Garden Blog - Top Tropicals

Date: 2 Oct 2024

Florida Native Plant Sale

Florida  Native  Plant  Sale

One Week Only: Instant 10% OFF

Take advantage of this limited time offer: 10% OFF Florida Native plants! With cooler weather on the way, these hardy plants are perfect for fall and winter planting. They're easy to establish and offer numerous benefits, especially for those in HOA communities.

Why choose Florida natives?

- HOA approved and welcomed
- Adapted to the local climate and soil
- Require less water, fertilizer, and fewer pesticides (if any, thanks to natural insect predators)
- Easy to grow - perfect for beginners - Provide essential habitat and food for local wildlife, including birds and butterflies

Go native and make your landscape thrive!

Florida  landscape

Date: 1 Feb 2021

The Passion Fruit - Juicy Maracuya

by Alex Butova, the Witch of Herbs and Cats

...There was an unexpected confusion with the name of this plant. Most people understand its name literally: passiflora - a flower of passion, and its fruits - the fruits of passion, implying human, earthly passions. Nevertheless, the passion fruit is so called because it is one of the many  species  of  passion flower, the English translation of the Latin genus name,  PassiFlora.
Learn more about this delicious, flavorful fruit and how to grow it in your own garden in no time...

CONTINUE READING >>

SUNSHINE C-Cibus - Crop Booster, an ultimate natural plant food for fruit and edibles.

Date: 16 Sep 2019

Fragrant Pakalana Vine - a delicious meal?

Q: I visited Thailand recently, and enjoyed a wonderful stir fry made with Cowslip flowers. I would love to grow it myself. I need this vine in my life! Do you have them in your inventory and if so, will I be able to grow it successfully here in SW Florida?

A: By Onika Amell, tropical flower specialist.
The extremely fragrant Telosoma cordata has many names: Cowslip Creeper, Pakalana vine, Tonkin Jasmine, Dok Kajon, or Chinese violet. It is a very sought after rare tropical fragrant ornamental, but not everyone knows that this flower makes a delicious meal!
The flowers have a lovely lemon-like fragrance and can be found in South East Asian food markets. It is typically fried with eggs to make omelets or stir-fried with tofu or pork and beef. Young leaves & flower buds can also be eaten fresh (in a salad) or battered & fried. Not only are the flowers delicious, but they are chock and block full of carbohydrates, proteins and vitamins A and C.
An old Chinese tale tells the story of the mystic, aromatic powers of the Pakalana vine...

CONTINUE READING »

Date: 21 Apr 2017

Radio TT secret discount code

Radio Top Tropicals Live Webcast upcoming event: Saturday April 22, at 11 am EST.
Topic: Eat me! Discussing lack of fresh fruits and vegetables in diet. Herbivore=Plants, Carnivore=Meat, Technovore=Pre-processed, synthetic, MANUFACTURED food. Soylent Green Anyone? Our Host Robert Riefer - Internationally Certified Crop Adviser and Weed Scientist - answering all your gardening questions.

Watch for Discount code for shopping at TopTropicals.com - during first 15 min of the webcast!
For the special secret code for 20% off - listen to this radio show. We will give the code within the first 15 minutes of the webcast!

Listen to Radio Top Tropicals, every Saturday, at 11 am EST! You may use our website radio player DURING AIR TIME. To ask questions using live chat, you need to log in at Mixlr.com or simply call our office 239-887-3323 during air time!
If you missed a live webcast, you may listen to recording by following Showreel item link.

Check out our upcoming radio shows and get your gardening questions ready!

Date: 9 Apr 2024

How to start a tropical garden?

Lagerstroemia

Photo above: Lagerstroemia speciosa - Queen Crape Myrtle. Gorgeous flowering tree with cascades of lilac flowers. One of the most popular trees in Southern gardens.

Q: It's spring, finally! I can't wait to plant my paradise garden with lots of tropical flowers. We moved into a nice new house but the yard has nothing but grass. Where do I start?

A: When you start your garden from scratch, you need to plant your trees first. It's a perfect timing!
Getting tropical flowering trees now is really important for making your garden strong and beautiful. Trees are like the bones of your garden, giving it shape and shade. If you plant them in spring, they have enough time to grow strong roots before winter. This helps them survive better.
Trees also give shade to other plants so they can grow well too. It's like building a house - you need to start with the frame before adding other parts. So, it's a good idea to get those trees now before moving on to shrubs and vines.
Remember to provide regular fertilizing program which is the most important during season of active growth. The more food your tree gets, the stronger and faster it grows! For flowering trees, we recommend Sunshine Boosters Megaflor formula.

Royal  poinciana,  Flamboyant  tree,  Delonix  regia

Photo above: Royal poinciana, Flamboyant tree - Delonix regia."The Royal Poinciana is one of the most spectacular flowering trees in the USA, and probably among the top 10 on this planet. In full bloom, it is like a regal elephant caparisoned in red and yellow brilliance."(Larry M. Schokman, The Kampong, National Tropical Botanic Garden)