A workhorse in the tropical garden! If your tropical garden is shady, take a look at our Leafy Plants category too Looking for more perennial plants with blue flowers? Visit Van Meuwen now for quality exotic plants at low prices. Although it produces cream to yellow flowers in the summer, followed by inedible fruit, it is mostly grown for its large, tropical looking leaves. We are actually going to do just that with our 2 large pots of elephant ears! Agapanthus By Hedwig Storch (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0], via Wikimedia Commons. Before you start searching for tropical garden plants for sale online there are a few things you need to know. Photo by ‘Amazon‘. The perennial version requires more water than the bush, and dies down to the ground in the winter. All the plants florished here with the proper nutrients/fertilizer added her garden grew beyond even her expectations. And make sure you read our post on how to grow bamboo. Browse 214 Hardy Tropical Plants on Houzz Whether you want inspiration for planning hardy tropical plants or are building designer hardy tropical plants from scratch, Houzz has 214 pictures from the best designers, decorators, and architects in the country, including Eakman Construction Company and Fazzolari Custom Homes & Renovations. Hardy Tropicals is devoted to growing cold hardy plants and tropical gardening. We cover an extensive variety of cold hardy plants in our plantabase. Both in free and red leaved forms. It should be planted in a location that is protected from the wind, since the large leaves are susceptible to wind damage. Oh, did we mention it’s hardy down to zone 4? Pay attention to the zones for the particular variety that you are looking at…some of them are only hardy in warm zones, while some only grow well in cooler areas. You will be surprised on the wide variety of hardy tropical plants on offer these days. A flowering orchid is the quintessential tropical plant… Japanese Aralia has huge leaves that are up to 12″ across and can grow to be quite a large plant. When the weather froze in the fall I left the dead leaves and plant material where they laid/fell, not sure if like calla lilies the stalks are their food for spring blooms and it also provided protection from the cold and I did not need to mulch as much. Some of them are pretty hardy in all but the coldest climates (hey, there are places even roses won’t grow!) bamboos in tropical garden. We sell fully hardy plants, plants that require some winter protection in the UK, and some plants which need to be kept free of frost at all times. Hardy Exotics is at the heart of exotic gardening in the UK. My mom loves the tropical plants of Hawaii and wanted to have her own little tropical garden. We pinch ours back when about 12 inches high to create a busier plant. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. We are dedicated to tropical plant enthusiasts who live outside of the tropics but still enjoy growing tropicals where they live. If you wish to share our content, please click here to see our conditions. If you enjoyed learning about how to grow hardy tropical plants, we think you will love our posts on Privacy with Plants and How to Grow Orchids. Using these strategies, it is possible to grow almost any tropical plant in zone 8. Add a water feature or two and you can have your own garden of paradise. If you live in a region that gets frosts in winter, enjoy them as indoor and conservatory plants. Home / Garden Plants / Tropical & Exotic Plants; Share. They have a more limited color selection (pinks, reds and whites) but the extra-showy flowers are worth it! This topic is normally interesting but your outstanding writing skill makes it more enjoyable. See more ideas about plants, outdoor plants, planting flowers. Thats a REALLY good question! Photo by ‘BHG‘. Like I said previously, they do spread through their root system almost like a big hard vine structure that forms these ball shape bulbs every so far on the roots. Often used at tropical location hotels. Hardy Plants to Try 1. ‘Missouri Botanical Garden‘. Bloom Time: Late Summer to Fall (earlier in the South). May 15, 2020 - Explore Diane Cahill's board "Tropical Plants for Zone 7" on Pinterest. The fun thing is to combine hardy plants with real tropicals and I agree, a few cannas, banana plants, even a palm tree bought in the houseplant section of the local store adds to the tropical look. Bamboo definitely gives that tropical look and zen feeling to your garden. They cling to surfaces using aerial rootlets which makes them able to hang on to pretty much any structure. When i first saw about 3 years ago that it can be grown also outside i was so