Tropical Plants

The arrowhead shaped medium green foliage is decorated with darker purplish green round spots when young then matures to a rich medium green. Soon after leafing back out in spring, African False Hosta, Drimiopsis maculata, produces arching 1" diameter dense rounded spikes of small white buds that mature to green once the flowers open.This is a naturally decidous clump-forming, readily multiplying, semi-hardy tropical bulb that is well suited to shaded conditions and is suprisingly considered hardy in the garden into zone 7B per Tony Avent of Plant Delights. The shade-loving African False Hosta is well suited to container culture where it makes an easy and low-maintenance specimen plant, utilize it in mixed succulent gardens, as a groundcover under larger plants provided it gets sufficient light, as well as in the shaded garden or landscape. Its main requirement is a very well-drained soil. During active growth, average moisture is preferred and it can be allowed to remain a good deal dryer when dormant. We ship 1-3 or more bulbs actively growing in a 2.25" pot. Item# 12277

The exceptionally dark purple to near black tubular flowers peek out of the mealy white 1" long tubular calyxes that are borne in whorls around equally white stems in summer and into fall. Andean Silver-Leaf Sage, Salvia discolor, is a shrubby naturally scandent or sprawling herbaceous perennial from the Peruvian Andes Mountains that grows to about 2-3 feet high and 2-3 feet wide. The ovate dark green glossy opposite foliage has a brightly contrasting white reverse and is borne along mealy white stems. The foliage, stems, and buds are fragrant when brushed or bruised. Also known as Peruvian or Concolor Sage it is widely grown as 3'x3' shrub in the warmer parts of Europe. It is listed as being tolerant of part shade but we find it to be most vigorous in full to mostly sunny conditions in average moist well-drained soils. Item# 12239

Sweetly fragrant clusters of up to 2" wide, starry, pure white flowers held against a contrasting foil of medium to dark green, glossy foliage are produced nearly continuously throughout the warmer months of the year to potentially year-round under warm tropical conditions. Angel Wing Jasmine, Jasminum laurifolium f. nitidum, is a naturally evergreen, densely branching, scandent or vine-like, sub-tropical shrub growing to 3-5'H x 4-6'W and potentially larger. It can be maintained smaller with pruning. This is likely one of the easiest, most floriferous, and most reliable true Jasmines and can be enjoyed as a container plant where not hardy or in the garden and landscape in mild winter regions. It seems to maintain darker foliage in shaded conditions. Provide an acidic, average moist, moderately fertile soil with average or better drainage under full sun to light filtered shade. Angel Wing Jasmine has been selected as an RHS Award of Garden Merit winner. Item #9030

Clusters of widely flaring soft orange blooms are borne throughout the year and are held above and among the rich deep green glossy foliage on an upright to spreading herbaceous tropical. Crossandras are excellent for mixed containers and in the garden for bright color in shaded areas where they often flower until frost. If kept from freezing temperatures they can easily reach 3-4' high or can easily be pruned to keep them in bounds. Item# 9820

Spikes of light clear blue, 2" long, nectar-rich, tubular flowers are held against a foil of medium to deep green quilted, anise-scented foliage and are produced from spring into fall attracting hummingbirds and other pollinators. Argentina Skies Salvia or Anise Sage, a selection of Salvia guaranitica or now S. coerulea, is a vigorous rhizomatous and tuberous perennial Salvia slowly developing into a tall groundcover-like mass of upright stems, foliage, and flowers. Provide a full sun to partially shaded site in a rich, moist to average moist, fertile soil with average or better drainage for optimum vigor and flowering. Item# 9948

An unusual bicolored Mexican Petunia, Aztec Pink and White™ Ruellia produces pure white trumpets with contrasting magenta throats that are born freely from late spring or early summer until first frost to year round under warm tropical conditions atop medium-sized sturdy stems. This Mexican Petunia is a relatively new, compact, seed and pollen sterile selection that can spend more energy on flowering instead of adding unwanted seedlings to the garden. It is a naturally evergreen, rhizomatous or spreading, tropical perennial that is grown as a die-back perennial in zones 8-9. It can be grown as a low maintenance container specimen plant, in mixed container gardens, as well as in the garden and landscape. It can also be used as a medium-sized groundcover in difficult sites. The flowers attract bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds. Provide Mexican Petunias with a full to part sun site in an average moist to wet, fertile soil for optimum vigor and flowering. Item# 12599

