Garden Blog - Top Tropicals

Date: 13 Mar 2026

Tamarind shrimp stir-fry: quick-n-fun exotic recipes

Tamarind shrimp stir-fry in skillet

Tamarind shrimp stir-fry in skillet

🍴 Tamarind shrimp stir-fry: quick-n-fun exotic recipes



Tamarind Shrimp Stir-Fry

Ingredients

  • 1 lb shrimp, peeled and deveined
  • 2 tbsp tamarind pulp
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 tbsp fish sauce
  • 1 tbsp brown sugar
  • 1 tbsp vegetable oil
  • 1 tbsp water (to loosen tamarind pulp if needed)
  • Optional: sliced green onions or chili flakes for garnish

Instructions

  1. In a small bowl mix tamarind pulp, garlic, fish sauce, brown sugar, and water until a smooth sauce forms.
  2. Heat oil in a very hot skillet or wok.
  3. Add shrimp and stir-fry for 3 to 4 minutes until they begin turning pink.
  4. Pour the tamarind sauce into the skillet and toss shrimp to coat evenly.
  5. Cook about 1 more minute until the sauce becomes glossy and slightly thick.
  6. Serve immediately. Garnish with green onions or chili flakes if desired.

🌿 About the plant:


The pulp of tamarind can be used fresh from the pod, pressed into blocks, or sold as concentrate. Its acidity works like citrus but with more complexity - slightly fruity, slightly caramel-like.

🏡 In the garden:


Tamarind trees - Tamarindus indica - are drought-tolerant once established and surprisingly hardy in brief cool snaps. They develop a beautiful spreading canopy and fine, fern-like leaves that close at night.

🛒 Plant a Tamarind tree

📚 Learn more:

Plant Facts

Tamarindus indica
Tamarind, Sampalok
USDA Zone: 9-11
Large tree taller than 20 ftFull sunModerate waterEdible plantSubtropical plant. Mature plant cold hardy at least to 30s F for a short timeFlood tolerant plantSeaside, salt tolerant plant

Tamarindus indica in Plant Encyclopedia

#Food_Forest #Recipes

🟢 Join 👉 TopTropicals

Date: 14 Mar 2026

Not just guacamole - 6 unusual avocado recipes from top chefs

Avocado-inspired dishes arrangement

Avocado-inspired dishes arrangement

Not just guacamole - 6 unusual avocado recipes from top chefs



Avocado is rich, creamy, and loaded with healthy fats and fiber. It is also packed with vitamins C, K, B6, E, riboflavin, folate, niacin, and pantothenic acid, plus minerals that support digestion, bone health, heart health, and immune function.

Most people stop at guacamole, smoothies, or avocado toast. But in professional kitchens, avocado is treated as far more than a spread. It becomes a sauce base, a frozen dessert, even a chocolate mousse ingredient.
  • 👉 Here are six unexpected avocado ideas inspired by well-known chefs:



1. Tuna avocado timbale



This plated appetizer looks restaurant-level but is surprisingly simple.
Small-diced fresh tuna is mixed with minced shallots or red onion, fresh coriander, pickled ginger, lemon juice, olive oil, salt, and pepper. The mixture is pressed into a small ring mold, then topped with diced avocado and garnished with sprouts.
The avocado adds cool creaminess against the bright citrus and savory tuna.
  • 2. Avocado hummus



    Blend two creamy favorites - chickpeas and avocado - into one smooth dip.
    Combine drained chickpeas, ripe avocados, tahini or peanut butter, garlic, cumin, olive oil, lemon zest and juice, and salt. Process until silky. Finish with a drizzle of olive oil and a sprinkle of herbs and paprika.
    It is lighter than traditional hummus and naturally vibrant green.
  • 3. Stuffed avocado with blue cheese sauce



    Avocado can also be the bowl.
    Mix Dijon mustard, blue cheese, sour cream, a splash of wine vinegar, salt, and pepper into a thick dressing. Slice the avocado in half, remove the seed, and spoon the sauce into the center.
    Eat it straight from the skin for a bold, savory appetizer.
  • 4. Creamy avocado ice bowl



    For a quick chilled dessert, cube ripe avocado and mix with cream and a light sweetener. Serve over ice.
    It is not quite a smoothie and not quite ice cream - just cold, creamy avocado with clean sweetness.
  • 5. Frozen avocado with condensed milk



    Mash ripe avocado with condensed milk and freeze.
    After a few hours, it becomes a scoopable, creamy treat with no special equipment required.
  • 6. Green chocolate mousse



    Perhaps the most surprising idea: avocado in chocolate mousse.
    Puree ripe avocado and blend with melted dark chocolate, cocoa powder, coconut cream, and syrup. Chill until set, then top with whipped cream.
    Despite the name, the dessert stays chocolate-brown. The avocado provides structure and silkiness, replacing part of the heavy cream.


