Check them all out here: Tropical Garden Plant Photos











SEE ALL THE PICS ON MY BLOG:

Melbourne Beach Gardens

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Exotica Tropicals
Plant Nursery
Brevard Florida

I messed up this post last night---here's the revised.

Congrats on the spectacuar red-leaf.

My yard has flowering Heliconia rostrata for the first time since the two bad winters.  The plants look a bit ratty, but the flowers are fine.  So this should be a great summer for the tropical plants in our yards.

For example, here's a Darwin palm (Carpentaria) that just shed an old leaf and immediately unfurled the inflorescence hiding under it.  Took just a day or so to unfurl and open for business.  Like other things in the yard, the Darwin suffered frozen leaves.  Now it's back to normal. 

Not that my yard's anywhere near as spectacular or well-tended as yours.  Especially not as well-tended.

Edited: 05/21/2012 at 06:43 AM by ww

looking good! I need more plants.

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If you're not part of the solution, you're part of the precipitate.

I should have a retail store opening in about a month or so in Indian Harbour Beach off the A1A. I plan on having loads of cool tropical stuff..

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Exotica Tropicals
Plant Nursery
Brevard Florida

Oh boy, going retail??? Good luck!

Nice location though. Right on A1A should help pulling in drive-bys.

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surf forecast

Well, what I've done really is relocate my office. Into a bigger space where I also have a good sized outdoor area for plants, etc. It's zoned retail, and I've been setting things up by the book so I shouldnt have any issues down the road.

My neighbors were getting old and cranky about a bunch of cars showing up on the Saturday sales. They don't have much else to do but get in a huff over stuff like that.. so it went to the HOA and blah blah blah

I was enjoying having the garden tours, and technically they can't stop me from doing that. Its the selling of plants that is the issue.. zoning, etc. So I am in the process of moving that stuff to this new location and exapanding on it a bit further to make for a cooler selection, etc.

So I'm still going to do garden tours a couple times a year at my house.. and my office will be worked into a now-bigger-than-I had-at-home plants space. Plus I will be available on somewhat regular hours to check out new cool plants, etc.

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Exotica Tropicals
Plant Nursery
Brevard Florida

Edited: 05/23/2012 at 03:01 PM by paddleout

I'm afraid I had guessed the HOA would go bonkers.  I don't have one, so there's no one to express neighbors' fears that my yard is a haven for snakes and rabbits, not to mention some moles.  

After years of puttering along, my little blolly tree is starting to look like something.  Maybe it'll actually flower.  Regrettably, my favorite blolly at the beach was recently cut down.

BTW, for those a bit inland with moist yards, it turns out that American elm is something of a tropical--it's documented from one of the orchid havens in Collier County.

Heh, yeah I expected them to get all over me as well. It lasted about as long as I figured it would I suppose. It's really too bad, though, because the yard- being mature and in the state its in, was a very pleasant spot to hold a sale.. not to mention helpful when showing people what things look like when they grow bigger.

But what are you going to do with an HOA, right? I'm still going to hold garden tours on occasion- there's not much anyone can say about that- its isnt any different than the bridge parties they host

So I lament that loss, but it doesn't suprise me, and I wasn't about to fight over it.. I learned that there is some interest out there and I should continue to sell plants, so I'm going to create a setup that will work better. I'm just bummed there won't be a 20 foot Attalea palm on site :/



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Exotica Tropicals
Plant Nursery
Brevard Florida

No pic of the Attalea?? It has become one of my favorite palms, but mine is small. Just started my jungle recently.

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KCCO

 

 

 

An outfit called the Garden Conservancy coordinates "open garden" days.  Vero had five open gardens on their day this year.  One yard (actually just a short walk from my place) is well designed and has a really nice collection of palms, cycads, and bamboo.  One was new, huge, well-designed (Zoysia grass!), two others were neat old houses, and the last was a thoughtfully designed, comfortable, and private waterfront in an area where the neighbors could be all too visible.  Paddleout's yard is as good as any of them.

Brian:

We need to support your new shop. You've helped a lot of people here with unique plants and their yards. Keep us in the loop on the shop opening. We're here for ya! Your a community asset!

Thanks again!

Do you still have any of the bromeliad pups that you sold out of at the founders days sale?

Hey ofd yes ive got more here at the house. Give me a call if you are interested

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Exotica Tropicals
Plant Nursery
Brevard Florida

Harbour- which attalea do you have?

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Exotica Tropicals
Plant Nursery
Brevard Florida

I believe it is a attalea cohune

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KCCO

 

 

 

My red feather busted a new frond also:



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surf forecast

Thanks for For the info! and I excited to see my first bloom from this Helconia I got from you at CFLDave's



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Time and tide wait for no one.....

Edited: 05/28/2012 at 08:25 PM by 2nd Light Forums Moderator

Hey KP thats actually Heliconia Marginata x Bihai "Rauliana" not H. Rostrata

Which is even sweeter because that is a really cool heliconia with a incredible bloom. You are gonna love that one.. It comes out kinda upright at first
And then starts to spiral over into a semi pendant. Its actually a cross of an upright with a pendant and the blooms can get really big.
With any luck if you've got other stalks that size in the clump, those will bloom as well. Keep the pics coming!



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Exotica Tropicals
Plant Nursery
Brevard Florida

Edited: 05/28/2012 at 08:31 PM by paddleout

You can see the bloom of that one in this shot:



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Exotica Tropicals
Plant Nursery
Brevard Florida

Brian:

We need to support your new shop. You've helped a lot of people here with unique plants and their yards. Keep us in the loop on the shop opening. We're here for ya! Your a community asset!

Thanks again!

 

What Smitty said...thanks Brian, our Heliconia and Crinums are doing great. Looking forward to a closer drive.