The secret Brain Food growing in my backyard (and it tastes like green peas!)
Tropical Asparagus (Sauropus androgynus)
🏆 The secret Brain Food growing in my backyard (and it tastes like green peas!)
🌿 Katuk, or Tropical Asparagus (Sauropus androgynus), is one of the most underrated edible plants you can grow. This leafy tropical shrub is a superfood in disguise. It grows fast, looks lush, and its tender young shoots taste just like green peas.
🌿 Native to Southeast Asia, Katuk is a kitchen staple in places like Vietnam, Malaysia, and Thailand. The leaves and shoots are used in soups, stews, and stir-fries with egg or seafood. It’s not only delicious but also incredibly nutritious - rich in nutrients linked to improved memory and reduced cognitive aging: folate, lutein, and especially vitamin K, which is rare in plants.
🌿 Katuk thrives in sun or partial shade, needs little care, and grows into a dense, bushy plant that gives you edible greens all year round. If you want something that feeds both your garden and your health, this one’s a winner!
The easy orchid that blooms like a tropical sunrise: Epidendrum
Orange Reed Ground Orchid or Sunrise Orchid - Epidendrum
🌅 The easy orchid that blooms like a tropical sunrise: Epidendrum
Most people think orchids are fussy plants that belong in greenhouses or on windowsills. Epidendrum radicans - also known as Orange Reed Ground Orchid or Sunrise Orchid - proves otherwise. This colorful orchid grows in the ground, tolerates heat and humidity, multiplies easily, and can bloom for months with very little care.
🔥 Not your typical orchid
Unlike many orchids that grow on trees, Epidendrum radicans is a terrestrial orchid native to Mexico, Central America, and northern South America. It naturally grows on the ground and even among rocks.
Its upright reed-like stems are topped by clusters of brilliant orange flowers with golden-yellow highlights. A single mature stem can carry dozens of blooms, and large plantings resemble patches of miniature tropical sunrises.
🔥 Easy to grow, easy to share
Epidendrum thrives in Florida's heat and humidity and performs best in bright light and well-drained soil. In warm climates it often blooms throughout the year.
One reason gardeners love it is its ability to spread. The stems naturally produce roots along their length, making division and propagation remarkably easy. A single plant can eventually develop into a large, colorful colony.
🔥 A pollinator favorite
The vivid orange flowers attract butterflies and hummingbirds and stand out brightly against green foliage. This makes Epidendrum a valuable addition to pollinator gardens and tropical landscapes.
🔥 Better than a flowering annual
Unlike annual flowers that must be replaced each season, Epidendrum returns year after year and gradually expands into larger clumps. It works well along walkways, patios, entryways, borders, and mixed tropical beds where its upright growth adds height and color.
🔥 The orchid that deserves more attention
Some plants become famous because they are difficult or rare. Epidendrum radicans deserves attention for the opposite reason.
It is colorful, dependable, beginner-friendly, and generous with flowers. Give it sunshine, good drainage, and a place to grow, and it will reward you with months of vibrant blooms that bring the warmth and energy of a tropical sunrise into your garden. 👉 More...
📌 The common name "Crucifix Orchid" comes from the tiny cross-shaped structure in the center of each flower. 📌 Unlike many orchids, it naturally produces roots along its stems, which is one reason it spreads and propagates so easily. 📌 In Florida, it's often used as a landscape orchid rather than a houseplant.
📚 Learn more:
Bamboo Orchid Plant Facts
Botanical name: Arundina graminifolia, Arundina affinis, Bletia graminifolia Also known as: Bamboo Orchid, Bird Orchid
Still looking for a Father's Day gift?
Skip the tie and give Dad something that grows.
Top Tropicals Gift Certificate makes a perfect last-minute gift and can be emailed instantly. Let Dad choose the tropical plants, fruit trees, or collectibles he really wants.
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Whether you're shopping for Dad, adding to your own garden, or planting something special to mark the Summer Solstice, this is a great weekend to bring home something new.
Happy Father's Day to all the dads, grandfathers, stepdads, and plant dads who help things grow.
Happy Summer Solstice - may your gardens be lush, your fruit trees productive, and your days full of sunshine. 🌞🌴
Min order $100. Excluding S/H. Exp. 6-23-2026 Use our FREE and DISCOUNTED SHIPPING for qualified orders Feel free to use code FATHERS2026yourself or share it with your friend.
Coral-blooming bonsai with a bottle-shaped trunk - perfect container plant
🔥 Coral-blooming bonsai with a bottle-shaped trunk - perfect container plant
Jatropha podagrica - Gout Plant - is a one-of-a-kind tropical showpiece with a knobby, swollen caudex, massive umbrella-like leaves, and bright coral-red flowers that pop like underwater treasures.
Compact and only 2-3 feet tall, it's perfect for containers, bonsai lovers, and small gardens craving something bold and unusual. It thrives in partial shade, grows giant leaves in low light, and needs little water to stay happy. Easy-care and eye-catching, it's more than a plant it’s a conversation starter. 🛒 Get your Gout plant - the plant with a personality
🍃 It actually has to do with the Chinese theory of the five elements - wood, metal, fire, water, and earth: 木 金 火 水 土
🍃 Tea comes from a plant - Camellia sinensis - the Tea Leaf Tree - that is used to make all true teas: green, black, white, and oolong. The Tea Tree contains the element of wood (木) 🌳
🍃 When it's roasted in a cast-iron pan, it gains the element of metal (金)
🍃 Then it's dried over fire, adding the element of fire (火) 🔥
🍃 When it's brewed with boiling water, the element of water enters (水) 💦
🍃 Finally, tea is poured into a clay vessel, symbolizing the element of earth (土) 🍯
🍃 In this way, all five elements - wood, metal, fire, water, and earth - come together in a single cup.
🍃 The plant grows slowly and can thrive in containers or frost-free gardens with sun to semi-shade.
