Care for a Baobab Bonsai

Q: How to grow Baobab bonsai properly? How long does it take to shape a nice little bonsai tree?

A: Baobab, or Adansonia digitata, is a unique addition to a bonsai collection. Native to Africa, it has an unusual structure and appearance. Some legends say that the tree was cast down from the heavens and landed upside down, where it began to grow. This story is no doubt a result of its appearance in the winter, when the upper branches of the tree look more like roots than treetops. The Baobab has some specific needs, but if you pay careful attention to its requirements, this tree is not difficult to grow and makes an excellent bonsai specimen.

1. Keep Baobab warm, it is sensitive to freeze.
2. Place Baobab in a bright, sunny window. Baobabs need at least six hours of full sunlight per day, so a window with a western or southern exposure is best. If your house doesn’t get enough light, supplement natural light with artificial grow lights. See article Indoor lighting for tropical plants.
3. Water Baobab regularly during the growing season whenever the soil is dry. Never water the tree when it is dormant (dropped leaves).
4. Feed Baobab a good-quality fertilizer about once a month. Apply micro-element solution SUPERFOOD once a month, as well as SUNSHINE-BC plant booster for Bonsai and Caudex plants.
5. Prune the branches of your Baobab bonsai as often as they need it to give the tree the shape you desire, pruning or pinching off branches that are growing at odd angles or are too long. Trim early in the spring before new growth appears.
6. Repot the baobab bonsai every year in Spring. Remove it from pot and trim the roots back by one-third of their length, completely removing any that are damaged or dead. Place it in a container that is twice the size of the root ball and fill the pot with a well-drained soil like Adenium Mix.

   It is believed that it takes forever to form a nice shaped tree, up to a few years. However if you provide warmth and bright light, branches grow very quickly, and an experienced bonsai hobbyist can make a unique specimen within 2-3 years. And then, the tree will stay with you for 5000 years - it can be passed from generation to generation!

   Check out this plant... with FREE shipping to all states!

From Anna Banana: Shipping and planting during hot weather

Q: I received email notification that my order was delayed due to hot weather. Why? And do I need to do anything special if I plant when it is hot?

A: When plants are shipped via FedEx Ground, it is hot in the truck! According to our FedEx area manager information, if outside temperature is 100 degrees, inside the truck it can be 130! We don't want to put your plants through that much stress. We monitor the weather at destination, and as soon as it cools down a little bit, your order will be shipped.

Plantinjg during hot weather:

1. For a mail-ordered plant follow planting instructions and never plant it from the box directly into the ground. Keep it in a pot the size of a root ball until the plant recovers from shipping stress, re-grows root system and adjusts from several days of darkness to a bright light. Move the pot gradually into brighter light, eventually into a spot of its permanent home. Do not over water the pot. Once you see new growth - the plant is ready to be transplanted into the ground.
2. Use only quality soil, containing lots of organic matter (compost, peat moss); soil conditioner is beneficial (pine bark). Plant it on a little hill, so growing point is elevated 1-1.5" above the rest of the surface.
3. Put a good layer of mulch around the plant, at least 1-2" thick, and not too close to the trunk as it may cause stem rot on contact.
4. Water daily with a garden hose until the plant shows active growth - then watering may be reduced every other day or less, or you may rely on sprinklers and/or rains.
5. If the sun is too hot, use shade cloth (or simply a white bed sheet) to cover the plant for the first few days (use bamboo sticks for support). It will help the plant to establish without heat stress. If leaves start dropping - this may be a sign of excessive light and heat. Shading is the way to reduce it.
6. Use SUNSHINE booster to help plants overcome heat stress, and shipping stress. It really works!

   Remember that a plant has a very slow nature, unlike creatures from animal world. Give it some time and never rush it into new conditions. Go slowly and patiently - this is the only way to get a reward of a fruit crop or a beautiful flower.

Monstera deliciosa - Swiss cheese plant

Swiss cheese plant is a jungle climbing relative of the philodendron from Mexico and Guatemala. It is seen in gardens in tropical and subtropical areas, growing well in partial sun or shade. The plant begins bearing fruit after three years. The large deep green, cone-like fruit is actually an unripened flower spike, covered with hexagonal scales that dry out and separate as the fruit ripens from the base upwards, revealing the white pulp. It takes a little longer than a year to mature to an edible stage. The fruit tastes kind of like a cross between a sugar apple and a pineapple.Very perfuming smell and taste! It's so amazing, can't figure the consistency, but totally a pineapple sugar apple cross... But wash the black specks off before eating - they will sting your tongue.

