Date: 5 Mar 2023
How to move plants from indoors to outdoors
Q: When moving my tropical plant collection outside in the garden, what do I need to know to get them adjusted to this change?
A: As a tropical plant gardener, it's important
to assess the temperatures outside before moving your plants outdoors. Most
tropical plants thrive in sustained temperatures above 60F.
Moving your plants outside during the summer creates optimal growing
conditions for sun-loving plants, providing them with more light and warmth than
they can ever get inside. This active time of growth, along with the outdoor
conditions of humidity, heat, sunlight, and natural day length, gives the plant
a chance to experience growth in an outdoor environment, making for a much
stronger plant.
However, be aware of sun burn. Direct sunlight can burn patches of
white or brown on the surface of the tender leaves, so it's best to move your
plants outside by hardening them off first. Gradually increase the amount of
direct sunlight they receive over several days before moving them into full
sun.
It's also a good time to prune your plants and repot them if needed,
providing better aeration to the root system. But avoid root pruning as it
can make your plant susceptible to disease and shock.
Overall, moving your tropical plants outside encourages their natural bloom
cycle and provides extra vigor for the upcoming indoor season. However, be
aware that you may have to deal with insects when you bring your plants
back inside in the fall, so use preventive sprays like Sunshine NoBug before bringing them back inside. Leaf drop is
also common when plants come back inside, so make sure to provide a well-lit
location.
When moving plants outside, it's important to provide them with proper
nutrients through fertilization. Outdoor conditions can deplete the soil
of essential nutrients, so giving your plants a boost of fertilizer before
moving them outside can help them acclimate to their new environment. Apply Sunshine Boosters
with every watering, include micro-elements and bio stimulants to boost their immune system.
Date: 19 Feb 2023
Top 5 butterfly attractors
"Just when the caterpillar thought the world was over,
it became a butterfly"
Chuang Tzu (Taoist philosopher)
In the photo: yesterday we watched a butterfly born on one of our Champaka trees!
Q: What are the best butterfly attracting plants for a Southern garden?
A: If you love butterflies and if you enjoy
having nature around your home, then plant a butterfly garden. Florida is a perfect place to create a year round and
fully functioning butterfly garden. Caterpillars, which transform into
butterflies, require special kinds of plants to feed upon and these plants grow
extremely well in the South Florida and other subtropical areas. Below are the
top five winners that butterflies appreciate the most. Besides, remember That
all yellow flowers are attractive to them, for example Cassias. Butterflies like the Sun and everything that looks like the
Sun!
1. Calotropis
gigantea - Giant milkweed, Arka
2. Odontonema
cuspidatum - Firespike
3. Plumbago
auriculata Imperial Blue
4. Rondeletia
leucophylla - Panama Rose
5. Asclepias
curassavica - Red Milkweed, Butterfly Weed
Read more about Butterfly garden:
The Milkweed and
the Monarch, how to raise your own
Musings of a butterfly gardener about the milkweed bug
Plants that attract butterflies and hummingbirds
In the photo: Odontonema cuspidatum
Date: 27 Jan 2023
The
Robuster: smart and simple
Automatic care-free plant feeder!
Affordable Smart Fertilizer Injector and Doser
Tired of mixing fertilizer in watering cans?
Struggling to keep up with the growth of your garden?
Need to adjust fertilizer schedules for different plants and weather conditions?
Professional injectors are expensive and complicated?
Look no further! Affordable and user-friendly solution for any gardener
-
The Robuster.
Set up... Sit back...
...enjoy your garden!
The Robuster is a unique smart device for irrigation systems
and is designed to help make fertilizing your garden easier. Simple to install, The Robuster utilizes a computerized controller
that injects liquid fertilizer into your irrigation system based on your
preset dosage. The Robuster will work in your yard, garden or farm, small or large. Designed to be used with
Sunshine Boosters amino acid based liquid fertilizers, it also works with any liquid plant food that requires a dosage from 5 - 25 ml per gallon of water.
Let The Robuster do the feeding so you have more time to enjoy your garden! Your first gallon of
Sunshine Boosters is available to you at a 50% discount with the purchase of
this unit! Sunshine Boosters are also available at deep discounts with our
subscription program (coming soon). Contact us for more information.
Developed in Ukraine. Manufactured in the USA.
Introductory low price! Only 4 units available at this time.
Contact us for installation availability
Learn more:
Blog: About The Robuster with pictures
Amazing video:
Starter gardens at TopTropicals as well as container plants, are fertilized with the Robuster with every watering
Date: 25 Dec 2022
Surinam Cherry Lolita and Bermuda Christmas Pie
By Alex Butova, the Witch of Herbs and Cats
Eugenia uniflora Lolita also known as Black Surinam Cherry, is a tropical fruit tree native to South America. Black fruited Surinam Cherry starts as red and turns black as it ripens and has exceptional flavor. The plant is vigorous and ready to fruit the same year. The fruit is very sweet, without aftertaste, large 1-1.2 inch, very juicy. The fruits are being eaten fresh, and also used in jams, jellies, and pies.
One popular use of Surinam Cherry is in Christmas cherry pie - Bermuda Pie, a traditional dessert served during the holiday season. The fruit is cooked down with sugar and spices to create a thick, flavorful filling for the pie. The dark red to really black color of the fruit adds a festive touch to the dessert.
In addition to being used in culinary applications, Surinam Cherry has a number of other uses. The tree is often grown as an ornamental plant due to its attractive foliage and bright ribbed fruit. The fruit is also used in traditional medicine in some parts of South America, where it is believed to have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. The pulp is a good source of calcium, and a fair source of phosphorus and iron. Its juice is fermented into wine or vinegar.
Despite its many uses, Surinam Cherry is not widely grown outside of its native range in South America. However, it is becoming increasingly popular in tropical and subtropical regions around the world, where it is prized for its attractive appearance and flavorful fruit. This tropical plant can successfully be grown in a pot indoors in the cooler zones.
See Video:
Date: 13 Nov 2022
Vietnamese Mickey Mouse Plant...
Hoa Mai - for good luck!
Ochna integerrima (thomasiana)
What is the yellow flower that brings good luck on Vietnamese New Year (Tet) Celebration? Why is it called Mickey Mouse Plant?
The most celebrated flower in Vietnam, Ochna integerrima, called in Vietnam Hoa Mai
or Mai Vang, blooms profusely on the occasion of Tet, the Vietnamese New Year. Commonly known as Yellow Mai Flower (Hoa Mai literally means
"yellow blossoms"), this plant is considered the quintessential symbol of Spring. In
Southern Vietnam, Hoa Mai are some of the first plants to flower.
This plant is a must for exotic plant collection. It is a rather slow
growing, medium size shrub that can be trained into miniature tree. In winter the plant is covered with pretty bright yellow
flowers, believed to bring good luck and prosperity. They are followed by cute shiny black berries on bright red sepals that resemble the face of
Mickey Mouse.
The plant is easy to grow and relatively cold hardy to light freeze. Start fertilizing your Hoa Moa plant right now through the Winter to encourage early blooms. Luckily, we have a perfect bloom booster liquid fertilizer that is safe to use year around, including Winter months: Sunshine Boosters MegaFlor!
Lunar year 2023 will be a year of the Cat on the Vietnamese zodiac, from January 22nd, 2023 to February 9th, 2024. Cat is the fourth sign in Vietnamese Zodiac, taking place of the Rabbit in Chinese Zodiac.