happy. Cold Hardy tropical plants including Curcuma (Hidden Cone Ginger), Canna (Canna Lilies), Musa (Banana), Hedychium (Ginger Lilies) and more. Height: 3′ to 20′ (depending on the variety). Loved your article on tropical plants being grown in less than tropical areas. Cisco Morris from ‘The Seattle Times’ has a great tutorial on how to prep your hardy banana for winter. And most of us don’t live in such exotic growing zones. I want to try to grow alocasias, windmill palm, lantana, and some other tropicals. Generally grows 10- 20 feet tall, in full to partial sun. All the other plants grew and some multiplied just as well as the banana tree’s. To achieve the look, you need a mix of stunning flowers and lush, large-leaved greenery, planted fairly close together to create a layered wall of plants. Group them together with other varieties of hostas and you will have a lush ground cover. To our surprise the bulb/root (which is very hard & almost impossible to seperate or divide) produced offshoots from the “mother bulb/ root”. Even the small candy bar sized chunk! (All of you lounging under your palm trees in Florida, stop laughing at us. ) Dracaena reflexa (Song of Jamaica) From $11.00. Lol. Japanese fiber banana (Musa basjoo) doesn't have the beautiful coloration of the more tropical ornamental bananas, but it's much more cold-hardy (hardy to USDA Zone 6, and, well mulched, has even come back from -20 degrees F). Lily of the Nile produces beautiful blue balls of flowers on long flower stalks that will add some architectural interest to your garden. See more ideas about plants, tropical plants, tropical. The toad lily is an exotic looking hardy lily plant that blooms in August and September, in the shade! © 2020 Gardening @ From House To Home - WordPress Theme by Kadence WP, Tropical-Looking Plants: 10 Hardy Perennials & Shrubs That Look Tropical, Low Maintenance Gardening (10 Tips For Creating An Easy To Maintain Garden), Shed Organization: 8 Easy and Inexpensive DIY Garden Tool Storage Ideas. To find out the cultivars check out this post on Gardening Know How. Below is a list of drought hardy tropical plants, in case you are not in a position where you can water regularly. Learn how your comment data is processed. We have developed a unique collection of exotic looking plants most of which are propagated and grown on site. Plant tropical varieties in spring, so … Protect from afternoon sun, and keep well watered. Aug 4, 2014 - Explore Connie Thomas's board "Tropical outdoor plants" on Pinterest. Click here to see our post. They don’t go dormant in their native environment, so in theory this should work! More Information About Tropical Looking Plants. Tropical plants like water, and although there are some tropical plants which can withstand long periods of drought, most will look best with regular watering. Large leaves on this tropical plant. After the tree produced the fruit it died back completely. Planting; by Justin Case on December 17, 2018 0 Comments. An essential component of aquatic ecosystems, including your garden pond, are plants! Some of them come back every year, but a few others are annuals you can use to fill in your tropical garden as it grows. It is extremely hard to divide them then..it can be done and all parts of the root WILL REGROW.. Most areas also have very pretty native ferns which are really easy to grow since they are so well adapted to the climate. I also get my washingtonia robusta out when the morning temperature doesn’t go under 23 degree F which in my city is in the first 2 weeks of march, and i keep it outside until the end of november. Hardy indoor pot plant. Last year one cana lily gave flowers around nov. the 4th which was after an unusually early forst in september. (All of you lounging under your palm trees in Florida, stop laughing at us. ) Sun, partial shade, keep moist, fertilize regularly. In my city the elephant ear is a typical house plant. It is best I have found to divide them after a couple years…do not wait 7-10 or longer years.. Or maybe all of those large colorful flowers and interesting leaves command so much attention that you forget about your problems for a little while. That created an ideal growing environment for her tropical garden. They are self cleaning, which means they don’t need to be deadheaded. If you mulch well and keep the rhizome from freezing, you will have a banana come back year after year. Good luck! It requires regular watering, and can be a little finicky to get started. As an added bonus, it attracts hummingbirds and butterflies, and is deer resistant. On all hardy plants. Agave. Every year i grow cana lilies, dahlias form april until the first frost ic the second half