Check out this plant...

Fragrant garden

Q: I love fragrant plants and I want to make a fragrant garden. Your website offers amazing selection. A friend of mine told me I should be careful with planting fragrant plants next to each other, and that mix of fragrances may create a funny combination. Are there any flowers that don't go together?

A: Flower scents, unlike perfumes, are pure natural and not as intoxicating to create funny combinations. Although some of them can be strong and even overwhelming. Example - Night Blooming Jasmine, Cestrum nocturnum, which fragrance at night is super-sweet; however most people like it. Reality is, even Night Blooming Jasmine planted next to Gardenia won't create a bad mixture, although one scent may somewhat take over another. In any case, with wind blowing in your garden, you will never be disappointed with fragrant garden. Some plants, like Ylang Ylang - Cananga odorata, or Magnolia champaca, create very fine fragrance that can be smelled yards away, other flowers you will need to stick your nose into.

Check out plants for fragrant garden

Looking for the rarest plant? This is the one!

Stifftia chrysantha - Pompom, Rabo-de-Cutia

Looking for the rarest plant? This is the one!
Stifftia chrysantha is an exotic, rare flowering small tree with spectacular flowers, endemic to the vast tropical savanna ecoregion of Brazil called Cerrado. It grows into a bushy, attractive tree between 8 and 15 ft tall and starts flowering within 1.5 - 2.5 years from seed. It is a very rewarding plant that blooms 9 months out of the year, starting in Winter with great intensity during July-September, with each flower staying on the plant for several weeks. Seeds ripen from September through November.
The tree belongs to Aster family (Compositae) and has nothing to do with Powderpuffs which are from Bean (Fabaceae) family. The flower has 30 to 40 green, imbricated scales with short hairs, and actinomorphic corollas are orange below and darker above. After flowering, the inflorescence blows apart, which would scatter seeds. The dried center remaining is very attractive, like a small dried flower, and lasts for many months.
Stifftia can be grown in full sun to partial shade and is relatively cold tolerant, can take short cold spells.
The plant doesn't like wet feet and heavy/soggy soils; requires very well drained, acidic soil. We strongly recommend to use our professional soilless mix. Let soil slightly dry between waterings. It can be grown in full sun to partial shade and is relatively cold tolerant, can take short cold spells. If grown in a pot, try to keep the container shaded because roots don't like to be overheated. The plant needs monthly applications of slow release fertilizer as well as extra iron - use micro-nutrients to keep leaves green and healthy.
See more pictures of this beauty.

Check out this plant...

How to get shade quickly... and stay away from oaks

Q: I just moved from Tennessee into a new house in Florida and there are no trees on the property, the yard is brutal hot. What can I plant so I have some shade real quick? I like Florida shady oaks, how long will they take to grow?

A: First of all, do not rush into oak solution. Oaks are beautiful shade trees, however they have at least 2 problems:
a) Oaks are slow growers and unless you are willing to wait some 20 years... you won't get that desirable shade that quickly.
b) We have hurricanes in Florida... sometimes. A hurricane can damage any tree, however with oaks it may be the worse case scenario - the branches of those giant trees are huge, hard and heavy and in unfortunate situation when you need to remove or trim a broken tree, it may cost you... a few thousand dollars.

These are solutions that are more economical and practical:

1) Selection. If you have room, get one of these most popular Florida shade trees: Royal Poinciana, Golden Shower, Hong Kong Orchid Tree, Red Kapok, Bottlebrush, and many others. See full list of fast growing shade trees. Or simply get a Mango Tree and have delicious fruit too! Many varieties of Mangos are very large and fast growing.

2) Do it right. Even if you are planting a smaller tree, 1-3 gal size, it may become a nice shade tree within 2-3 years and start providing your driveway with desirable shade. The keys for fast growth are -
a) Good soil. Dig as big hole as possible and fill it with good rich soil containing compost. See planting instructions PDF.
b) Water. Do not rely on sprinklers and rains. Water your tree daily for the first week, then at least twice a week for another month. After that, irrigation system will be enough.
c) Fertilizer. Put a few handfuls of fertilizer in a planting hole. Then fertilize once a month during warm season. Apply micro elements for even better results and faster growth.

3) Ask experts. Contact our office for advice. We will suggest the most suitable shade tree for your yard based on features of your property: location, soil, exposure, etc.

Check out fast growing shade trees

How to grow a Dragon Fruit

Q: I want to grow a Dragon Fruit. Should I use cuttings or seed? What varieties do you recommend? How difficult it is to grow? How soon does it start flowering and fruiting?

