy has his own GPS tracker - and he walks 3-4 miles every day (not bad for a senior purrson ah?) around his premises, keeping operations under control, and himself in great shape.
In his leisure time, Mr Barcy prefers mice- and snake- hunting, keeping the neighborhood safe and monitored. He can walk a human without using a leash, and his tail is ALWAYS up!

Check out and more Cat of the Day stories.

Mr Barcy planning his business day

Don't interrupt my snake-snacking!

Date: 11 Jan 2020

Meet PeopleCats of TopTropicals. Cat of the Day: Tricky Lil S**t still rules the place!

Everyone knows Lil S**t because she is the first Purrrson you see when visiting our Garden Center, along with Marco. They are our official Greeters.
She not only hangs out at the gate, but also runs our Shipping Department along with Chief. Lil S**t has her purrrrsonal extra plates at the gate: she insisted to have them so she can demonstrate to everyone how empty they always are... that means the poor Lil Thing is always hungry, duh. Well if you preferrrr to believe her, you may bring some treats for her... and watch her eating them and bugging the next visitor 5 minutes later...
We don't mind her Lil tricks, because it seems like no matter how much she eats, she sure keeps her Lil figure slim without any diet! Maybe some day she can share her secret with us!

Check out and more Cat of the Day stories.

Lil S**t at the Front Gate claiming her rights for extra food... and complaining to visitors.

Date: 1 Apr 2020

PeopleCats of TopTropicals. Cat of the Day: Chief, Employee of the Month

"Can we get to normal World?"

If you visited TopTropicals Garden center, you've seen our Employee of the Month board in the office. And the picture on it... with our Chief, who is truly an irreplaceable member of our Shipping Crew. He is definitely the most responsible worker and reliable Chief Supervisor. This week, while greeting customers, he asked everybody to follow these simple rules that he established in the Nursery for everybody's safety during COVID-19 alert:

1. Yes, we are open! But If you want to browse the nursery, please call for assistance at the gate and we will come over to help you.
2. Please NO CHILDREN on the property at this time. If you came with kids, have them wait in your car while you are shopping. Chief can entertain them!
3. Nursery is OPEN for browsing, limiting 2 customers at a time on the premises.
4. If you know what plant(s) you want, just call us directly at our customer service desk 239-771-8081 and we can bring those plants, for your convenience, to the office or even to the gate.

Stay connected and we will get through this, all together, and we all will be just fine! So says Chief.

TopTropicals PeopleCat Club

Thank you everybody for supporting us in helping PeopleCat Community! Donations accepted from our website. Thank you and God bless you and your pets!

Date: 4 Mar 2016

Growing from seeds

Q: What is the best time to start tropical plants from seeds? Should I wait till summer?

A: Traditionally, people prefer sowing seeds in spring, especially temperate species for vegetable garden: tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers...

When dealing with tropical plants, you may want to start your babies indoors, providing additional heating when needed. If you keep your living space around 75F (ideal for many species), this is a perfect temperature to get your seeds started. Tropical plants are not like annual tomatoes that try to grow through the season as fast as possible. They may take time. So the sooner you start, the more chances to get small seedlings just in time when spring air outside is warm enough - at least in 70's F.

A great advantage of starting tropical seeds indoors is controlled temperature and moisture. In the plant world, environment extremes are not good for germination process. Mild conditions of your home or a greenhouse create better chances for successful growth. Seeds won't get overheated in hot summer sun, and won't get rotten because of a sudden heavy rain. Just keep in mind that some species require light for good germination. Using an old fish tank or covering with plastic wrap will help to keep constant humidity.

See full list of all seeds - all on sale, one day only!

Date: 7 Mar 2016

Black Pepper Vine - grow a real spice at home!

Q: What plants are used for commercial production of black pepper, red pepper, and green pepper? I started organic garden and would like to try growing pepper. I live in Georgia, will it survive here?

A: Pungent and aromatic Pepper is grown in Southern India since more than two thousand years, has always been much valued all over the world. Along with other spices from India and lands farther east, it changed the course of world history. Depending on harvest time and processing, peppercorns can be black, white, green and red (reddish-brown). So, the same fruit is also used to produce white pepper, red/pink pepper, and green pepper. The pungency is strongest in white pepper and weakest in green pepper, while black and green pepper are more aromatic than the white one.

The vine can be easily grown in a pot on a trellis, in mild (frost-free) climates it can be grown in the ground providing a tree support. Try growing this legendary plant and taste the real spice!

For more info, see article about Black Pepper.

See full list of spice and herbs