of october or in november kills the leaves. Sweet potato vine is an annual, so not hardy anywhere except the Southern US… It is however, a very cheap bedding plant that grows very quickly to 6 feet long. Some hardy tropical looking plants can grow very big and this can mean a lot of maintenance. If you’ve never tried the Hardy Fuchsia, and only had the hanging tender variety, you are missing out, Hardy Fuchsia grow 6-10 feet high and as wide as a shrub, with the same gorgeous pendulous flowers. The more sun they get, the more water or rain they usually need. Remember, to always have hardscaping structure when trying to grow a “wilder” type of naturalized garden like this. The base of the trunks start small and grow quickly over the first few years then slow once they reach approx a foot in diameter. Hi, growing tropicals is my passion. Exotic plants are renowned for their showy blooms and lush foliage, excellent for lending an exciting jungle feel to your garden. Ok, we love ’em ’cause we can pretend to be on a beach in Fiji, or wandering around the rain forests in Hawaii, or pretty much any other place in the world where tropicals thrive. Here are 5 of the best jungle effect plants that create an exotic look for your garden but will also withstand the worst of our British weather. Your email address will not be published. There’s something about being in a garden surrounded by tropical plants that just makes you want to relax. Try a few of these cold hardy tropical plants yourself for a … Hibiscus syriacus or Rose of Sharon is a bush that has beautiful tropical-looking blooms. However, the fruit failed to ripen enough to actually eat it. Plants like the hardy banana and canna lily are proof that almost everyone can grow a garden with a tropical look and feel. All of them are worth a try for any gardener! and some of them need some winter protection. Maybe it’s because you associate them with being on vacation on a tropical island. Many gardeners grow palms in Ohio, New York and Virginia, by wrapping the tree with burlap, planting in a wind protected position, and mulching deeply. The Colocasia is a more delicate plant on this list so be careful to take inside when very cold. They even look similar to having tentacles or long fingerling like roots. Being located where we are we get what my dad called a banana belt of weather, in the summer when the wind is coming from the west to the east we get the cooling ocean breeze, and if the wind is coming from the east we get the cascades warm breeze. There are three types of hardy tropical plants we are going to cover for the sake of planning such a space. Getting that tropical look in your garden can be challenging in the UK due to our damp, cold and windy winter weather. Bamboos are the perfect plant for a tropical look; they are reliably hardy, evergreen and with a small footprint so they don't take up too much room. Order online today - Browse our huge selection of exotic plants from our tropical plant nursery in Somerset and learn how to care for them. There are so many varieties of ferns that you are sure to be able to find some that thrive in your garden. Tropical plants are often thought of as tender and difficult to maintain but some are very hardy in the UK! 1-2 feet tall and wide, this plant is hardy down to zone 4 and is a great filler between and under this larger drama plants, giving you pretty pink flowers that look like orchids. Here is your colorful foliage tropical for the shade. The hardy banana is considered winter hardy to zone 5 if well-mulched. Use … New plants grow amazinly fast.they grow to 10-12 feet tall with the leaves being 4-5 feet long and up to 2 feet wide! Greens with pinks, reds and whites mixed in so many ways. Items 1 to 30 of 71 total . Add flowering annuals, since most originate from the tropics such as hot colored marigolds, petunias, basically what ever you like. They usually grow 6 inches – 1 foot tall and as wide, and are covered all summer long with flowers in pinks, whites and reds. But once they get going, the show will be worth the wait. Of course, other options for creating a tropical garden in zone 8 include growing less cold-hardy tropicals as annuals, or moving tender plants indoors during the winter. Tropical plants need humidity, regular watering or rainfall, and frost free conditions (often over 15C). Tropical Plants you can use to Create a UK Hardy Exotic Paradise A Lush Tropical Garden for all Seasons. It's a jungle out there! Photo by ‘White Flower Farm‘. Shade and a well drained moist soil is all they need to make a glowing tropical bed or container. This mammoth plants can grow to 6 feet tall with 3 foot long leaves, and do well in partial shade. 