The Rare - The Unique

The Rare & The Unique
in the
Tropical Plant World
Lonicera japonica
Banksia integrifolia
E
ach month we will be profiling a category of rare, unique, beautiful and just plain
interesting plants, primarily from around the tropical plant world. In many cases, our
members and visitors will want to try their green thumb in growing one or more of
these plants in their gardens if they live in the right climes, or in their green houses if they have
one or perhaps even attempt to create a mini-rain forest in a bright window in their house or
apartment.
W
I
e have made arrangements with one of the most knowledgeable tropical plant
sources in the world to provide a source to acquire these rare and unique plants.
Toptropicals.com offers a vast and exciting array of tropical plants and plant
information that is not likely to be found elsewhere.
f you find some of our rare and unique plant profiles interesting or you are searching for a
specific specimen or just want to browse through their magnificent display of the beautiful
and unusual, simply tap on toptropicals.com whenever it appears throughout our articles.
After you are transported there, you will be able to search for and find the plant of your choice
or many other rare and unique plants. toptropicals.com will have many of these plants in stock
and will be able to accept orders online and make arrangement to have your selection sent
directly to you.
This month’s profile will focus on and display some of our favorites
in the fragrant plant family.
Brunfelsia americana
Family: Solanaceae
Lady of the night
Origin: Brazil
http://toptropicals.com/catalog/uid/brunfelsia_americana.htm
Fast-growing, has creamy white flowers with long tubes,
which are extremely fragrant after dark. In some places it
is known as Lady of the Night, though a number of other
scented plants have also been given this name. It is a
specimen plant. Perfect houseplant for a bright window.
All parts of the plant are toxic, especially roots and fruits,
to a lesser degree leaves.
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Cestrum nocturnum
Family: Solanaceae
Night Blooming Jasmine, Queen of the Night, Night
Jessamine, Lady of the Night
Origin: Tropical America and the West Indies
http://toptropicals.com/catalog/uid/cestrum_nocturnum.htm
Night Blooming Jasmine is one of the most famous and
desirable fragrant plants. Flowers are pale yellow to white,
open at night and stay extremely fragrant untill sunrise.
Aroma is sweet, pleasant and intoxicating. These flowers
are widely used in India and other countries of South Asia
for perfumery, medicinal applications and in religious
ceremonies. Some parts of the plant are poisonous. Growth
habit: bushy shrub that can be trimmed as a hedge or forms
nice round shape if you let it go. When you plant Night
©www.toptropicals.com Blooming Jasmine, make sure to water it regularly until
established. Best location will be near driveway, window or entrance, where the magic
fragrance can be appreciated.
Gardenia augusta, Gardenia jasminoides
Family: Rubiaceae
Bush Gardenia, Cape Jasmine, Bunga Cina, Bush
Gardenia
Origin: South ChinaQueen of the Night, Night
Jessamine, Lady of the Night
Origin: Tropical America and the West Indies
http://toptropicals.com/catalog/uid/gardenia_augusta.htm
Gorgeous dark to bright green opposite leaves on a shrub
that can grow up to 6' with almost equal spread. Leaves are
glossy and leathery. Mature shrubs usually look round, and
have a medium texture. Blooms in mid-spring to early
summer, over a fairly long season. Flowers are white,
turning to creamy yellow as they age, and have a waxy feel.
They have a powerful, sweet fragrance, and can perfume an
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entire room. Air currents waft the scent throughout the
warm summer garden. Gardenias prefer acid, moist, well-drained soils. Use fertilizer for acid
loving plants, and use iron compounds. Add plenty of organic matter, such as compost or
ground bark, to as large an area as possible. Mulch plants instead of cultivating. A good time to
feed gardenias is mid-March, using an acid plant food, fish emulsion or blood meal. Feed the
shrubs again in late June to encourage extra flowers on everbloomers or faster growth of young
shrubs. Do not fertilize gardenias in the fall. Doing so will stimulate tender growth, which may
be killed if the temperature in winter drops below 15 degrees.