💚 Why avocado works in sweet and savory dishes



Avocado is naturally buttery. It thickens sauces without flour, blends smoothly into dips, and creates creamy desserts without dairy overload. It freezes well and holds flavor beautifully.

So next time avocados are in season, think beyond guacamole. Stuff them, blend them, freeze them, or turn them into mousse. Feel like a chef!

This versatile fruit can do far more than sit on toast.

🛒 Select Avocado tree for contant fruit supply

📚 Learn more about #Avocado

#Food_Forest #Recipes

🟢 Join 👉 TopTropicals

Date: 15 Jan 2021

Healthy Plants: Q&A from Mr Booster

New Boosters for the New Year!
Sunshine Total Feed: Orchidasm and Citron

How to grow everblooming orchids?

Q: I ended up with a large collection of orchids that I was given as presents... They grow well but unfortunately after the showy blooms were gone, I don't see any more flowers, just green leaves. What do I need to do to make them bloom again? Should I fertilize them with Azalea bloom booster?

A: Orchids culture is different from garden ornamental plants. First big difference, they are epiphytes, growing in a loose bark medium rather than soil, and benefit from daily mist. Second difference is a type of fertilizer. You can not use a regular garden fertilizer on orchids, because they are very sensitive to salts. Orchids need special, acidic type of fertilizer, very mild in action.
Luckily, Sunshine Boosters formulas are exactly what orchids need! They are amino-acid based, have very mild formulas, and do not create nutrient lock up (building up salts is one of the biggest enemies of tender orchids).
A new Sunshine Boosters Orchidasm TotalFeed is scientifically balanced orchid food that contains all necessary nutrients, including micro-elements, for healthy, happy, vigorous orchids. It can be used as often as daily with every foliage spray. From our testing experience, after using Orchidasm Booster, orchids not only got happy and thriving - they also bloom more often - up to several times a year, shooting new flower spikes one after another! (while normal blooming cycle for most orchids is once a year). It gets even better - the flower display lasts twice longer!
To enjoy these beautiful flowers year around - treat them with Love, give them some Orchidasm!

See more information with pictures in Sunshine Boosters Orchid Blog

Secrets of a healthy Citrus tree

Q: We planted several citrus trees in our yard - Meyer Lemon, Grapefruit and Blood Orange. The trees came from the store full of flowers and even had a few fruit, but a year after planting - no more flowers! The old leaves are green, but new growth doesn't look healthy, leaves are yellowish and have spots, maybe eaten by bugs (?), and how do we get them to fruit?

A: Citrus plants are not the easiest trees to grow; they are susceptible to various diseases, pests, and deficiencies, especially in areas with high humidity/rainfall like Florida. Fungi, viruses, leaf minors, chlorosis - this is not a complete list of citrus common problems. In commercial groves, these conditions are kept under control by using harsh chemicals on solid schedule.
For home gardeners, growing citrus trees may become a challenge. Many people don't want to use harsh chemicals on their edibles; and those who do, may not always have time to apply treatments on a professional schedule. So as much as we all love a fresh juicy orange, growing your own may become quite a pain!
Sunshine Citron TotalFeed is your simple, eco-safe solution to a healthy looking, productive citrus tree with organic fruit! Amino-acid based formula provides all necessary elements to strengthen the tree and make it resistant to possible problems.
Did you know that treatment of leaf chlorosis (yellow leaves with dark green veins), commonly treated with iron supplements, in fact requires a complex combination of nutrients - both balanced NPK and micro-elements?
Use Sunshine Citron in combination with Sunshine GreenLeaf and Sunshine SuperFood and never see yellow chlorotic leaves again!
Apply Sunshine Epi on regular basis (every 2 weeks) and help your tree boost its immune system and stay virus-free.
Add Sunshine Honey, and you will have large, juicy fruit that are much sweeter and more flavorful than those from the store! All these boosters are compatible with each other, and perfectly natural. Eat your fruit safely and enjoy...

Read more about treating citrus tree defficiencies in Sunshine Boosters Citrus Blog.

Date: 21 Feb 2020

When plants are ready for a meal?