10 Hardy Plants That Look Tropical. Tropical plants are an amazing statement to add to any garden, offering exotic design sense and wonderful texture and color. The Japanese fiber banana plant is much more cold-hardy than other tropical banana plants. The only caution with bamboo is that it can be quite invasive…so make sure that you either buy the clumping kind or grow it in a contained area (a large pot works well!). Tropical plants for zone 6 need to withstand temperatures that can dip below -10 degrees Fahrenheit (-23 C.). However, we found these hardy tropical plants you can grow, just about anywhere! Photo from ‘Fine Gardening‘. We also have our own weather station located in Chalk, Kent, England. Protect from afternoon shade and keep moist in fertile soil. Can you imagine the butterflies and hummingbirds? Hardy Tropicals — Zone Denial Garden Enthusiasts Unite. This is a really low maintenance shrub that doesn’t require pruning, unless you want to keep the size down. Photo from ‘Fast Growing Trees‘. Tropical plants are all about being bold. Colorful plants that are also hardy can be tough to find. Page: 1; 2; 3; View as: Grid List SPECIAL DEAL - Usually 17.95, today just 7.95 - Save £10! Tweet. Back Refine. Your email address will not be published. Orchids are the most varied of all plant groups—they come from all over the world from deserts to woodlands to tropical forests, but the orchids most people love are from tropical and subtropical climates. It is another fairly easy to grow plant that pretty much takes care of itself. Want to find other compact shade plants? They are low-growing and usually prefer the shade which makes them perfect for filling in the ground area under your other plants…and helps give that tropical feeling to your garden. I really enjoyed it so much. So check your local nurseries to find the ferns that suite your situation the best. Some tropical plants can be left in the ground and the crown protected with a thick layer of mulch. Cold Hardy Tropical Plants. But the flowers are so pretty it is worth a try! The Hardy Banana Plant is hardy down to below zero at the rhizome, but the leaves will freeze and fall off below 28 degrees. They are a little tricky to get started (it will probably take 2 or 3 years). Cold Hardy Tropical Plants Bamboos. Large leaves, bright colors, and strong textures can’t be overlooked in the home landscape. The most cold hardy palm grown in the U.S. is called the Windmill Palm. First of all, I would like to say thanks to you for sharing your knowledge with us. Maybe it’s because you associate them with being on vacation on a tropical island. Your email address will not be published. Hardy Tropical Plants Chusan Palms When it comes to hardy exotics, one of the most frequently asked questions by our customers is which is the best palm tree for the UK climate, with our many years of experience we know that our range of hardy palms really are suitable for the UK. The flowers are usually 3″ to 4″ across and come in many different colors, including pinks, purples, blues, whites and reds. Sorry about the length of my comment. Hardy Hibiscus grows 4-6 feet high in full sun, and has plate size tropical blooms all summer long. Most of the plants that meet the tropical description hail from warm climates like rainforests and jungles, so it’s no surprise most of them can’t survive our freezing winter temperatures. With its size and lobed leaves, it almost looks like something out of the Jurassic Park movies…a perfect addition to your tropical-looking garden! Do you dream of a lush tropical style garden with year round lush greenery but think it can't be done because you live in the UK? I love the exotic, tropical plants in all your pictures. These exotic plants make your temperate garden resemble a tropical paradise. Think carefully about colors and how dramatic you want your zone 7 garden to look. Photo by ‘Wayside Gardens‘. Colocasia. Coming in blues, purples, pinks, reds and whites, this is a show stopper! Want to learn more about how to attract hummingbirds to your garden? There are too many to list them all, so if you choose a few in each category, you are well on your way to a tropical zone! In any case, wouldn’t it be great if you could re-create that feeling in your own garden? Climbing hydrangeas have beautiful wide green leaves and bracts of white or pink flowers, and make a big show on a trellis, fence or wall. Winter Gardening Gardening Winter Plants Tropical Plants Yucca Though not a true tropical plant (the yucca hails from the Southwest and Mexico), this hardy evergreen can add striking interest to tropical … Elephant Ear is a tender tuber that can be planted anywhere, as long as you lift the tubers after the first frost and store indoors until spring. Required fields are marked *. Drought resistant, full sun, but do best well watered, with some moderate fertilizer. Photo by ‘White Flower Farm‘. © 2020 WOODARD BATES MEDIA LLC • All Rights Reserved • Site by SB. So my mother  and I are on a mission to help you do just that by sharing the DIY outdoor projects, plant suggestions and gardening tips we’ve learned through our combined 75+ years of experience. 