Medium height and sterile! Aztec Purple™ Ruellia or Mexican Petunia produces purple trumpets that are born freely from late spring or early summer until first frost to year round under warm tropical conditions atop medium-sized sturdy stems. This Mexican Petunia is a relatively new, compact, seed and pollen sterile selection that can spend more energy on flowering instead of adding unwanted seedlings to the garden. It is a naturally evergreen, rhizomatous or spreading, tropical perennial that is grown as a die-back perennial in zones 8-9. It can be grown as a low maintenance container specimen plant, in mixed container gardens, as well as in the garden and landscape. It can also be used as a medium-sized groundcover in difficult sites. The flowers attract bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds. Provide Mexican Petunias with a full to part sun site in an average moist to wet, fertile soil for optimum vigor and flowering. Item# 12780

4-5" wide flowers with white petals and sepals are topped by a crown of white filaments with a light purple halo surrounding the central portion of these exotic looking flowers. Bahama Blue Passion Flower is a beautiful and vigorous free flowering selection of the Blue Crown Passion Flower, Passiflora caerulea, with all its hardiness and reliability. The nectar rich flowers are adored by larger bees and the foliage is a host to a variety of butterflies. Caterpillar host: Gulf Fritillary, Julia Butterfly, Variegated Fritillary, and Zebra Longwing. Provide a full to mostly sunny site in a moderately fertile, average moist, well-drained soil for optimum vigor and flowering. Click on "More Details and Growing Info" or the image to learn more about growing Passionvines as perennials in containers or in the garden and landscape. Item# 11222

A succession of red tubular blooms that end in a purple bat-like 'face' are topped by a pair of glowing red 'ears' creating the interesting 'bat face' look. Batface Cuphea, or Georgia Scarlet Batface Cuphea, is a tough and reliable low mounding perennial which blooms from late spring to frost. Provide a well-drained soil with full to mostly sun for the best results. An excellent choice for hummingbirds, mixed containers, hanging baskets, and in mass plantings. Item# 1220

The beautiful, unusual and almost alien looking burgundy, bronze, and green colored dutchman's pipe-like flowers are produced during the growing season atop the smooth and glossy olive green variegated foliage. Bejuco de Santiago, or Contribo in its native Belize, is an easy to grow, evergreen, vigorous twining tropical climber that is small enough to be enjoyed on a 3-4' trellis although it can climb to 12-15'H if given support. The foliage and dense habit are decorative and showy even when the plant is not in flower. Bejuco de Santiago can tolerate full sun but the foliage seems to be at its best where the plant receives some shade or filtered sun during the heat of the day. Caterpillar host: Polydamas and Pipevine Swallowtail. Item# 3123

The intensely fragrant, up to 4" wide, double white flowers may produced throughout much of the year under warm tropical conditions and are held against a foil of large glossy dark green foliage. Belmont Gardenia is almost old enough to be an heirloom variety being patented in 1934 by Walter E. Lenk on Belmont Estate, Massachussets. In his patent application, PP93, he states that "The variety is an extraordinarily heavy producer and can be propagated rapidly. If not pinched back this variety blooms almost continuously and readily adapts itself to maximum production of blossoms in the Winter when they are so valuable." Obviously, Mr. Lenk developed it for greenhouse production but it has proven to be a highly desirable Gardenia clone that is still popular today and has proven to be hardy into zone 7. It is fairly similar to Aimee Yoshioka and Miami Supreme in vigor and flower size. In the garden and landscape, expect flowering to be heaviest in spring and summer with some repeat flowering into fall on mature plants. Item# 12299

