Author: Steve Turner

Rare & Unusual Tropical Trees & Plants, Flowering, Fruit, Native, Palm, Bamboo, Heliconia, Hummingbird, Butterfly

Under The Jakfruit Tree

Senna ligustrina (Privet Senna) is a small native tree/shrub rarely exceeding 8 feet tall. It blooms periodically throughout the year with clusters of bright yellow flowers and produces an abundance of viable seed which can be seen germinating underneath. It is also the host plant to several species of Sulphur Butterflies. Richard Lyons Nursery currently…
Read more


March 14, 2021 0

Under The Jakfruit Tree

Madre de Cacao (Gliricidia sepium), a fast-growing tree of Central America, it was planted by the Aztecs to provide shade for cacao plantations. That application is the source of the common name Madre de Cacao. Over the centuries, it has also come to be used to shade coffee, tea and vanilla plants. The true species…
Read more


March 7, 2021 0

Under The Jakfruit Tree

Bombax ceiba, most often referred to its common name of Red Silk Cotton Tree. Although it is native to southeast Asia and Australia, it does quite well in S. Florida. When young, it has the characteristic thorns on its trunk like other members of the Silk Cotton trees, but as it ages, the thorns disappear.…
Read more


February 28, 2021 0

Under The Jakfruit Tree

When you think of Petrea volubulis (Queen’s Wreath Vine), you naturally think of long purple sprays of blossoms, somewhat reminiscent of the temperate Wisteria Vine. However, there is a white cultivar, ‘Albiflora’, which doesn’t bloom as often, but when it does, is striking in it’s own right. Richard Lyons Nursery has both colors in stock.


February 21, 2021 0

Under The Jakfruit Tree

Most Gardenias only bloom once a year in the springtime. The exception to this is the Tahitian Gardenia (Gardenia taitensis). This Gardenia blooms on and off throughout the year. It is a sprawling plant, with dark shiny leaves similar to most Gardenias. It is fragrant like all of the Gardenias as well. Richard Lyons Nursery…
Read more


February 14, 2021 0