Q: We have an early Spring here in Florida. All plants in my garden flushing out new leaves and buds opening. Can I start fertilizing? I have Mango, Avocado, Peach trees, many medicinal herbs and flowering shrubs: Angel trumpets, plumerias, bromeliads. I prefer mild organic fertilizers; can you suggest something that is safe for edibles and butterflies?

Q: As a rule of thumb, tropical gardeners start regular fertilizing when the minimum temperatures (at night) go above 65F. Keep in mind that Sunshine Boosters fertilizers can be applied year around because they have mild formulas and used with every watering; during cooler period, you water less frequently, so feeding is reduced accordingly. Another advantage of Sunshine Boosters - they are natural (derived from organic amino acids which is the basics of Life). They are safe for edibles as well as pollinating insects.

Here is the feeding plan for your plants:
1. The most universal solution for all plants (both potted and in-ground): get a complete set of Sunshine Boosters Pro system: Advantage-Pro for vegetative growth, BloomBoom Pro for flowering stage, and Ca-Support-Pro + Constanta-Pro as necessary daily supplements. You will need all these 4 components for your garden.
2. Start adding these liquid boosters with every watering according to dozing directions and you will notice amazing growth boost within a week.
3. Apply Sunshine Epi plant hormone every 2 weeks as a foliar spray to boost immune system and metabolism of plants and protect them from diseases. Epi makes plants (especially young plants and those "waking up" from dormancy) grow twice faster! It also enhances effect of fertilizers by increasing plant metabolism.
4. After cool winter temperatures, some plants may develop element deficiencies like chlorosis (yellowing leaves). Additional microelement boost can be provided with Sunshine Greenleaf (iron supplement) and Sunshine Superfood (micro-elements).
5. For additional boosting of flowering and setting fruit, use the following individual boosters:
Sunshine Robusta - for foliage plants and when you need rapid vegetative growth
Sunshine TotalFeed - for Plumerias and other fragrant plants
Sunshine Megaflor - for Brugmansias and other flowering heavy feeders
Sunshine C-Cibus - for improving fruit production and quality
Sunshine Honey - for sweeter fruit (must be applied 4-5 times a year)
6. For young/small plants (seedlings, rooted cuttings) as well as tender tropicals like bromeliads, and orchids - Sunshine Bombino is a perfect choice due to its mild formula.
7. To save money, order complete sets rather than individual boosters; you will be able to safe up to 40%! Sunshine Complete Nutrition System Kits: Combo Kit, and Pro Kit.

If you are a fan of organic gardening, do not use dry fertilizers. While water-soluble and granulated (smart-realease) fertilizers are popular choice in plant nurseries due to their convenience, they are not as safe as liquid boosters because they create salt build-up in soil and have a high risk of overdosing/burning plant roots, especially potted plants, plants at breaking dormancy, at establishing, and at early stages of plant development. Besides, dry fertilizers may affect the taste of your fruit and herbs. See advantages of liquid boosters over dry fertilizers.

Learn more about Sunshine Nutrition System - a Natural solution for your garden.

Date: 4 Jun 2019

Plants for South Texas and other hot states

Q: Pretty much adore last newsletter. Haven't been buying because our weather here in deep south Texas is so bad it is stunting and killing even the Tamaulipan Scrub! Do you have a cure for that? :) I have every expectation the new grafted Plumeria I purchased from you last year will bloom soon. One of my favorite plants. Thanks again and keep up the good works.

A: Yes, there is a "cure" - using biostimulants that improve drought- and heat- resistance (SUNSHINE boosters), plus the right plant selection. In fact, there is a large number of tropical rare plants that can be successfully grown in hot climates like yours. One of our partners lives in hot and dry Arizona area and has an amazing tropical garden that includes many fruit trees (Mango, Persimmons, Pomegranates, Loquats, etc). Here you can see a few pics from his garden.
Your choice is absolutely right about plumerias. Other easy plants would be Desert roses - Adeniums, and Fancy Euphorbia millii - all these come in so many varieties of colors and bloom throughout most of the year. Our special recommendations for you would be also:

Bougainvillea Dwarf Pixie
Jasmine sambac
Calliandra selloi Pink Lilian
Dracaena marginata Tricolor - Colorama, Money Tree
Hamelia patens Lime Sizzler - Variegated Fire Bush
Jatropha berlandieri - Buddah Belly
Pedilanthus tithymaloides - Devils Backbone
Trachelospermum asiaticum Mandaianum - Dwarf Confederate Jasmine

See full list of more plants that are suitable for hot and dry landscapes.

Apply fertilizers, miscroelements, and plant stimulants for improving heat tolerance