The closing of EuroAmerican Propagators earlier this year left a big hole in the market for some products Euro was well known for, including succulents. Pair this closing of a large supplier with continuing demand for upwardly trending succulents and what do you get? A tremendous opportunity for growers to step in with quality plants of their own.

One of the growers who has stepped in to fill holes in the succulent and tropical plant liner market is Botany Lane Greenhouse and its three well-situated locations: Boulder County and Denver, Colorado, and their most recent location in Edinberg, Texas, in the Rio Grande Valley. They’ve been producing succulents for 10 years now, and Managing Partner/General Manager Scott Fulton said demand is only continuing to grow. We all know that it’s the succulents’ interesting colors and shapes that have attracted the attention of folks who are new to having plants in their lives; i.e. Millennials and Gen Zers. What gives Botany Lane’s succulent program that extra pizzazz is what they call “Mile High Light” plus cool nights, both results of being so high up in the Colorado mountains.

With more than 300 varieties (50 of those echeveria) of succulent liners, Botany Lane certainly has a large menu to offer growers and grower-retailers. For retailers they are also producing retail-ready succulent planters for end consumers wanting an indoor/outdoor option.

Just four years ago Botany Lane expanded into Texas, where they’ve increased their tropicals production. Some of the key tropicals lines that they produce are bougainvillea, Hollywood hibiscus (below), Summer Romance mandevilla and adeniums.

I was emailing with Scott about how business has been over the last year and he says sales have been progressing nicely. Tropical liners are up 34% year over year, and succulent liners are up a whopping 268%. Nice, indeed! With such rapid growth there’s always that lure of slacking on something like great genetics to get even further ahead, but not in their case, Scott says. They are committed to providing the best genetics possible.

They’re shipping all over the U.S. and up to Canada, too. So if you’ve experienced shortages or are just looking for a new and consistent source of succulents and tropicals, you just might find it at Botany Lane.  

And it’s an award-winner, too. Canna South Pacific Orange from Takii just won a 2018 All-America Selections (AAS) award. Orange comes from good genes; it joins its sister, South Pacific Scarlet, which won the award in 2013. And just like its sister, Orange is compact and well-suited for both landscapes and containers. Plus look at that color!

The bonus with the South Pacific canna varieties is that they are grown from seed. This means that there’s less of a chance of these guys developing disease. AAS Winners, as you know, have been trialed extensively against existing varieties that are considered best in class. So beating the best means something! Great color, less disease, multiple uses—it’s another great tropical variety from Takii.  

The first week of November saw the “redux” of The Landscape Show take place in Orlando, Florida. Despite the change of dates from September to November (thanks, Irma), there were plenty of attendees, vendors and presenters who showed up in force for what some called “impressive,” “reinvigorating” and “reassuring,” according to FNGLA’s Ben Bolusky.

About 270 businesses were able to exhibit at The Landscape Show, and the good folks at The Garden Center Group were once again able to lead a team of garden retailers and landscape professionals through the show to select the best new products. In all, 14 products from 12 businesses received the Retailers’ Choice Cool Product Awards.

I’ve got a few of the vendor winners here for a total of five tropical, landscape-appropriate plants.

Aechmea x America and Aechmea tayoensis from Bullis Bromeliads. America’s cobalt blue and hot pink blooms look a bit like floral fireworks. Maybe that’s why the name is so patriotic. Aechmea tayoensis is an Ecuadorian native that doesn’t look much like a bromeliad at all, what with that soft foliage.

Aechmea x America 

Aechmea tayoensis  

Alpinia purpurata Tomi Pink ginger and Cordyline Candy Cane from Excelsa Gardens. The ginger has lovely soft-pink flower bracts tipped with pink and are totally appropriate as cut flowers. Grows 6-10 ft. high in full to partial sun. The cordyline has pure white leaves with the candy cane striping on its leaves. A nice holiday touch! Grows 7 ft. tall in partial sun to shade.

Alpinia purpurata Tomi Pink ginger  

Cordyline Candy Cane  

Eugenia brasiliensis, or Grumichama from Hopkins Tropical Fruit Nursery. Known as the Brazilian cherry, grumichama is a medium-sized Brazilian tree that bears purply-black fruits with a sweet cherry/plum flavor. The blooms smell like something completely different: hickory-smoked bacon!

As soon as you hear the turkey gobbling, you can be assured FNGLA’s TPIE (Tropical Plant International Expo) is right around the corner. It’s happening at the Broward County Convention Center in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, on January 17-19.

Aside from the hundreds of booths and even more new products, I’m really looking forward to this year’s Opening Session (January 17, 9:00-10:00 a.m.). This keynote will be given by Maxwell Luthy, head of the North American office of TrendWatching—a source where I go myself to find out what’s hot in the consumer world. Max will tell you about the consumer trends that will come along by 2020, the innovations they are driving and the opportunities they are presenting to your business. Can’t-miss information for the tropicals industry!

I’ll follow up in the next couple of weeks to give you details on some of the interiorscaping, design and pre-show tour information. But for now, be sure to register and get your hotel rooms reserved PRONTO!  

Great question! I have no idea! But it keeps popping up in my Google news feed that searches for “tropical plant” news.

From what I can tell, pandan is the latest “it” ingredient in the culinary world and the latest love of celebrity British chef Nigella Lawson and other chefs. Pandanus amaryllifolius is a sweet leaf used in South Asian and Southeast Asian cuisine to flavor sticky rice and puddings. Saveur magazine calls it “the vanilla of Southeast Asia,” but says it’s equally tasty wrapped around coconut and chile marinated chicken. You can even infuse it in your favorite booze.

Don’t know about you, but now I’m hungry for pudding!