5 Tropical Winter Hardy Evergreen Plants for UK Gardens. Definitely a plant for drama! Another plant hardy only to zone 7, but can be lifted in the fall and stored in peat or vermiculite. Plenty of friendly advice is on hand to help you choose the plants suitable for your garden climate. If you would like to learn about, or have experience of growing hardy-ish tropical/exotic looking plants in the UK or similar climates, please register on the forum and talk to us. Photo by ‘Classical Caladiums‘. A fantastic accent plant in tropical gardens. Hostas are another large-leaved perennial that can help turn your garden into a tropical-looking paradise. Plant the latter only if you want your home, yard and the nearest neighbors to be swallowed whole by the plant. They aid in oxygenating the water, filtering out pollutants and excess nutrients, and provide shade , food, and shelter for your pond’s inhabitants. You can create an exotic looking garden almost anywhere in the country. Share how you made it work in comments! H x S: 2m x 90cm. This list of hardy plants that look tropical will help you get started. Fatsia japonica, [GFDL, CC-BY-SA-3.0 or CC BY 2.5], via Wikimedia Commons. :). Photo by ‘Bella Bree‘. Originally from Mexico: A beautiful succulent plant with a thick upward spray of ‘Aloe-like’ leaves. Most warm region plants are not hardy when freezing comes into play and will simply die, but there are some plants that are hardy tropical looking plants with durable winter hardiness. Gorgeous DIY Garden Gate Ideas & Projects, Small Garden Design – Creating Illusions Of More Space, Garden Edging: Landscape Edging Ideas with Recycled Materials, Ornamental Grasses: Update Your Curb Appeal with Just One Plant. Order online today - Browse our huge selection of exotic plants from our tropical plant nursery in Somerset and learn how to care for them. The trick here is to know the difference between clumping bamboo, and running bamboo. And most of us don’t live in such exotic growing zones. Is it possible to bring a very huge pot of elephant ears inside before the frost and actually keep it in a sunny spot inside the house during the cold weather, then take it back outside in the spring….or does it have to go into a dormant state over the winter months? The passion vine is a very fast growing vine with large colorful flowers that can cover a screen in a summer. Notify me via e-mail if anyone answers my comment. Hardy to -15ºC, this is a lovely, spiky plant that forms a beautiful ball of either blue or green leaves, depending on the variety. Only this one is hardy down to zone 6! The only issue we have had in the past bringing topical indoors, is that they dry out more and get more susceptible to insects and disease. Perennial hibiscus has similar shaped flowers to the bush, but they can be more than twice as big, growing up to 10″ across. Click here to see our post. There are so many different varieties too! Refer friends × × Tropical & Exotic Plants. There’s something about being in a garden surrounded by tropical plants that just makes you want to relax. The Jungle Score Tropical plants have a number of characteristics which are adaptations to their environment. Growing cold hardy tropical plants is an exhilarating experience. Photo by ‘Missouri Botanical Garden‘. The trick to getting tropical plants to work in your garden is to mix them with British plants. Clumping bamboo has none of it’s more aggressive cousins nasty qualities, but all of the good ones. Give it a sunny spot, with free-draining soil. Unlike tropical plants, hardy plant species will tolerate and survive even the harshest of winters. Hardy down to zone 7, it can be made even more hardy by taking winter precautions. Use a range of hardier tropical trees to create a windbreak and a micro-climate in which to grow the tender specimens; the trees will also create a feeling of enclosure and seclusion. per page . While most ferns are low growing and prefer shaded areas, you can also find large 6′ varieties and some that grow in full sun. However, we found these hardy tropical plants you can grow, just about anywhere! I’m Wanda and I believe that anyone can create a relaxing garden retreat in their city backyard…no matter the size. Bamboos grow best in warm tropical climate but there are many cold hardy varieties available that you can try under USDA Zones 5-9. Watch for insects inside, and also any powdery mildew and have an insecticidal soap ready. Bird of Paradise. Our favorite is ‘Margarita’, in a lime green. Photo below by ‘Balcony Garden Web‘. (And keep those hummingbirds around!) 