Tropical Plants, Even in Winter

Fall is a great time of year for many tropical plants. You can notice the difference when the nighttime temperatures begin to drop and are not so hot. My garden is full of lush new foliage and flowers on plants that are enjoying the respite from the higher temperatures.

Many years ago, by November and December we were in full cold protection mode at Parrot Jungle, where we had to deal with frost and low dawn temperatures that sometimes entered the high 20s. We had elaborate cold protection procedures. The entire ficus hedge along SW 111th Street was covered in layers of burlap whenever we expected frost. We did the same for the cactus and succulents.

Sprinklers were placed on all the lawns and turned on when temperatures reached 38 degrees, so that as the temperature continued to drop, ice would form on the grass to protect it from freezing temperatures that dropped below 30 degrees.

I would be up all night monitoring the temperatures, checking sprinkler heads to prevent them from clogging with ice, and making the rounds of the park and plant nursery. I would turn on a pump that would push warmer groundwater into our jungle area water bodies to help protect the more sensitive tropical plants we had growing there. The dense vapor that formed above the water bodies and spread throughout our jungle would help contain the heat from the groundwater and protect the plants.

Parrot Jungle had large covered nursery structures we would warm with kerosene heaters, to protect the containerized plants put out in the park the next day so our guests could see exotic tropical foliage. Our mantra was the park had to be clean and presentable to guests when it opened at 9:30 a.m.

When the lawns turned brown and burned from the cold and frost, I would be out spraying grass paint from our 200-gallon spray rig. It was an amazing transformation and no one ever noticed. The grass was not harmed and would continue growing with new green leaf blades emerging below the painted turf.

By the late 1990s we no longer had to deal with the extensive cold protection procedures. Winters were warmer. The park had much less plant damage from cold temperatures. I began spraying the lawns with grass paint the day before expected temperatures in the low 40s or below, so I wouldn’t have to be up all night running the sprinklers. I think the last time I saw frost on those lawns was nearly 30 years ago.

Now that winter temperatures here are not as cold, I can see plants growing in our local landscapes that years ago would have succumbed to frost and freezing temperatures.

This winter I have been noticing a number of different bromeliad species blooming much earlier in my garden. While it was normal to see these plants bloom in April or May, the warmer temperatures that we now experience allow the plants to continue growing during the winter. The two photos that accompany this article are two species of bromeliads that are now blooming in my landscape.

The bromeliad in the photo that has a long red flower structure is a Pitcairnia corallina. This clone was collected in Ecuador by a friend of mine many years ago. It typically grows on the ground or on cliffs. Notice the flower structure is growing downward. Even though the plant relies on hummingbirds to pollenate its flowers, the flower structure grows along the ground. This is really unusual for a bromeliad. I now grow mine in large pots so the two- to three-foot-long flower spikes can get noticed.

This is one of those bromeliads that doesn’t hold water in a specialized structure. No potential for mosquito larvae and the lush, dense, leaf-like foliage can form an attractive bed. Once established this plant is very tolerant to drought. We had a large bed of these at Jungle Island; it tolerates the soil conditions very well and never needs to be fertilized.

The second photo is another bromeliad now blooming in my garden. It is an Aechmea lamarchei, which used to be common in older South Florida landscapes. It can form a nice large bed that can be very striking when 20 or so flower spikes emerge. This is a low-maintenance plant and the size of the bed is easily controlled. For mosquito larvae control toss granules of Bacillus thuringiensis over the bromeliads. Two or three granules of BTI in each leaf axil will control mosquito larvae for a month or so. 

Jeff Shimonski is an ISA-certified arborist municipal specialist and a retired director of horticulture at Parrot Jungle. Contact him at jeff@tropicaldesigns.com.