Bixa orellana, the Lipstick Tree, has to be one of the most fascinating plants found anywhere. It has been valuable, versatile and popular for so long that no one knows exactly where in the New World Tropics it originated. The species name honors Francisco de Orellana, a Spanish conquistador of the 16th century, who, according…
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Many of us reside in southern Florida because of the wonderful winter climate that permits us not only to enjoy the great outdoors without bundling up, but to cultivate thousands of tropical plants. However, as the old saying goes, there is no good unalloyed, and not every plant is benign. If you own a dog…
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One of the most successful flowering tree introductions to southern Florida in the past 15 years has been Cassia bakeriana. Native to Thailand and Burma (Myanmar), the Pink Shower Tree blooms profusely in the spring, producing flowers that progress from pink to lighter pink to white. The flowers attract butterflies and bees. Newly-emerging leaves are…
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The folks at Richard Lyons’ Nursery are eager to let you in on one of the best-kept secrets in the tropical plant community: The Bridalveil Tree is a great plant! Native to northern South America, Caesalpinia granadillo is a moderate-sized tree that assumes a vase-shaped profile at maturity. In its home region, the Bridalveil reaches…
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Here’s another in the series of interesting newsletters that Richard Lyons’ Nursery receives from Brooks Tropicals. This issue deals with carambola — the delightful starfruit. Brooks notes that its fruit comes from Pine Island, where soils are sandy. However, starfruit trees grow equally well in the shallow limestone soils of Miami-Dade County where Richard Lyons’…
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