Hedychium coronarium
Family: Zingiberaceae
White Ginger, Butterfly Ginger Lily
Origin: India, Indonesiamine, Bunga Cina, Bush
Gardenia
Origin: South ChinaQueen of the Night, Night
Jessamine, Lady of the Night
Origin: Tropical America and the West Indies
http://toptropicals.com/catalog/uid/hedychium_coronarium.htm
Hedychium coronarium is a top selling ginger and the most
©www.toptropicals.com fragrant of all. In the summer and fall it bears fragrant
flowers that resemble butterflies, thus the common name, Butterfly Ginger. It is also been said
to attract butterflies. It is popular in Hawaii and the Pacific Islands were it is used in leis or
singly worn in the hair or behind the ear. It also makes a good cut flower great for scenting the
home. It is a tough plant, a light freeze will kill it to the ground, but it will come back full force
in the spring. Hedychium coronarium need light shade and a soil that is high in organic matter.
The plants should stay wet at all times, the pots may even be immersed up to the crown in
water. Fertilize weekly with a balanced fertilizer. The plants are very robust and quickly grow
out of the containers. They need to be divided yearly. Remove old stems after flowers have
faded to promote new growth. Hedychium coronarium is propagated by division in late winterearly spring. A frequent ginger in the house gardens of the Dai people along the Mekong river, it
is used in local medicine to treat cold, headache, arthritis, and injuries. Sometimes this plant is
called Alpinia alba which is incorrect name.
Jasminum sambac Arabian Knights, Nyctanthes sambac
Family: Oleaceae
Arabian Knights tea jasmine, Arabian Nights,
Sampaguitas, Arabian Jasmine, Hawaiian Pikake
Origin: India, widely cultivated in South Chinamine,
Bunga Cina, Bush Gardenia
Origin: South ChinaQueen of the Night, Night
Jessamine, Lady of the Night
Origin: Tropical America and the West Indies
http://toptropicals.com/catalog/uid/jasminum_arabianknights.htm
Called pikake in Hawaii, Sambac is the plant used to flavor
©www.toptropicals.com the jasmine tea and making perfumes. Perfect houseplant,
takes both sun or shade, Jasminum Sambac is a beautiful fragrant everbloomer for your home
and garden. This variety is close to Maid of Orleans, but has double flowers (smaller size than
Grand Duke). Tolerates some shade. Slow growing variety.
Lonchocarpus violaceus
Family: Faboideae / Leguminosae / Papilionaceae
Lilac Tree, Dotted Lancepod, Chaperno
Origin: Africa
Origin: India, widely cultivated in South Chinamine,
Bunga Cina, Bush Gardenia
Origin: South ChinaQueen of the Night, Night Jessamine, Lady of the Night
Origin: Tropical America and the West Indies
http://toptropicals.com/catalog/uid/lonchocarpus_violaceus.htm
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Evergreen tree with a fast-growing, dense canopy.
Produces lilac-fragrant, lavender, showy flowers during the
late summer/fall. Produces long, slender, seed pods.
Typically 25-35ft in height. Plant at least 30 feet from
power lines and 16-22 feet from your house. Water during
planting and for one year thereafter.
Magnolia champaca, Michelia champaca
Family: Magnoliaceae
Joy perfume tree, Huang Yu Lan, Safa
Origin: India, Indonesia
Origin: India, widely cultivated in South Chinamine,
Bunga Cina, Bush Gardenia
Origin: South ChinaQueen of the Night, Night Jessamine, Lady of the Night
Origin: Tropical America and the West Indies
http://toptropicals.com/catalog/uid/michelia_champaca.htm
The flowers from this tree are used to make the world's most expensive perfume 'Joy.' The
extremely aromatic orange blooms appear nearly all year round. Grows to the size of a large
shrub or small tree, 15-20' in height. It is a tropical tree, however established plants can tolerate
light freeze. Yellow Champaca is much more cold tolerant than var. Alba.
People did not invent JOY perfume, Nature made this creation leading to the development of
JOY. Michelia flowers produce in great quantities. On a warm humid night, the scents can
easily be enjoyed several hundred feet away. The smell is heavenly.
