Date: 25 Jul 2018
Looking for the rarest plant? This is the one!
Stifftia chrysantha - Pompom, Rabo-de-Cutia
Looking for the rarest plant? This is the one!
Stifftia chrysantha is an exotic, rare flowering small tree with
spectacular flowers, endemic to the vast tropical savanna ecoregion of Brazil
called Cerrado. It grows into a bushy, attractive tree between 8 and 15 ft tall
and starts flowering within 1.5 - 2.5 years from seed. It is a very rewarding
plant that blooms 9 months out of the year, starting in Winter with great
intensity during July-September, with each flower staying on the plant for
several weeks. Seeds ripen from September through November.
The tree belongs to Aster family (Compositae) and has nothing to do
with Powderpuffs which are from Bean (Fabaceae) family. The flower has 30 to 40
green, imbricated scales with short hairs, and actinomorphic corollas are
orange below and darker above. After flowering, the inflorescence blows apart,
which would scatter seeds. The dried center remaining is very attractive, like
a small dried flower, and lasts for many months.
Stifftia can be grown in full sun to partial shade and is relatively
cold tolerant, can take short cold spells.
The plant doesn't like wet feet
and heavy/soggy soils; requires very well drained, acidic soil. We strongly
recommend to use our professional soilless mix. Let soil
slightly dry between waterings. It can be grown in full sun to partial shade and is
relatively cold tolerant, can take short cold spells. If grown in a pot, try
to keep the container shaded because roots don't like to be overheated. The
plant needs monthly applications of slow
release fertilizer as well as extra iron - use micro-nutrients to
keep leaves green and healthy.
See more pictures of this beauty.
Date: 24 Jun 2018
We can ID plants for you! Even Mango Elephant...
Q: I had a mango tree, the fruit was very large and no one knew the name of it. Can you please tell me the name of it or something about it? I have never seen this variety before. It weighed in at 7 lbs, it smells a little like bubble gum, its flesh is fiberless and the taste is watery with a little sweet. And do you have it for sale? I don't have the tree anymore. My pictures are about a year or two old, lighting struck the tree and it died so I have been trying ever since then to find another tree but I don't know what kind it is. I originally bought the tree on side of the road cause I always wanted a mango tree so I didn't care at the time what kind it was so I bought it but I was shocked at how big the mango was. However I collected rotten mangoes off the ground and planted the seeds. Only one germinated.
A: This
mango is called Elephant. We will try to
find this grafted variety and let you know when we have
it. Unfortunately seedlings take many years to fruit (8-15
for mango) and usually do not come trues to seed.
The closest variety by fruit size is Lancetilla, it is a giant 5
lb fruit, of a very good quality. And the best tasting and
the most popular - Nam Doc Mai
Date: 24 Jun 2018
What you need for successful growing Adeniums
1) Adenium plants - from TopTropicals Endless selection of
Adeniums. We have double flower, red, purple, yellow
and even black flowers!
2) A small pot with excellent drainage is a must.
Position the plant in a pot, size of root system.
3) Adenium soil mix. TopTropicals Adenium Soilless Mix.
Use only well-drained soil.
4) Lots of light. Adeniums need lots of light for
heavy flowering. However from our own experience, in super
hot climates, they look healthier in filtered bright
light. After initial planting, once the plant is
established and starts growing new leaves (may take a few
weeks), gradually move it into brighter light.
5) Little water. Adeniums like a neutral to hard
water. Acidic water tends to sour the soil too fast and
may cause root rot. Water plants preferably in the early
morning, and allow them to drink up throughout the day.
Watering can be done daily to every few days. Do not water
again until soil dries on surface. Never allow your plants
to sit in a saucer of water, but don't let them to dry out
too often - this causes adeniums to go into early
dormancy. Adeniums do not like both over-watering or
drying-out.
6) Fertilizer. To make your plant develop a large
swollen base/trunk, you'll need a good quality fertilizer.
Use slow-release granulated fertilizer
for overall plant health, and liquid water soluble
fertilizer for swelling up trunks that is also used to
increase flowering. It shouldn't be too high in nitrogen,
the middle number should be the highest (similar to
10-50-10). Never apply fertilizer directly on roots and do
not liquid feed when a plant is thirsty: always water
first slightly to avoid root burn and leaf drop. Do not
wet leaves.
7) SuperFood micro-elements. Besides
macro-nutrients provided by fertilizer, Adenium needs
micro-elements for balanced development of root system and
especially caudex: Sunshine-SuperFood.
8) SUNSHINE-BC. Spray leaves with SUNSHINE-BC once a month to
encourage young growth, profuse flowering and large
caudex.
9) Growing caudex. There is a secret how to create
a large swollen caudex: raise the plant a bit every time
you re-pot it, so that the upper part of roots will be a
little exposed. The plant will form more roots that will
go down.
Date: 24 Jun 2018
Growing Bougainvillea and Plumeria in Florida
Q: I have recently moved from New Jersey to Florida (Orlando area) and I am so excited to start my own Tropical Paradise Garden! A few years ago I visited Hawaii and saw many beautiful colorful Bougainvilleas as well as fragrant Frangipani. Do they grow well in Florida? These are flowers of my dream!
A:
Both Bougainvillea and Plumeria grow well in most
parts of Florida, especially South and Southwest.
Bougainvillea can tolerate some light freeze and can be
seen in the streets of Central Florida (young plants
require some cold protection for the first year), so it is
a very good candidate for your new garden. Keep in mind
that unlike in Hawaii, where they bloom year around,
Bougainvilleas tend to have a distinctive flowering season
which in Florida is winter time - these plants enjoy dry
weather that triggers their bloom. To enjoy Bright
bougainvillea flowers for a long time, apply balanced fertilizer, prune
regularly (this promotes flowering on new growth) and keep
established plants on a dry side. Dwarf cultivar Pixie is super compact and
can be grown in pots or in a small garden without any
pruning! See photo of Pixie on the left.
Plumerias, all-time perfume
favorites and symbols of Hawaii, are also residents of
many gardens and collections throughout state of Florida.
Their cold hardiness is close to the one of Bougainvillea,
however keep young plants protected from frost. There are
also many new exciting cultivars including multiple
"rainbow" colors, and several dwarf varieties, some of
them are evergreen - Plumeria obtusa
Date: 5 Nov 2021
How to grow a nice Olive tree fast?
by Ed Jones, the Booster guy
Q: I got an Olive tree from you a few months ago, planted in the ground and it is doing well, but I don't see any active growth. The tree looks healthy but still about the same size when I planted it in June. I'm old and I want to see the olives sooner than later. Any suggestions, should I give it some fertilizer?
A: Olive trees are relatively slow growers, however, with balanced nutrition they can grow much faster, as fast as a few feet per year. Check out this Article by Ed Jones where he describes how he grew nice, bushy Olive trees just within one season with a help of Sunshine Boosters fertilizers. The article shows in details how to properly use liquid fertilizer on your fruit trees.
