Tropical CT’s products are the only sustainably sourced palm trees grown specifically for the NY/ New England market. Additionally, we are the only no kill palm tree growers/brokers in the business. This doesn’t mean we never have to kill off crop from time to time, but our business model is designed around being able to keep your beloved tropical babies alive for years to come, not just to sell you products year after year! First and foremost, we have the space, resources and expertise to collect and overwinter every single tree that we sell, so you can rest assured when buying from us that you won’t have to watch the palm tree you cared for all season wither away and die. To make successfully overwintering all the products we sell a reality, we had to put our money where our mouth is and reinvest every dollar made off palm trees/ tropicals into developing our revolutionary “Zone Pusher System”. This entails inspecting the root system/ remediating any issues, repotting into our own “Dumb Dirt Guy” specialty soil, getting started on our “Palm Guard” pest management/ fertilizer program, and finally, inspecting/ hand cleaning/ washing your palms when they come into our care periodically throughout the time they are in our greenhouse. Then again right as they are shipping out from our farm. Our vision is to bring sustainably sourced palm trees that will thrive in New England season after season while utilizing our Tropical CT “Zone Pusher” system, only selling our customers more products when they want to add to their tropical collections.
All our Tropical CT products are grown in our own “Dumb Dirt Guy” specialty soil. Tropical CT’s “Dumb Dirt Guy” is a product line that offers a wide range of soils/ additives that are specifically designed for tropicals being grown in New England. Our soil mixes have been designed over the years to provide our tropicals with optimal growing conditions where it matters most. Our blend is the proper pH for the palms they are designed for, has just the right amount of compost/ organics to slowly release nutrients and retain moisture, and adds a perfect blend of sand, lava rock and pumice to make sure the root systems stay aerated. This ensures that water can freely move through the soil so that the root system is never over saturated. Our mix will help your palms maintain a nice, humid root system, allowing for frequent but sparse watering, mimicking the natural conditions they thrive in. Since most of the issues with overwintering tropicals seem to be related to root rot or improper watering, our mix has been specifically designed to combat this.
The next piece of our sustainability puzzle was our Tropical CT “Palm Guard” fertilizer/ pesticide program. We have worked closely with our chemical suppliers to develop a professional program that would be effective enough for us to use in both greenhouse and field grown applications that you do not need an applicators license to apply, along with being simple/ safe enough for us to offer our customers so they can do their own applications throughout the season. Our “Palm Guard” program consists of a rotation of root drenches and foliar spray application that acts both on contact and as a systemic. The contact killers will knock down surface pests fast while the systemic products move slowly through the whole tree; from the roots to the shoots and everything in between. Both methods of application can be used as needed or as a preventative measure. Our slow-release granular fertilizer is specifically designed for our palms growing in New England, since they are temperature activated, and typically good for three months. It is very easy to self-apply as long as you use Tropical CT “Palm Guard” products exactly as recommended. Keeping your palm trees nourished with nutrients, both macro and micro, will help them fight off pest/ fungal issues, ultimately leaving them less susceptible with a greater chance of being successfully overwintered year after year. When using our Tropical CT “Palm Guard” products, it is easier for us to help diagnose/ navigate you through any issues that may arise with your tropicals.
At Tropical CT, educating our customers and providing a comfortable atmosphere for everyone to come and enjoy while planning their tropical landscapes is the core of what we do. When you take the time to come check us out in person, we can walk you through our vast selection of palm trees/ tropicals and give you expert advice on what we think will be a perfect fit. We put a big emphasis on creating stability in this exciting new industry while establishing an industry standard that absolutely doesn’t accept disposing of these beautiful palm trees at the end of each season. We don’t have huge advertising budgets that constantly attract new customers and don’t constantly move our location. Instead, we invest our money into establishing and maintaining our tropical botanical garden operating at 1185 Randolph Rd Middletown CT 12 months a year. We call our farm “The Gardens at Stone Post Key”, and our insta handle is @thegardensatstonepostkey. Maintaining this botanical garden gives us a very deep and intimate understanding of each product we sell. This is also a great resource for our customers to come anytime to both see their beloved palm babies over the long winter, and to get an idea ahead of time of what they might add to their tropical collections. We also have thousands of people/ families that utilize this space to take all sorts of photos. This includes professional staged photo shoots, Christmas mini sessions, professional headshots, maternity shoots, engagements shoots and so much more. You never know, when you store your trees with us, they might even end up featured in a magazine or the backdrop of a family’s first holiday photo! This creative spin on storing palm trees is another piece of the puzzle. Ultimately, this symbiotic relationship between palm trees and people not only helps us keep the cost down for our customers but also raises the vibrations of the whole community.
