What can't you grow in the tropics?

[Tropical Gardening Noob]

I plan on purchasing seeds online, however, I have limited knowledge on what temperate plants can actually grow here. For example, I've heard that apples don't do super well in areas without cold winters. Are there some plants that just don't take the humidity and or heat?

 

[Icecold]

there's plenty of apple variations that do fine in the tropics, like Anna and Bramley's.

their biggest issue is excessive rain-fall, not the heat.

 

[Beverly]

Hi TGN...why would you want to grow temperate plants in a tropical climate when there are so many tropical plants that are happy to grow here? Is there something special that you would like to grow? How is your rice doing?

 

[Tropical Gardening Noob]

That's true. I just wanted to know if there was some common, specific vegetable that couldn't stand humidity or heat too well. Whether it be fungal diseases or something else.
My rice is like three feet tall. A LOT bigger than my profile pic. It hasn't seeded yet but I suppose it will soon!

 

[Beverly]

Gee TGN, i've never tried to grow vegetables here so i don't have that experience to share but from what i hear, you can grow tomatoes but they will probably need more shade than sun. For sure you can grow chili peppers and i think squash might do well (both summer and winter varieties). I don't know how much rain you get where you are. Here we get tons of rain over a 6 month period so i don't know about root vegetables like carrots and potatoes, etc., although yams are grown locally. I guess you would have to experiment with your seasons and what you can grow during certain months. I've seen chard growing here, absolutely big beautiful chard. I think you can grow many things, but knowing when to grow them is the tricky part. You would want to keep in mind that some vegetables are going to grow more quickly because of heat and humidity where you are.

O bravo for your rice! I'd love to see a photo of your 3' tall rice. I don't think i have ever seen it growing. If you favor us with a photo you can put it on your rice thread because i think many people will be interested to see it. Now that seems to have grown very quickly? I have heard that generally people in the tropical regions can count on having at least 2 harvests of just about anything per year. It would also be interesting to hear how many days from rice seed to harvest.

 

[Tropical Gardening Noob]

Thanks Beverly! I only just moved here so even I barely even know how much it rains here . It is the dry season, however. I guess if I'm worried about something getting too much water, I could shield it with greenhouse plastic.
About the rice, I'll post some pictures in my thread for sure when I get the chance. I'm extremely surprised how it got to growing so fast, since my soil is a big, clay mess.

 

[Beverly]

I became curious about the climate of Puerto Rico and made some searches. I was surprised to learn that Puerto Rico has different climates for different regions and it looks like the northwestern area has the most agreeable climate overall. The 2 links below will tell you, by month and by region, average monthly temperatures, average monthly rainfall, average monthly hours of daylight. So, you will know what to expect in your area and which will also allow you to make decisions about optimal times for planting. It looks to me like you can grow just about anything you want to if you plant during favorable months. So you may plant certain things during the summer months and other things during the winter months. And, you can plant year around, so if you have come from a more northern climate you will need to break the pattern of thought that tells you to plant in Spring and harvest in Fall. I went through the same process when i moved to Colima. I had never gardened in a tropical climate before, there was quite a learning curve, and the weather stats helped me to know when to plant what. Parts of Puerto Rico are practically desert, receiving very little annual rain and other parts are rain forest receiving considerable annual rainfall. For the rainfall stats you need to select the city closest to where you live. So you are off on a grand adventure of discovery and i hope you enjoy it as much as i did and still do. Don't forget to factor in your elevation.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Climate_of_Puerto_Rico
http://www.srh.noaa.gov/sju/?n=climo01

 

[Tropical Gardening Noob]

Once again, thanks for going so in-detail with this! Those links are pretty amazing. I've been aware of the dry and wet seasons but never really knew when exactly it happens. Those websites will especially help me once I start up a whole new garden I have planned.

 

[Beverly]

One more thought, you are quite right that some plants (mostly perennials) do need a real winter to survive. Generally seed sellers will know in what hardiness zones plants will do well. So this is one source of info. Also, searching the internet for things you want to grow should yield that information. Finding a local friendly farmer or garden center could prove to be a good source, but not necessarily. Now that i think about it, i have searched this information for all the seeds i order. It has become such a natural process, i don't even think about it anymore but thought i should mention it here.