Garden Blog - Top Tropicals

Date: 30 Aug 2020

Healthy Plant Food

Q&A from Mr Booster

How to make Mango tree fruit

Q: Hello, I have a five-year-old Lemon Meringue tree that has only given me fruit one year. It put out about 50 mangoes and has done nothing for the past three years. Do you recommend any vitamins or any of the nutrients that you guys sell to help with this for next season?

A: We've had very similar problem with our Nam Doc Mai Mango tree, fruited once and no more next year. Usually the reason is nutrients deficiency, here in Florida we have poor soils. We applied Mango-Tango tree booster and it started flowering within a couple of weeks.
Generally, Mango flowering season is over by now, however, we recommend to feed the tree starting now, during active growth season. This way it will get better established before winter and also will store away all elements necessary for triggering flowering and fruiting. So by late Fall through Winter it will be ready to flower.
Along with the fertilizer, additional micro-element supplements will be beneficial. For improving fruit quality and increasing number of flowers, we also recommend to use SUNSHINE-Honey - sugar booster

SUNSHINE Mango Tango - Mango Tree Booster, for healthy mango trees and profuse fruit production.

SUNSHINE Honey - a natural supplements that makes fruit sweeter, and increases fruit quantity and quality.

Date: 18 Oct 2019

Using SUNSHINE Complete Nutrition System

For hydroponics and potted plants

Q: I recently bought both the 5ml of the sunshine epi and the 100 ml advanced nutrition kit. I read on the paper for the Epi not to use any other strong fertilizers along with this but I was wondering if it'd be alright to use both this foliar spray and nutrition watering together?

A: All solutions in SUNSHINE Booster Nutrition System (NPK-macro and micro-boosters) are compatible.
The only exception is Sunshine-Epi - brassinosteroid bio-stimulant. Epi should be mixed with distilled water separately from other boosters. The reason is, it is very bio-active, and if mixed with other compounds, oxidizes quickly which may affect its performance.

Sunshine-Epi solution must be prepared using distilled water and applied as foliar spray only (it only works on contact with leaves and not through the root system). Epi shows extremely impressive results when you apply it before the application of other nutrients because it increases plant metabolism; so all boosters become even more effective if you spray Epi the day before.

When using Micro- and Macro-boosters, you may mix all components in one watering can/tank (except for Epi), using regular tap water. Besides watering root ball, the macro-micro solution can be also used for foliar spray. It is optional, as in some circumstances growers prefer to keep leaves dry at all times: to stay away from mold, fungus and other issues caused by the wet environment.

Here is an example of Sunshine Boosters Nutrition System application:
1. Daily watering in one can: NPK 25 ml/gal (one of 5, depending on growth stage) + Constanta 5 ml/gal + Ca-Support 5 ml/gal, mixed in tap water
2. Every 2 weeks: spray Sunshine-Epi 2.5 ml/gal - to boost the immune system and growth rate, mixed in distilled water
3. From daily to every 2 weeks: Sunshine-Power-Si 25 ml/gal to protect from diseases and keep pH at 5.5-6.5. Can be used as often as daily and mixed with a daily watering solution (1)
4. As needed: Sunshine SuperFood and GreenLeaf - for correcting deficiencies. Can be also mixed with the daily solution (1)

Make sure to prepare a solution right before use and do not store solution for more than 1 day. Keep concentrates and solutions protected from bright sunlight.

Here is also advanced information on Sunshine Boosters compatibility.

READ MORE >>>

Date: 9 Nov 2018

Taste of Mango

TopTropicals.com

Mango harvest season is over, and now it's the time to plant young Mango trees for the next year season of flowering and fruiting. When choosing a mango tree, researching your location for proper growing conditions is relatively easy. But refining your decision-making process based on the taste of mango is both easy and fun (and filling)! However, since it is often difficult to find a convenient source for sampling a wide variety of mango fruits; we at Top Tropicals sat down and tasted a handful of varieties for you... Just another opinion on taste!

Pickering - Sweet, juicy, fiberless, with a hint of an apricot fragrance. (A universal favorite amongst the group.)

Nam Doc Mai - A slightly fibrous marmalade-like texture, with a sweet and floral flavor.

Cogshall - Very little fiber with a slightly tart and piney flavor.

Florigon - A mild, even flavor. Not too sweet, not too tart, and fiberless.

Mallika - A fiberless cantaloupe-like consistency. Slightly tart, with some semblance to non-acidic orange juice.

Valencia Pride - Slightly fibrous, with a tangy near citrus flavor.

Glenn - Very mild flavor, less sweet compared to other varieties, but very refreshing.

Read more about Mango varieties...

Date: 25 Jun 2021

Kristi's Loquat Tropical BBQ sauce

Loquat trees are famous for their abundant fruit production. Many customers who purchased this tree from us, soon end up with some serious crops and start asking if we have any special recipes for loquat fruit - because you can only eat so much out of hand! Here is our manager Kristi's favorite Loquat recipe - not only delicious and tropically-aromatic, but also good for you. Happy Tropical Meal!

Ingredients

2 lbs loquat fruit
1 cup soft brown sugar
3 cups malt vinegar
1 onion chopped
2 cloves garlic

1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
6 cloves whole or 1/2 tsp ground cloves

Instructions

Wash the fruit, cut them in half and remove stones. The loquats will lose about a third of their weight once stoned (3 lbs of whole fruit = 2 lbs of fruit, stones removed). Add loquats and all remaining ingredients to a large saucepan. Bring to a low boil, then simmer for about an hour, stirring occasionally. The liquid will have reduced quite a bit and the fruit will be collapsed and very soft. Allow to cool slightly, then liquidize the sauce in a blender or a food processor. Be careful, hot sauce really burns!
This delicious tropical sauce is great for any BBQ - with meats or fish. Enjoy!

Date: 9 Jun 2024

Where does the tea come from?

Camellia sinensis - Tea Leaf

Camellia sinensis - Tea Leaf

☕️ Where does the tea come from? Tea Leaf Plant!



🍃 Camellia sinensis - Tea Leaf. Yes, tea comes from a camellia!

🍃 Tea Leaf is a small evergreen tree, usually pruned back to shrubs in cultivation.

🍃 In the fall and winter, the plant will produce small white flowers with a lovely fragrance.

🍃 Tea is the second most commonly drank liquid on earth after water. It has numerous medicinal benefits mainly due to its antibacterial and antioxidant properties.

🍃 To grow Tea Leaf Plant, make sure to pick an area of your landscape where it does not flood or remain wet during our rainy season. Camellia sinensis do not like wet feet at all. They prefer well-drained, sandy and slightly acidic soil.

📚 Learn more: Tea Leaf Plant and Tea Harvesting Recipes

🛒 Shop Tea Leaf Plant

#Food_Forest #Recipes

🏵 TopTropicals