Spend time among trees...

"...Time spent among trees is never time wasted..."
- Katrina Mayer -

One of the most impressive and massive trees in the world - Ceiba pentandra - Kapok Tree. A majestic tropical tree! The ancient Maya of Central America believed that a great Ceiba tree stood at the center of the earth... Would you like to try growing it in the center of your backyard? Considering it will take decades to grow this big...

Ficus macrophylla (Banyan). Did you know that exotic Banyan Trees are close related to Fig trees?..

Those mouthwatering Blackberries...

Blackberry Patch Bundle Exclusive Collection

Two Collections of Superior Blackberry Varieties, well adopted to tropical and subtropical climates. Mouth watering, all time favorite fruit will be always with you - these plants are so easy to grow!

Blackberry Patch Bundle Exclusive Collection - buy 3 get 2 free.
The Collection includes 5 blackberry varieties: Navaho, Osage, Ouachita, Triple Crown Thornless, Iceberg White Blackberry.

Blackberry Patch Bundle Premier Collection - buy 3 get 2 free.
The Collection includes 5 blackberry varieties: Arapaho, Caddo, Kiowa, Natchez, and Prime-Ark Freedom.

Mouth Watering High Protein Blackberry Cobbler

Ingredients

25g light butter
45g self-rising flour
33g vanilla whey
20g egg whites
50g almond or cashew milk
75g blackberries
Stevia/Splenda to taste

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Melt butter half-way so it's just warm, not hot. In a mixing bowl, combine all ingredients except for blackberries. Pour into a 4-5" ramekin sprayed with Pam. Sprinkle blackberries on top of batter and bake for 15-20 minutes. It's best slightly gooey on the inside (not completely cooked). Enjoy!

How to fertilize herbs and vegetables

Q: We moved to Florida from New York earlier this year. My wife and I used to grow many fresh veggies and herbs in our garden up North during Summer, but it seems like in hot Florida the season for them is not until Fall. So we are preparing the beds and also looking for some organic fertilizer solutions. We've heard a lot about your natural Boosters and wonder if they can be used in our vegetable garden?

A: You came to the right place for organic fertilizer solution. Sunshine Boosters are based on organic amino-acids and are completely natural, non-toxic, eco-friendly, and do not build up nutrients in the soil. Their mild formulas designed specifically for edibles.
We just have started our own vegetable garden with some Biquinho and Wiri Wiri peppers, cherry tomatoes, and basil, and will be adding more as the the weather cools down.
For small scale gardens (both vegetables and herbs), you can start with Sunshine Robusta - a total feed "all on one". All necessary elements are provided in just one bottle, both macro- and micro-elements, it is a scientifically balanced formula. For larger gardens, especially if you have fertilizer injector system, we recommend Sunshine Boosters Pro Series - this product is much more economical, and you will need to mix only 3 solutions into your watering tank at the time of watering.
For more information, please contact our Booster guy Ed Jones, he can help you with selection and dosage information. Sample Discount program is available for samples of Sunshine Pro.

How to grow Cerbera and make it flower

Q: I purchased Cerbera manghas - Enchanted Incense a year ago. As you see from the photo, it's doing great however, no blooms. I fertilize properly and very often and use worm castings for micronutrients. Yes it's not "your" fertilizer, but my plumerias, that are also in pots they are over 5 feet tall and blooming like crazy. I don't see any inflows coming on the Cerbera at all and it is hot and humid here in North Carolina, so it's happy but no sign of blooming. What is your advice?

A: Top Tropicals first brought Cerbera manghas into the US plant market a few years ago, it was recommended to us by our friend, plant taxonomist John Mood who visited Thailand, and among other exotic plants noted this fragrant beauty. Since then we've been successfully growing this plant, it has become one of everybody's favorites.

Generally speaking, Cerbera culture is very similar to Plumerias. These plants are closely related. So if you know how to grow Plumeria, you sure will succeed with Cerbera. Hot and sunny location, well-drained mix, moderate water and bloom boom fertilizer will do the trick. However, we have noticed a few distinctive features that make this plant somewhat challenging at times.

1) Flowers

For past years, we've been studying what triggers its flowering. Sometimes these plants start flowering in 1 gal pot, 1 ft tall. Other times a large developed tree 5-6 ft tall, in 5-7 gal pot, grows beautiful foliage with no signs of flowers. Eventually all of them bloom, no matter how stubborn they are, it's just some individual plants start flowering sooner than others, all grown in the same conditions.
One of our plants in the ground, a well-branched tree, was covered with flowers for a few months, but only on the 3d year after planting. Before that, it only produced a few random blooms. Others bloomed in pots at very young age.
The following factors benefit to Cerbera flowering:
- full sun at least 10 hours a day
- hot temperatures above 85F
- regular water but not heavy rains
- regular fertilizer - Bloom Booster type
- very good drainage and drying out before waterings. If root ball stays moist, the plant may look healthy but won't set flower buds. Keeping on a dry side will encourage flowering. Very similar to Jasmines: they bloom like crazy in April while it's hot and dry in Florida, but once our summer rainy season starts, they reduce blooming.

We highly recommend using Sunshine Megaflor bloom booster or SUNSHINE Pikake in combination with micro-element supplements Sunshine Honey (B-Mo) and Sunshine Superfood (complex micro) that induce flowering. Dry and granulated fertilizers may not supply exactly what a plant needs: certain elements that trigger flowering may be missing. Sunshine Boosters formulas are scientifically balanced, they contain precise amounts of nutrients needed for setting flowers. Besides, excessive salts from regular dry fertilizers create nutrient lock up that may retard plant metabolism; with liquid amino-acid based Sunshine boosters, plants consume the whole menu of elements without building them up in the soil.

2) Fruit

Fruit of Cerbera are very pretty and cover the tree after profuse flowering. To inexperienced eye they may look very much like small mango or avocado fruit - so make sure kids or visitors don't try to eat them! Cerbera seeds are extremely poisonous.

3) Leaves

If you ever grew Passiflora or Milkweed, you know how leaves can be eaten by caterpillars overnight. This may happen to Cerbera too, as we discovered. In Florida environment this exotic plant doesn't have natural predators for protection from certain insect species that may feed on it. So watch out and if noticed first signs of leaves damage - its time for insect control.
Other than that, Cerbera foliage is usually beautiful and colorful, here in Florida it looks much healthier than that of Plumerias often affected with rusty residue during high humidity months.

Hope this helps. The Cerbera fragrance is enchanting, it is worth the efforts and waiting!