Date: 8 Aug 2019
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
Date: 24 Jul 2019
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.
Date: 19 Jul 2019
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).
Date: 10 Jul 2025
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Date: 6 Dec 2018
Why starting tropicals from seed indoors is better than outside?
Q: I am in Texas, it is getting cold, but I bought these seeds the last two packs, as I didn't want to miss them, was looking for a long time and found you had them. Should I wait until spring to plant them?
A: You can
grow tropical plants from seed year round and don't have to wait until warm
weather outside. It is, in fact, beneficial to start tropicals indoors in a
controlled temperature, moisture and humidity. Seeds of some species are very
sensitive to excess water and/or require a certain range of temperature for
germination... Besides, it's so much fun!
First, read the basics: Happy Hobby: growing tropicals from seeds
Advantages of indoor growing from seed
It is easier to keep under control indoors:
1) Temperature and Light. Although many tropical seeds require
higher temperature and bright light for germination (hot sun may help), it may
be hard to avoid overheating and drying out when you put trays in full sun.
Using heat pads and additional lighting indoors makes germination smooth, even
may take a little longer than in hot sun.
2) Soil moisture. If you ever lost your seeds or tiny seedlings
to a heavy summer rain, you sure will appreciate your own moisture-controlled
environment! Just make sure to use the right soil mix.
3) Air humidity. Indoor air is drier than outside. It may not be
best for some tropical plants, but definitely perfect for seed health - they
will never get moldy considering you keep your eye on the plantings.
4) Pre-treatment. Some seeds require scarification (sanding down
hard shell), others stratification (cold treatment), but all seeds will
benefit from
SUNSHINE-S soak before planting. It is easier to do in your home lab.
Based on our experience, using Sunshine pre-treatment reduces the risk of
fungal damage and improves germination from 30 to 65%.
5) After germination culture. Watching seedlings closely in your
home environment and giving them all that is needed for healthy, fast growth
- miscroelements and first fertilizer - will help to establish young plants just in time before
planting them out in Spring-Summer.
Read more: From Kristi - how to grow tropicals from seed.
Check out our seeds selection...