The bracts start out chartreuse to yellow and quickly begin to take on bronze tones and mature to a deep brick red. A favorite among hummingbirds, the nectar rich, tubular white flowers peak out from between the bracts and have maroon bee guides on the lower lip. The Bicolor Red Shrimp Plant, a selection of Justicia brandeegeana, is a heat loving, naturally evergreen, bushy, tropical plant with dark olive green foliage and grows to about 24" high by about 18" wide. The foliage of these plants may eventually show white and cream variegation as they were propagated from variegated mother plants. The Red Shrimp Plants can be enjoyed both as container plants as specimens or in mixed company as well as in the garden and landscape. It is both full sun and bright shade tolerant but tends to have the densest branching habit where it receives at least 4 hours or more of direct sunlight. Provide an average to well-drained, moderately fertile, average moist soil for optimum vigor and flowering. The Red Shrimp Plant is an RHS Award of Garden Merit winner. Caterpillar host: Cuban Crescent, Texan Crescent, White Peacock, and Malachite. Item# 12909

Conical spikes of deep red, 3" long tubular flowers are produced nearly continuously throughout the growing season on this vigorous and easy to grow shrub to shrub-like perennial. Bidwill's Coral Tree is a hybrid of our native Mamou Bean, Erythrina herbacea, and the tropical Crybaby Tree, Erythrina crista-galli, combining the best features of both parents. It has the cold hardiness of the Mamou and the continuous flowering of the Crybaby and the hummingbirds flock to the intense red tubular flowers. Easy to grow and establish, it is perennial in areas where freezes are common and becomes more shrub-like in zones 9, 10, and 11. Item# 11083

The large sleepy scarlet blooms of 'Big Momma' are held upright on woody stems from late spring to fall or even year round in mild winter climates. This hybrid Greg Grant selection produces a large, vigorous, and free flowering Turk's Cap that revels in the heat and the sun of Southern summers. A hummingbird and butterfly magnet! Item# 1081

Arching 2-3" long spikes adorned with numerous whitish to greenish tiny flowers are produced from the leaf axils with pollinated flowers producing small round, 1/5" diameter fruits that start out green and mature through orange-red to black. The Black Pepper Plant is a tropical, evergreen vine with glossy, deep green foliage. It uses adventitious roots to support itself on the bark of nearby trees, shrubs, or wooden trellises and supports. It branches readily creating a full lush decorative vine. Black Pepper prefers a mildly acidic to neutral, average moist to moist, well-drained soil rich in organic matter but should not be allowed to remain soggy wet. Item# 12581

The large rounded flower clusters open a soft lemony yellow, darken to apricot and coral, and finally fade into shades of pastel orange. Bloomify™ Mango Lantana is a sterile dwarf cultivar with a compact, well-branched upright to rounded habit lending it to use near the front of the garden and landscape, in mixed contaiener gardens, and as specimen container plants. Since the Bloomify™ Lantanas do not waste energy on fruit and seed production they can spend that much more time flowering! The flowers are sure to attract a myriad of pollinators with their nectar rich flowers. Provide a full to mostly sunny site in a fertile, average moist soil for optimum vigor and continuous flowering. Item# 12409

The rounded flower clusters open sunny yellow and deepen into shades of orange as they mature. Bloomify™ Orange Lantana is a sterile dwarf cultivar with a compact, well-branched upright to rounded habit lending it to use near the front of the garden and landscape, in mixed contaiener gardens, and as specimen container plants. Since the Bloomify™ Lantanas do not waste energy on fruit and seed production they can spend that much more time flowering! The flowers are sure to attract a myriad of pollinators with their nectar rich flowers. Provide a full to mostly sunny site in a fertile, average moist soil for optimum vigor and continuous flowering. Images courtesy of Ball Horticulture Company, all rights reserved. Item# 12589

Bloomify™ Pink Improved Lantana produces rounded clusters of flowers that open a sunny yellow, fade through orangey pink, and finally darkening to near fuchsia. These are compact and free flowering plants with a naturally dwarf rounded habit. Since they don't have to spend energy on ripening fruit they can spend much more time flowering. The compact habit of the Bloomify™ Lantanas make them an easy choice for containers or in the garden and landscape. Attracts butterflies and other pollinators. The Bloomify™ Lantana series are the first certified sterile Lantana on the market. Bloomify™ Pink Improved sports slightly darker pink flowers than the original form. Images courtesy of Ball Horticulture Company, all rights reserved. Item# 13307