3 to 5m Min.temp: Frost free Full sun to part shade A multi-stemmed shrub with whorls of strappy lime green / dark green variegated leaves. Create a framework using exotic varieties, and fill them in with plants like Carex, Astranias, Miscanthus, Hostas and Japanese anemone. Creative gardening tips, ideas, & DIY projects. A well placed path, deck, or gazebo will help pull the garden together when those huge leaves, bountiful flowers and dramatic focal points start to make your world their own! I have dug some of them smaller tree’s up to divide them up and thin them out of one area. Hi, and welcome! It originates from Mexico and can form multiple trunks in the right conditions, reaching up to 2m. It requires regular watering but otherwise is fairly low maintenance. The banana tree’s multiplied over the years, from 2 to over 20 of them in all different growing ages, it has been 30 years since we planted the original 2 tree’s. The trouble is, tropical plants are just that… tropical. Caladiums can technically be made to be hardy, because they are bulbs you can dig up in the fall… When the daytime temps drop into the 50’s, dig the bulbs and leaves, let ‘em dry for a week or so, trim off the tops and store the bulbs in a warm (60°F+) ventilated area for planting next spring. They do grow amazing well in large containers/planters as well, with a generous blanket of mulch in the winter along with some shelter from the direct wind and weather. Fine with poor soil, fast growing, but can take a couple years to start blooming. In the spring when the weather warms I now remove the old dead leaves and stalks. Make sure to get a variety that is hardy in your gardening zone, since quite a few of them will only survive the winter in warmer areas. Show. Adds plenty of architectural value to a garden. So i think it will be ok for it to owerwinter in the room with tmeperature above 60 degree F. Good luck. A flowering bedding plant that is hardy to zone 9, but most of us grow it like an exotic form of petunias. Can be potted in a large container. In colder zones, it is a perennial that will die down to the ground in the winter. So we planted 2 Banana tree’s, a clumping bamboo, a trumpet vine plant, a couple hibiscus plants, several toad lilies along with several giant calla lilies to her morning sun afternoon shade garden/yard here in Washington state (chehalis). Which once they reach maturity, do grow a fruit very similar to a banana. If you are thinking about getting some bamboo for your tropical paradise, good choice. A vigorous vine that needs a strong support to grow, but will keep your garden full of tropical looking tubular yellow, orange or red flowers all summer. Full sun and something to grow onto is about all this plant needs, hardy down to zone 5. This is one of the largest herbaceous plants on earth, growing 8-10 feet tall and wide. Will need to be removed to a reasonable frost-free environment over winter. Great in containers it also can be used as a bedding plant to create some tropical lushness. Afraid I might damage or kill the first time I divided them was quickly relieved by several baby banana tree’s sprouting up through the soil once the ground warmed up. They can also be grown in a large container and moved into a frost free garage to go dormant for the winter. Tropical Garden Style with Hardy Plants by Alan Hemsley (Guild of Master Craftsman Publications, ISBN 1861082371) Exotic Gardening in Cool Climates by Miles Challis (Fourth Estate, ISBN 1857021878) The Flower-Powered Garden by Andy Vernon (Timber Press ISBN 978-1604696660) This can be found by clicking the Weather tab above. Hardy Fern Varieties (20+ Perennial Ferns That Will Survive The Winter), Spring Flower Combinations: 8 Beautiful Shade Perennials to Combine With Spring Bulbs, New 2020 Perennials (10 of the Best New Perennials For 2020), Japanese Anemones: How to Grow and Care For These Fall-blooming Flowers, Flowering Vines For Shade (9 of the Best Perennial Shade Vines That Won’t Take Over Your Garden), Your email address will not be published. Have you tried tropical in your garden? The trouble is, tropical plants are just that… tropical. Click here to see our post. Colocasia. Lots of baby shoots… Which I had to use a sharp shovel to dig and cut it apart with. Required fields are marked *.