Garden Blog - Top Tropicals

Date: 20 Apr 2025

How to tell the difference between Jasmine Sambac Varieties

Jasminum Sambac varieties

⏳ How to tell the difference between Jasmine Sambac Varieties

  • 💮 Jasminum Sambac is hands down the most fragrant jasmine in existence - and the most popular among tropical gardeners and plant collectors.
  • 💮 Native to India, it's the source of jasmine perfume oil and the signature ingredient in jasmine tea.
  • 💮 This plant comes in several varieties, each with unique flower size, shape, and growth habit - ranging from compact shrubs to vigorous bushes and climbing vines. It takes both sun and shade and makes a perfect container plant and indoor plant favorite.
  • 💮 All varieties of Sambac are equally fragrant. To get more flowers, just use Sunshine Pikake plant booster and enjoy the perfume all day long!
  • 💮 At Top Tropicals, we grow every known variety of Jasminum sambac in cultivation:

Arabian Nights - compact slow growing shrub with small delicate flowers

Belle of India - compact vine with long elegant petals, shade lover

Grand Duke of Tuscany - the most popular, vigorous bush with carnation-like flowers

Grand Duke Supreme - bigger, more vigorous version of Grand Duke with larger flowers

Gundu Malli - new hybrid between Arabian Nights and Grand Duke

Little Duke - more compact version of the Grand Duke

Maid of Orleans - vigorous full sun climber, great for hedges and fences

Mali Chat - very delicate, rare variety, with miniature 3-tier flowers, not easy to establish, shade lover

Mysore Mulli - vigorous vining shrub for sunny or semi-shade locations

🛒 Smell the Difference – Shop Sambac varieties

Learn more:
📚 Jasminum Sambac Absolute Flower - book download
#Perfume_Plants #Hedges_with_benefits #How_to #Discover

🔴 Join 👉 TopTropicals

Date: 26 Mar 2026

🌸 How to Grow Adeniums Without Overthinking It

By Tatiana Anderson, Horticulture Expert at Top Tropicals with Smokey & Sunshine help

Adenium desert roses blooming in greenhouse during winter freeze, rows of potted plants with colorful flowers

Adeniums blooming inside the Top Tropicals greenhouse during the record freeze of February 2026 - protected from the cold, kept above 40F, and fed with liquid Sunshine Megaflor. They responded with a spectacular, synchronized winter bloom. Quite a surprize!

✅ Simple rules that actually make them bloom and grow well

  • Light - The more light, the better the growth and flowering. Full sun is ideal, but in very hot climates, filtered bright light keeps plants looking healthier.
  • Water - Water well, then let soil dry on the surface. Sitting in wet soil damages roots, but letting plants dry out too often can push them into early dormancy.
  • Pot and shaping - Use a shallow pot with excellent drainage. To develop a sculptural caudex, lift the plant slightly each time you repot and remove some of the top soil so upper roots become exposed. Over time, this creates a thicker, more prominent base.
  • Soil - Use a fast-draining Adenium potting Mix.

    • Adenium desert rose plant, fast draining soil mix in hand, and bonsai style adeniums blooming indoors

    Healthy adeniums start with the right foundation - a fast-draining soil mix and careful watering only when dry to avoid caudex rot.

  • Cold hardiness - Adeniums are tropical and do not tolerate frost. Keep above 40 F. Brief drops to mid 30s may be tolerated if dry, but cold and wet conditions can damage or kill the plant. In cooler climates, bring indoors or protect during cold nights.
  • Indoor winter care - Move plants indoors before cold nights. Place in the brightest spot possible, ideally a south-facing window. Or use additional lighting. Water very lightly and less often, as growth slows. Do not fertilize during dormancy. Some leaf drop is normal in winter.

    • Freshly grafted Adenium desert rose plants in dormancy arranged in greenhouse rows with bare branches

    Freshly grafted adeniums in dormancy - a crucial resting phase. Keep watering low (once a month) and avoid overcare; this is the time to let them rest and etablish.

  • Feeding - Adeniums respond best to liquid fertilizer. We apply Sunshine Megaflor Booster with each watering throughout the year. During dormancy, watering is reduced, so fertilizer use decreases accordingly. Consistent, light feeding promotes strong roots, a thicker caudex, and improved flowering.
  • Pruning - For multiple blooms, regular pruning is essential. After flowering, cut back long or leggy growth to stimulate branching. Each new branch can produce more buds, leading to a much fuller bloom in the next cycle.

