How to grow Parijat indoors in winter

Q: I purchased Parijat plant last year spring. It had good growth in Summer, after that I kept the plant inside the house in winter. A couple of weeks it was ok, after that the plant lost leaves. What is a better idea for growing Parijat plant indoors in Winter?

A: Nyctanthes arbor-tristis, Parijat - is a semi-deciduous plant, which means, it may lose its leaves during unfavorable conditions such as drought, cold, low light and/or humidity. In your case, the plant dropped leaves because of the stress of moving indoors that includes reducing light and humidity levels. When a tropical plant loses leaves during winter, this means it goes into a dormant stage. If this happens, you need to reduce watering and keep the plant on a dry side, water in only when the top level of the soil feels dry to touch. Do not fertilize.
Try to place the plant in a well-lit spot such as a windowsill. If the windowsill and the window glass feel too cold for touch during wintertime, you may place a sheet of a Styrofoam underneath the pot, and a sheet of a bubble-wrap between the plant and the window glass, to create an extra barrier from cold. The plant may re-leaf during wintertime; if not, it may wait until spring, be patient.
Bring it back into outdoor light when minimum temperatures rise above 65F and resume fertilizing.

Recommended fertilizers for fragrant plants:

Pink N Good Daily Plant Food - Flower Booster
Plumeria Top Dress - Smart-Release Booster
SUNSHINE SuperFood - microelement supplement

Plants that are not for eating

Q: On the website, it says that the pua keni keni tree is toxic. Do you know how toxic? Is it mild irritation or can someone die from ingesting any part of the plant?

A: Pua Keni Keni, Fagraea - seeds (and especially flesh of the fruit) are toxic, so we recommend to always wash your hands after handling them. Obviously, nobody in our team ever tried to eat them to check how toxic they are and if they are deadly.

In general, one must be careful when using plants for purposes other than ornamental growing, especially for consumption. While some obvious edibles (cultivated fruit, vegetables, herbs) are generally safe, but some individuals may have severe reactions - for example, many people are allergic to mangoes; other people may be sensitive to only mango leaves.

A number of plants that have parts commonly consumed for food, have other parts toxic or poisonous. Example: Potato - Solanum tuberosum - has edible tubers feeding the whole planet population, but this plant's fruit is highly toxic and even deadly if eaten. Fruit from a Potato plant look like tiny little green tomatoes since Potato belongs to the same family as Tomato - Nightshade, but it is super poisonous, while Tomato fruit is perfectly edible. So one must watch out and especially educate little children about not tasting anything directly from the garden.

As far as animals concern, in Nature they know what is poisonous and what is edible. Have you ever seen dead birds around a tree with poisonous fruit/seeds? Animals have their own sense for it. So if your concern is for pets, it is normally safe to have pets around plants with irritating or even poisonous parts. However, if your dog has a bad habit of chewing on stuff, you may use extra caution there.

Photo below:

Riki-Tiki-Tavi exploring TopTropicals Gardens.

Growing Coconuts from seeds

Q: Good afternoon Anna, hope all is well. I have a question regarding Coconut growth. When I planted my coconuts seeds I notice they had water in it, after checking 6 months later I took one out from the pot and shock to see if still had water but notice no water shaken inside, still, no plant growing on all 6 seeds but no water noise inside of them. Can you indicate if I should discard them or are they still have a chance they will germinate?

A: Coconut seeds normally germinate within a month from planting. If there is no growth within 6 month, chances are the seed was not ripe enough, or didn't have proper conditions for germination.
To grow a coconut palm from seed, place the nut on top of the soil (if in a pot, must be at least 3 gal pot) on its side, and bury it in soil half-way. Keep it warm (75F or higher, the warmer the better), in full sun, and soil must stay moist. Start fertilizing when the seed sprouts.

RECOMMENDED FERTILIZER:

Purple Palm Food - Smart Release Palm Booster

Photo below:

James Coconuts, one of our customer service reps, will be happy to answer all your questions! (Anna Banana, Stevie, or Onika can help when Coconuts is out of the office).

Growing desert roses

Q: I purchased a Desert Rose and planted it in Adenium mix. I keep it in full sun with once a week watering assuming this is a desert plant that likes lots of sun. Some leaves turned yellow and now I am not sure should I move it into shade or need to water more? Or maybe fertilize with something?

A: Desert Rose - Adenium, unlike cacti and other succulents, prefers filtered light. It can grow in full sun but leaves look healthier in light shade. Watering must be very moderate, however don't let soil harden like a rock: water again right after the soil gets dry. We suggest to use special Adenium Mix. Cactus mix may work well, as well as regular potting mix, in which case it is recommended to add a bit of limestone (we simply put sea shells on top of the pot - it looks very pretty!) - because adeniums prefer slightly alkaline soil (while most of tropical plants like acidic soils). If leaves turn yellow, this may be a sign of underwatering. Use water soluable fertilizer with high phosphate as foliage spray, and only on healthy plants, according to label dosage. It helps both caudex growth and flowering. Make sure to avoid fertilizer contact with a caudex.

RECOMMENDED SUPPLIES:
Adenium Plant Food - Flower and Caudex Booster
SUNSHINE-BC - Caudex booster
Adenium Soilless Mix

Read more about growing Adeniums:
What you need for successful growing Adeniums
Growing Exotic Adeniums

How to get Strophanthus tree to bloom?

Q: I purchased from you three of these plants - Strophanthus bovinii and I wonder if you could help me. The plants are out of control growing large limbs to the sides and I would like it to grow more upright. Is this possible? Second, it does not flower. What type of fertilizer should I use and how often? How about the watering schedule? I have them in an eastern exposure but possibly they are not getting enough sun? Right in front of them, there is a large tree outside the curb of my house. What should I do about that?

A: Strophanthus bovinii - Wood shaving flower, is quite a unique plant that is very rare in cultivation, this is why very little information is available on its cultivation due to limited experience among gardeners. We have had this plant in our garden for over 12 years and this is what we can advise.
In the nature (Madagascar) it supposedly grows into a large tree, however, from our experience, it tends to be rather bushy, umbrella-like large shrub. Yes, you can train it into a tree by trimming branches growing side-wise, and by removing lower branches. The best time for pruning is early spring when the tree starts new growth and re-leafs (it is semi-deciduous). As far as flowering, the plant is very particular about blooming season, with profuse flowering in Summer (here in SW Florida), however it may produce more flowers sporadically throughout the year.
It thrives in full sun but will tolerate bright filtered light. If a large tree is shading it too much, try to trim some limbs of that large tree to allow more light. Water needs of Strophanthus bovinii are very moderate, so you can rely on your sprinkler system or water once a week for established plants.
You should use 2 types of fertilizers - slow release (once a month) and water-soluble bloom booster (frequent applications are safe):
Pink N Good Daily Plant Food - Flower Booster
Tropical Allure - Smart-Release Booster