Tropical rainforests can receive over 100 inches of rain a year! Here in the heart of Texas, we are pretty lucky to see half of that! We average around 30 inches of rainfall per year. BUT! If we get a little creative with our soil, have a good plan, and appropriate plants for your location, we can design a tropical paradise at home!
The Plants below are only a handful of elements we can use to create the feeling of being in a completely different world while understanding that water is a limited resource!
Microclimates will be a huge factor in your success with some of the plants below. South-facing walls, courtyards, atriums, swimming pools, water gardens, concrete elements like sidewalks or patios, and even large accent boulders can help keep your installation warmer in the winter.
The Bones:
Evergreen Pittosporums (above) can grow quite large, providing screening or a backdrop to our design.
Evergreen shrubs and trees, and even our cold-hardy palms, will form the year-round "bones" of the tropical design, so we are not left with a barren landscape in our brief, yet cold winters.
Other tropical-feeling evergreens include:
Japanese Yew
Loquat Trees
Viburnums
Yellow Oleander can be evergreen for us!
Oleanders do very well here, especially when planted against a south-facing wall! Protection from our cold northern winds ensures 95% success. The smaller, dwarf varieties tend to be much less cold-resistant and will need covering, replanting, or should be brought indoors during our winter storms.
Perennials:
Above: The famous Tropicana Canna Lily with its stunning foliage colors. Below: consider the foliage color AND the flower color of your canna(s).
Canna Lilies will return after going dormant in the winter. Every year, their root system grows larger and can be dug and divided in the growing season! Cannas are very adaptable to soil moisture ranging from swamp to fairly dry. Many tropical plants understand droughts.
Pro tip: Cut your cannas to the ground in June! New leaves will quickly emerge, and you'll have beautiful-looking plants in the second half of the year! Forgetting to cut them back is OK, but they can look pretty rough in August.
Red Shrimp Plants (above) are often evergreen in our average winters if they are protected from the northern wind! In colder winters, they will die back to the ground to return in the spring.
Cut these back occasionally during the summer to keep them the size you like. Otherwise, if a Shrimp Plant is happy, it can grow very tall and wide!
Variegated Shell Gingers (above) can be grown in full sun or the deepest shade! While they can flower, these perennials are grown for their beautiful foliage! It's not uncommon to have to replace them after an extremely cold winter. But we've also seen they act as evergreens in warmer microclimates!
Passion Vines! ('Incense' Passion Vine above)
Many of the Passion Vines we offer are perennials. They'll return every spring from their roots. Passion Vines "grow" well in the shade, but they need a good bit of direct sunlight to build their intricate flowers. Look for a spot that receives 6 hours.
We have so many evergreen and perennial flowering vines that would be perfect in a Tropical-themed garden. The decision on which vine(s) you want to grow is the difficult part! Other evergreen/perennial vines include:
Native Crossvine
Trumpet Vines (keep them away from your house)
Jessimine and Jasmine Vines
Firebush!
This South American native comes in a variety of sizes and leaf colors that we can use in our design. Drought and cold-tolerant, some varieties like 'Firefly' (above) will barely grow to your knee. Others, like HCWG's selection called 'Big Boy,' can grow to 6+ feet every year!
Other Tropical perennials we love include:
Esperanza
Duranta/Sky Flower
The Salvia guaranitica cultivars and hybrids like 'Amastad,' 'Black-n-Blue,' and 'Mystic Spires.'
Justicia Mexican Plume is another one of those plants like Pride of Barbados that has way too many common names because people all over the world LOVE this plant! With its larger leaves, we know this plant requires more water than other plants in this list. We like to set Mexican Plume in the morning sun or dappled shade where it can receive some energy to flower, but its leaves may stay cooler in the hot, dry Texas summer. Placing it in a spot that's protected from our wind will also slow down its drinking problems!
Tropical Annuals:
SUN PARASOL® XP Bluephoria® Mandevilla hybrid
Tropical Annuals are not true annuals! They are usually inexpensive plants grown to be discarded in the fall after the first good frost damages their leaves. These plants can be covered with heavy blankets or brought indoors when the temperatures drop below 40 degrees. Many of the plants below are well worth a little extra care in December, January, and/or February (sometimes other months too... but we never know).
Penta varieties are available in different ultimate sizes and flower colors. They can flower in sun or shade and are very popular with our hummingbirds and butterflies!
Hibiscus! We have the option of "Tropical" Hibiscus with their beautiful flower color and flower forms, or the "perennial" species and hybrids with dinner plate-size blooms and many color options!
The perennials will need more sunlight and water to perform at their best. The tropicals need protection in the winter. Often, a warm blanket on a cold night can save a tropical hibiscus for many years of enjoyment!
We can never decide on a favorite!