Pruned and unpruned Adenium desert rose plants showing difference in branching and flowering

Pruned vs. unpruned - the difference is clear. The four plants on the left were trimmed 6 months ago, while the two on the right were not. Same species, very different results.

✍️ Learn more about Adeniums from our Blog

🎥 Watch videos of Adenium Rainbow

Free Shipping on Adeniums
Add bold color and unique forms to your collection with no extra shipping cost.

🛒 Explore Exotic Adenium varieties

Leggy Adenium desert rose plants with sparse branching and flowers, ready for pruning

Date: 27 Jan 2026

🌸 Adenium, Coffee, and Donuts

Smokey and Sunshine with a blooming adenium desert rose on a worktable, surrounded by potted adeniums in the background.
Smokey: Desert rose. One caudex. Multiple grafts. Different flowers.
Sunshine: So it is a team plant. Everyone blooms, nobody agrees.
Smokey: Yet it grows just fine.
Sunshine: That is the secret. Coffee and donuts.

🌸Featured Adeniums

Recommended by our Horticulturist, Tatiana Anderson

Moung Kusuma Moung Kusuma adenium flower with deep magenta velvety petals and dark edging

Deep magenta flowers with a velvety look and a darker, almost black edge. A bold, elegant adenium that stands out immediately.

Sunshine Adenium Sunshine flower with pink and white petals and bright color contrast

Bright yellow and mauve swirls across layered petals create a warm, cheerful bloom that lives up to its name.

White Rabbit Adenium White Rabbit flower with white petals and bright pink streaks. Clean white petals brushed with playful pink streaks. A reliable bloomer with soft ruffled flowers.
Thong Samsee Adenium Thong Samsee flower with creamy yellow petals and soft pink edges

Known for its three-color effect, shifting from yellow to pink to nearly white on the same plant.

Candy Adenium Candy flower with creamy white petals and soft pink edges

Cheerful yellow petals dipped in cherry red with bold ruffled layers. Bright, playful, and impossible to miss.

Black Sheep Adenium Black Sheep flower with nearly black petals and deep red highlights

Nearly black petals with a glowing red center. Dark, dramatic, and different.

Free Adenium (Desert Rose) Shipping
Plant now, bloom soon. Get select Adenium (Desert Rose) varieties shipped to you with FREE S&H.
Offer valid through 02/06/2026. Limited quantities. While supplies last.
Free shipping applies to qualifying Adenium items only. Excludes other items and prior orders.

✍️ Learn About Adeniums

🎥 Watch Adenium Videos

🛒 Shop Adeniums

Date: 14 Sep 2022

PeopleCats Botanical Garden Grand Opening
Guided tour with Mark Hooten

PeopleCats Botanical Garden at TopTropicals

Top Tropicals Garden Center is pleased to invite you to visit our new PeopleCats Botanical Garden on the grounds of Top Tropicals in Ft Myers. It is named in honor of the relationship with our beloved Cats, who we treat like People. You'll see our Garden PeopleCats roaming the property. As a matter of fact, they rule the garden!
The Garden has many mature trees and plants so you can see what they look like before your purchase them in our Garden Center. And of course, our PeopleCats will be guiding you in the Gardens!

Peoplecats - cat Marco at Top Tropicals gate

More info about PeopleCats Garden

PeopleCats Garden - Top Tropicals Ghost light in the forest the spirit is always watching!

Date: 13 Jun 2022

Secret Garden - 50% OFF
The point of your Garden

Secret Garden

"...A garden always has a point..."
- Elizabeth Hoyt, The Raven Prince -

Let our Secret Garden selections help you make the point of your Garden!
Each week we add a variety of plants to our Secret Garden with special savings of

50% off and more!

Check back often to find new the Secret Garden selection! Find new specials of the month from our Newsletters.

And for local customers, come visit our Garden Center for an even larger Secret Garden selection. Ask our sales reps about full list of Secret Garden plants available for local pick up!

Shop Secret Garden

Trachelospermum asiaticum Ogon Nishiki Gold Brocade

Photo above: Trachelospermum asiaticum Ogon Nishiki Gold Brocade

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