A: Dragon Fruit, or Pitaya is a highly prized, vining, fruit bearing cactus, extremely unusual terrestrial/epiphytic plant. It has magnificent flowers, stunningly beautiful fruit with an intense color, curious shape, and a delicious taste. The night blooming white flowers can be up to 14 inches in length. The fruit is most often eaten chilled and cut in half so the flesh may be spooned out. The juice is used in frozen drinks and it is in a new Tropicana Twister flavor. It is a must have for any collector or gardener with the flair for the unusual.
It takes 2-3 years for seedlings to fruit, besides the variety pay not come true to seed. We grow our plants from cuttings that are easy to root. We offer many selected varieties, most of them self-pollinating. The plants are ready to flower and fruit this year, or the next year.
Dragon Fruit Cactus is easy to grow, doesn't need much other than strong support, full sun, well-drained soil - adenium soil mix works great - and fertilizer during hot months, and SUNSHINE-Honey applications for growing sweeter fruit. For larger fruit bud thinning is recommended.

Check out Dragon Fruit varieties

Q: I want to order a plant that you have only one left in stock; however the weather is extremely hot in my area right now. Do you have any temperature limitations when you ship your plants?

A: We ship plants year around and do our best to watch weather forecast at destination. However the forecast may change to worse within a day or two while a plant is in transit. To ensure your plants have a safe trip during extreme weather, follow these steps:
- notify us if you want to wait until weather permitting so we hold your shipment until further notice;
- make sure to track your package and be at home at time of delivery. The only time when a plant can get temperature damage, from our experience, is when the box is left on your doorstep while too hot (or too cold) outside.
- you may use your business as shipping address if no one is home during regular business hours of delivery.
- unpack the box immediately and follow planting instructions. Keep plant in shade until recovered; never plant directly from a box into the ground; never plant into hot, full sun: protect a new plant with a shade cloth for a few days until established, and water as needed.
- use SUNSHINE booster to help plants recover from shipping stress. It really works! For only $4.95 with FREE shipping!

On the photo: Adenium is the easiest plant for shipping!

TROPICAL GARDENING: How to grow Brugmansia (Angel Trumpet) in the ground outside.

Q: I recently moved from New Jersey to Florida and I brought with me my Brugmansia that I used to have as a house plant. Can I plant it in the ground now?

A: Angel Trumpet - Brugmansia - is a very popular container plant valued for its large, stunning fragrant flowers. Originated from South America, it will be happy to grow in tropical to subtropical climate outdoors. These are a few useful tips to get the most out of this beautiful plant:

1. Light. Plant it in full sun - the more sun, the more flowers you get, although Brugmansias tolerate shade. If the plant was previously grown in container indoors, to avoid leaf burn, keep it protected with a shade cloth or simply white sheet for a while and gradually open to adjust to full sun.
2. Soil and fertilizer. Use fertile soil with lots of organic matter (add compost to existing soil). It must be very well drained, Angel Trumpet won't tolerate waterlogged conditions. Plant it on a little "hill" elevated 3-4" above the surrounding area. Brugmansias are very heavy feeders. Once the plant is established, fertilize on regular basis with Slow Release Fertilizer - a handful once a month.
3. Water. Water daily until established. Once the root system is well developed, the plant is drought tolerant and won't require too much care. But at the beginning, watch the leaves - the lush foliage droops quickly if the plant is thirsty.
4. Plan space. Brugmansia is a short tree, but it needs a lot of room to spread branches with its heavy hanging flowers. Think 12" wide and maybe almost as much tall.
5. Support. Being widespread plant, Brugmansia can be blown with strong winds. Stake with strong support until established.
6. Propagation. Brugmansia is one of the few plants that propagates with semi-woody cuttings; soft green cuttings usually have little success. Other than that, it is pretty easy!

   Check out our Brugmansia collection and... collect them all!

Fabulous Frangipani - Plumeria

New article! By Jane Jordan, a horticulturist who studied and worked at the RHS botanical gardens in Cannington, England. She now lives in Sarasota, Florida. Alongside her passion for horticulture, she is also a novelist.
"...The name Frangipani is derived from a 16th century Italian Marquess, who invented a plumeria scented perfume. While in Hawaii they are known as Lei trees. Lei means garland or wreath, and Lei flower garlands are famously given as a symbol of affection. Hawaii has become synonymous with this beautiful flower, although Frangipani, is native to warm tropical areas of the Mexico, Central America, India and the Caribbean, accordingly, this plant is well suited to the Floridian climate and hardy to USDA planting zones 9-11..."