More fragrant plants you may want to investigate
Acacia farnesiana - Sweet Mimosa
Aglaia odorata - Chinese Perfume Plant
Albizia julibrissin - Silk Mimosa
Aloysia virgata - Almond Bush
Artabotrys hexapetalus - Ylang Ylang vine
Beaumontia grandiflora - Easter Lily Vine
Bolusanthus speciosus - Tree Wisteria
Brugmansia suaveolens - Angel Trumpet
Brunfelsia densifolia
Brunfelsia grandiflora
Brunfelsia isola - Lavender Lady of the Night
Caesalpinia mexicana - fragrant Yellow
Camphor Basil (Ocimum kilimanscharicum)
Cananga fruticosa - Dwarf Ylang-Ylang
Cananga odorata - Ylang Ylang
Cassia nodosa hybrid - Pink Shower, Appleblossom - grafted
Cerbera odollam - Sea Mango
Cestrum diurnum - White Chocolate Jasmine, Day Blooming
Jasmine
Chonemorpha penangensis - Frangipani vine
Citharexylum spinosum - Fiddlewood
Clerodendrum bungei - Glory Bower
Clerodendrum minahasse - Fountain Clerodendrum
Clerodendrum philippinum - Cashmere Bouqet
Clerodendrum sahelangii - Champagne Clerodendrum
Clerodendrum schmitii
Crinum pedunculatum - Spider lily
Elaeocarpus decipiens - Japanese Blueberry Tree
Epiphyllum oxypetalum
Erblichia odorata - Flor de Fuego
Euphorbia leucocephala - Snows of Kilimanjaro
Fagraea ceilanica - Pua Keni Keni
Gardenia Aimee Yoshioka - grafted
Gardenia Belmont - grafted
Gardenia Coral Gables - grafted
Gardenia cornuta
Gardenia Frost Proof
Gardenia gjellerupii
Gardenia Glazerii - grafted
Gardenia Kleims Hardy
Gardenia Mary Ann - grafted
Gardenia Mystery - grafted
Gardenia Mystery Improved - grafted
Gardenia posoqueria (nitida)
Gardenia Radicans - grafted
Gardenia taitensis Heaven Scent (double flower)
Gardenia taitensis Tiare Tahiti
Gardenia thunbergia
Gardenia tubifera Kula - Golden Gardenia
Gardenia Veitchii - grafted
Gardenia Vietnamensis
Gardenia volkensii ssp. Spathulifolia
Gelsemium sempervirens - Carolina Jasmine
Hiptage benghalensis - Helicopter Flower
Iboza riparia - Musk Bush
Illicium parviflorum - Yellow Anise, Licorice
Jasminum adenophyllum - Bluegrape jasmine
Jasminum dichotomum
Jasminum humile - Italian jasmine
Jasminum Molle - Indian Jui
Jasminum nitidum - Star Jasmine
Jasminum odoratissimum - Yellow (fruity) jasmine
Jasminum officinale - French Perfume Jasmine
Jasminum polyanthum - Pink Winter Jasmine
Jasminum pubescens - Angel Hair Jasmine
Jasminum sambac Belle of India (var. Elongata)
Jasminum sambac Grand Duke
Jasminum sambac Maid of Orleans
Jasminum sambac Mali Chat
Jasminum sambac Mysore Mulli
Jasminum volubile - Wax Jasmine
Kopsia singaporensis
Lonicera japonica - Japanese Honeysuckle
Magnolia (Michelia) figo
Magnolia (Michelia) x Alba grafted
Magnolia grandiflora
Melia azedarach - Chinaberry tree
Nyctanthes arbor-tristis - Parijat
Osmanthus fragrans forma aurantiacus
Philenoptera violacea - Mupandapanda
Plumeria rubra Pink
Portlandia latifolia - Dwarf Bell Flower
Quisqualis - Rangoon Creeper, Thai Double Flower
Quisqualis Indica - single flower
Radermachera Kunming - Dwarf Tree Jasmine
Rondeletia leucophylla - Panama Rose
Saraca bijuga
Saraca indica - Ashoka Tree
Satureja Viminea (Kama Sutra Mint Tree)
Selenicereus pteranthus
Solandra grandiflora - Cup of Gold, Chalice Vine
Stemmadenia galeottiana - Milky Way tree
Stephanotis floribunda - Bridal Bouquet
Tabernaemontana Flore Pleno
Thevetia ovata
Trachelospermum asiaticum
Trachelospermum jasminoides - Confederate Jasmine
Vigna (Phaseolus) giganteus
Wrightia vietnamensis - Dwarf