(Croton, Zanzibar Croton)

Codiaeum variegatum, more commonly known as croton, is an evergreen native to Malaysia and islands in the western Pacific. The flowers are insignificant but the foliage comes in a wide variety of brightly splashed or spotted, smooth, ruffled or twisted shapes. Mature crotons are "V" shaped.

Crotons grow best in well-drained soil and in full sun to partial shade; in hot sunny climates they look best if shaded from the hottest sun of the day. Too much sun will bleach the color out of the leaves...

(Croton, Finger Fire Croton)

Codiaeum variegatum var. pictum, more commonly known as croton is a tropical shrub native to Malaysia and islands in the eastern pacific. The flowers are white but insignificant and the foliage contains various colors, most commonly shades of yellow, green, and red.

Crotons grow in full sun to shade but in hot sunny climates looks best if it is shaded from the hottest sun of the day. Crotons make excellent accent plants and as part of a mixed shrub planting. They look their best if planted...

(Croton, Petra Croton)

The petra croton is a tropical shrub native to Malaysia and islands in the eastern Pacific. The flowers are white but insignificant. The foliage of the petra croton has broad leaves that variate in color between pink, red, orange, yellow, and green with the veins often times being a lighter color. This is one of the most common cultivars for both indoor and outdoor use.

Crotons grow in full sun to shade but in hot sunny climates looks best if it is shaded from the hottest sun of the day. Crotons...

(Coelogyne, Orchid)

A popular orchid for the cool greenhouse or conservatory, Coelogyne cristata is grown for its handsome evergreen foliage and for its nodding clusters of fragrant white blossoms in late winter and spring. It is native to cool, moist habitats in the Himalayan foothills, where it occurs on tree branches and rock outcroppings.

This epiphytic orchid produces clumps of corrugated, egg-shaped, bright-green pseudobulbs that arise from slender rhizomes. Two strap-shaped, deep-veined, bright-green...

(Arabian Coffee, Coffee)

Arabian or Arabica coffee is a lovely upright evergreen shrub with graceful gray-barked branches, fragrant white flowers and fruits (drupes) that yield some of the best coffee for drinking. Native to Ethiopia but now cultivated in wooded, high-altitude plantations throughout the tropics, Arabica coffee is by far the most economically important of all coffees, accounting for as much as 80 percent of all coffee grown worldwide.

Coffea arabica has been long cultivated and enjoyed by a variety...

(Robusta Coffee)

Robusta coffee is an attractive upright evergreen shrub native from the western sub-Saharan African coast to the Congo River Basin. It yields coffee considered inferior in flavor and quality to the more renowned Coffea arabica, though it is much easier to grow than its more picky cousin as it can withstand higher growing temperatures and poorer soils.

This species blooms in springtime with clusters of pretty white flowers at the base of the leaves. Bees pollinate the blooms and green...

(Liberian Coffee)

Accounting for only one percent of the world's commercial coffee bean production, Liberian coffee plants hail from western sub-Saharan Africa. The red fruits (drupes) bear a tough skin, making it difficult to obtain the inner beans for brewing. Liberian beans have a harsher, less flavorful taste than those of close relatives, Arabica and Robusta coffee.

The large, wide, oval, dark green leaves of Liberian coffee plants are arguably the most ornamental of all Coffea species. And there...

(Hybrid Autumn Crocus, Hybrid Meadow Saffron)

Delightfully fragrant, the violet-tinted rosy pink blooms of 'Rosy Dawn' robustly appear in earliest fall (rather than in spring like those of most other "bulbs"). Although sometimes called "autumn crocus," it is not related to the true crocus, which is in the iris family.

This hardy perennial produces large, oval leaves in spring, which gather energy for the underground bulb-like storage organ, known as a corm. In very early fall, about three months after the pointed leaves have withered, numerous...

(Hybrid Autumn Crocus, Hybrid Meadow Saffron)

Large in flower size and a robust display overall, the purplish blooms of 'The Giant' appear in earliest fall (rather than in spring like those of most other "bulbs"). Although sometimes called "autumn crocus," it is not related to the genus Crocus, which is in the iris family.

This hardy perennial produces large, broadly oval leaves in spring, which gather energy for the underground bulb-like storage organ, known as a corm. In very early fall, about three months after the pointed leaves...

(Hybrid Autumn Crocus, Hybrid Meadow Saffron)

Fragrant, checkered pink-violet blooms of 'Violet Queen' appear in earliest fall (rather than in spring like those of most other "bulbs"). Although sometimes called "autumn crocus," it is not related to the genus Crocus, which is in the iris family.

This hardy perennial produces large broad strap-shaped leaves in spring, which gather energy for the underground bulb-like storage organ, known as a corm. In late summer, about three months after the pointed leaves have withered, numerous...