Date: 2 Apr 2026
Skip the Egg Hunt - Start a Plant Hunt 🐰
Smokey: Finally. You’re thinking.
Read more about Smokey & Sunshine
Groundhog said long winter… and it sure felt like it. But now it is finally over, and balconies and patios are waking up again.
Easter is here, and with it comes that fresh start feeling - time to open the doors, bring plants back out, and start growing.
We made it through the cold. For northern gardeners, that is every year; for borderline zones, it is a reminder that freezes happen. That is exactly why growing in pots makes sense - you stay flexible.
Container growing is not just about pots - it is about choosing the right plants. The best options stay manageable, produce well, and handle being moved.
Let's look at what works. Start with plants that naturally stay compact and adapt well to containers. These are the ones that won’t outgrow your space and will reward you quickly. These are proven performers in containers - compact, productive, and easy to manage:
- Dwarf Condo Mango for your patio
- Jaboticaba - source of Brazilian wine "Vinho Tinto de Jabuticaba"
- Tropical cherries - fast-fruting Eugenias
- Blackberry Jam Fruit and Peanut Butter Fruit - fun for kids and adults
- Fig Trees - compact and hardy
Simple rule: if it stays compact and handles pruning, it works in a container.
Skip the egg hunt this year - go on a plant hunt instead. Start with one or two plants this Easter - not ten. Get them established, learn how they grow, and then expand.
Container basics (keep it simple):
- Pot size: start with 3–7 gallon, upgrade as plant grows
- Soil: fast-draining mix (never heavy garden soil)
- Water: soak well, then let top inch dry
- Feeding: consistent light feeding works better than heavy doses
- Sun: most tropicals want full sun (6+ hours)
🐣 Browse our Easter Container Collection
Date: 2 Jun 2022
Plant Horoscope - Gemini
What is your lucky Zodiac plant?
By Alex Butova, the Witch of Herbs and Cats
... Gemini are very fond of plants, especially flowers. They are able to devote their lives to favorite plants, selecting new varieties, planting gardens, parks and arboretums. In addition, the planet-ruler Mercury gives them with business ability - Gemini are excellent flower merchants of any level: from flower growers who sell their plants to everyone, to wholesalers who supply their delicate fragrant goods around the world. In their house, Gemini do not keep too many plants, they have enough of those that grow outside in their nursery and garden. However, among those who nevertheless became piece of the family (exactly this way Gemini perceive their house plants), preference is given to graceful forms, pubescent and curly, like Farfugium, Monstrous epyphyllum, often carved leaves (Monstera) and plants with aroma. All these properties not only improve the physical well-being of Gemini, but also helps save the spiritual and mental balance of their contradictory but all while tender and romantic nature. Gemini don't care about common spices, they love unusual plants and especially those with a sweet scent. Their favorite aroma is rose and similar, like fragrances of Clerodendrums, Jasmines, Gardenias, Plumeria, and Brunfelsia. At critical moments sweet scents awaken them into the life!..
Date: 5 Jan 2022
Wake up to the smell of Coffee...
New Video:
Grow your own Coffee plant - Free Coffee
Everyday!
In this video we talk about growing Coffee easily in your own yard. Coffee is the best gift plant and perfect house plant or container fruit tree. The white, fragrant, star-shaped flowers are clustered and resemble gardenias to which they are related. The whole fruit is edible, it is a small fleshy berry changing in color from green to yellow to red. The seeds are the actual "coffee beans" as they called, they can easily be dried, roasted and ground at home. The most common coffee is Coffea arabica; other varieties include Coffea catura - Dwarf Coffee Nanico and Coffea Kona - Hawaiian Coffee Tree Mauna Loa.
WATCH NEW VIDEO >>
Stay updated with TopTropicals Videos by subscribing to our channel at YouTube.com/TopTropicals and get our latest video news of what is fruiting and blooming!
Date: 17 Sep 2021
Mango Talk: How to prune mango trees for best shape and production
by Ed Jones, the Booster Guy
...Why should you prune your mango trees? There are a few reasons.
First, a good foundation is the key to strong growth and a shapely tree.
Second, if you get your mango tree started off on the right foot with a
strong foundation, it becomes much easier to keep it shaped nicely.
And third - it will be forced to produce more branches allowing for more
places for fruit production...
...We received our Mango tree in late February of 2020 as a relatively
small plant in 3 gal pot...
...The opening photo was taken just last week and you can see that as she
grows, her shape is very nice...
...She is now about 7' tall and just as wide. She has a great foundation
and a lot of branches. We also have less grass to mow. She also got her very
own marker painted on a brick:
...We have also enlarged the circle of mulched area under the tree to allow it to be able to get nutrients from it's SUNSHINE Boosters Mango Tango without having to compete with the grass. This is one mistake that I see frequently in my neighborhood with all trees...
CONTINUE READING >>
Date: 15 Jun 2021
Healthy Plants: Q&A from Mr Booster
How to prevent mango flowers drop
Q:The mango blossoms my tree had in February have blown off due to weather conditions. Do you know what I can do to prevent this from happening again in the future?
A: The only "guarantee" to protect mango flowers from cold
weather damage here in Florida is to plant a LATE flowering variety. Generally,
mango trees are winter bloomers. Those varieties called "early season" start
flowering in January (for example, Nam Doc Mai), and of course very often they
get affected by cold, so they drop. Some varieties are so called "late season"
- for example Venus. They start flowering in spring when the weather conditions are
more favorable.
Another thing that may help you with mango flower drop is applying plant
micro-element supplement Sunshine-Honey - it contains Molybdenum and Boron, which help flower
and fruit development/strength and prevent their drop.
Read more: Boosting Mango Flowers and Fruit.
