Tropical Plants & Trees
Tropical Plants and Trees are our actual thing here at the Tropical Grower. Don’t be surprised, especially you northern growers, if you see some of your houseplants growing as trees in Our Garden. All these pictures were taken in the last year, most before the storm. We had just begun cataloging all the types of plants and trees for the blog.
Red Lobster Claw Heliconia Rostrata 
Plantains 
The Sisters, Dracena 
We have the Sisters in several areas 
Cage Match, Bougainvillea, Schefflera, White Bird of Paradise, Spanish Bayonet Yucca 
Lemon 
Lemon Tree. I grow this one in a pot. It started as a seed and grew big in my office. 
Garden entry spattered tropical 
Japanese Lantern Hibiscus 
Laurel Oak. This is my son’s tree. He planted it with his grandma, steadfast and strong in vigil along our back fence line. 
Schefflera Shrub, growing as a tree. I like to train these to do things 
Here’s the wider view. I’m training branches to shade the orchid fence. 
Our south american tree labeled as a Queen’s Rose, it’s not. 
Weed in our indigenous buffer 
Bougainvillea, this is some pokey pretty stuff that loves our whole area 
Bougainvillea. It’s blooming all over the place 
Key Lime 
Key Lime Tree, close up. See the key limes, they turn a yellow color when ripe. 
Key Lime Tree, a bit hard to see in all the green 
Variegated Hibiscus 
Variegated Hibiscus. 
Dragon Fruit Cactus Flower, I rarely see them fully open as they bloom at night. I get the sunrise version. These open the size of a cantaloupe 
Fruits 
Dragon Fruit Cactus with developing blossoms 
And More Dragon Fruit Blooms. We love this stuff, but it’s so much work 
Variegated Golden Giant Pothos 
Ground Orchid we have confined 
Milkweed, the Mexican Butterfly Weed variety, grown carefully, for monarch butterflies. These were still lovely last week. See the next pic. 
Purple Queen or Purple Heart, the bees love it. We grow it as ground cover. Almost always in bloom 
Orange Tree. These are so non-acidic I can drink the juice for breakfast 
Dendrobium Orchid. Mom has a ton of these – old growth she propagates. They’re not natives mom says. They’ve just been around a long time. 
The Dendrobiums create lots of blooms along the orchid fence line 
Phalanopsis Orchid 
Amaryllis Bulbs. Wait until the spring when these bloom 
We call these Cabbage Palms, aka Sabal palmetto. The grove lived here before us. I’m told these are the only palms native to our area 
Hawaiian Pherpangy Tree. I see these listed as Hawaiian Plumeria. It’s one of the family favorites even though they are sticks in the winter. The flowers have a slightly lemony scent and smell divine. 
Golden Trumpet Vine. I gave this up 2 years ago to Oleander Butterfly caterpillars. It was taking over and a good hard cut seemed like a good idea. Just coming back before Ian. 
Orchid 
Lumquat Blooms. I don’t personally find these pretty. They always look like they’re dying, all brown 
Spanish Bayonet Yucca 
Yucca 
Flaming Torch Bromeliad. These are the ones on the Hibiscus Mound 
Flaming Torch Bromeliad close up 
Flaming Torch Bromeliad by the south american tree. These have darker leaves 
Flaming Torch Bromeliad by the anniversary tree. There is also Tiger Neoregelia Bromeliad in this bed. In case you didn’t notice, we use these as ground cover. Yeah, there is sweet potato vine growing over the top of it. 
Palmetto Scrub Bush path. These are indigenous, natives that lived here before we did. You have to keep them manicured or they take over. Also very prickly. I’ve been training this path for a couple of years. It’s like bonsai on a larger scale. 
Seville Orange Tree. Bitter Orange. Yup, you make neroli oil from it. Tastes somewhat like a lemon. We use it as a lemon substitute sometimes. 
Coconut Palm. My mom’s friend gave this to us. He grew it from a coconut which is what we buried in the ground. Super fun. 
New Coconut Palm recovering from being underwater 
Hannah and my son’s Red Sister Dracaena, growing happily. 
We call this Boney Finger Philodendron