Tropical Bloomers

Stir up some color in your outdoor living areas with tropical foliage. Croton, caladium, and ginger are the plant world equivalent of a Hawaiian shirt, conjuring dreams of vacation and sunny tropical isles. These fabulous foliage plants aren’t hard to grow and add as much color as a flowering annual.

All three of these foliage beauties want to sink roots into soil rich in organic matter, which helps hold water and nutrients. In containers, use a mix like Coast of Maine Gardener’s Gold Organic Potting Soil. In beds, turn under an inch or two of Bumper Crop Organic Soil Builder.

Croton
Thick and leathery, croton leaves are splashed with bold hues of gold, orange, pink, red, and green. Crotons need three things to stage a spectacular show: bright light, high humidity, and warm air. Place your croton in a spot that receives at least four hours of direct sun. Give leaves and surrounding surfaces a light squirt with a hose each morning to raise humidity around the plant.

Caladium
Fancy-leaf caladiums thrive in shady conditions—partial shade is ideal. Plants grow 12 to 30 inches tall and are well-suited for containers or planting beds. Heart-shaped leaves feature colors of white, red, pink, chartreuse, and green. Leaf color diminishes with high nitrogen fertilizer, deep shade, or high soil temperature (over 85 degrees F).

Caladiums need fertilizer high in phosphorus and potassium (numbers similar to this: 5-10-10). In planting beds or large planter box-style containers, keep soil covered with a 2-inch mulch layer.

Variegated Shell Ginger
This ginger brightens partly shaded areas with gold-striped-green leaves about 2 feet long by 6 inches wide. Fertilize plants using a slow-release product mixed into soil at planting time or every 14 days with a water-soluble fertilizer. Plants thrive in containers or planting beds.

Variegated shell ginger tolerates full sun as long as soil is kept consistently moist. If leaves receive too much sunlight and not enough moisture, edges will turn brown.

Growing Tropical Foliage
• Increase humidity around croton plants by splashing leaves each morning with a light spray from the hose.
• Three things cause caladium leaf color to fade: high nitrogen fertilizer, deep shade, or high soil temperature (over 85 degrees F).
• Brown leaf edges on variegated shell ginger indicate too much sun and not enough water.