Hardy tropical plants can turn your temperate garden into an exotic tropical plant garden reminiscent of a Hawaiian rain forest with cold hardy tropical plants. You may be surprised at just how many varieties of tropical looking plants are hardy for your zone.
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Abutilon 'Bartley Schwarz'
Item #: 8007
Zones: 7b to 10b, guessing
Dormancy: Winter
Height: 48" tall
Culture: Sun to Part Sun
Origin: Hybrid
Pot Size: 3.5" pot (24 fl. oz/0.7 L)
Regular price $20.00Regular priceUnit price per -
Abutilon 'Fool's Gold'
Item #: 8001
Zones: 8a to 10b
Dormancy: Winter
Height: 48" tall
Culture: Sun to Part Sun
Origin: Hybrid
Pot Size: 3.5" pot (24 fl. oz/0.7 L)
Regular price $20.00Regular priceUnit price per -
Abutilon megapotamicum
Item #: 4317
Zones: 7b to 10b
Dormancy: Winter
Height: 72" tall
Culture: Sun to Part Sun
Origin: Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay
Pot Size: 3.5" pot (24 fl. oz/0.7 L)
Regular price $20.00Regular priceUnit price per -
Abutilon 'Orange Hot Lava'
Item #: 7302
Zones: 7b to 10b
Dormancy: Winter
Height: 48" tall
Culture: Sun to Part Sun
Origin: Hybrid
Pot Size: 3.5" pot (24 fl. oz/0.7 L)
Regular price $20.00Regular priceUnit price per -
Acanthus mollis Reut, Israel
Item #: 9811
Zones: 7a to 10b, at least
Dormancy: Winter
Height: 24" tall
Culture: Part Sun to Shade
Origin: Mediterranean Europe
Pot Size: 3.5" pot (24 fl. oz/0.7 L)
Regular price $26.00Regular priceUnit price per
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Acanthus mollis 'Wofford Rhubarb'
Item #: 10006
Zones: 7a to 10b, at least
Dormancy: Winter
Height: 24" tall
Culture: Part Sun to Shade
Origin: Northern Africa, Southern Europe
Pot Size: 3.5" pot (24 fl. oz/0.7 L)
Regular price $26.00Regular priceUnit price per -
Acanthus 'Morning Candle'
Item #: 8933
Zones: 6a to 8b, at least
Dormancy: Winter
Height: 24" tall
Culture: Part Sun
Origin: Hybrid
Pot Size: 3.5" pot (24 fl. oz/0.7 L)
Regular price $26.00Regular priceUnit price per -
Acanthus 'Summer Beauty'
Item #: 2526
Zones: 6a to 8b, at least
Dormancy: Winter
Height: 30" tall
Culture: Part Sun to Shade
Origin: Hybrid
Pot Size: 3.5" pot (24 fl. oz/0.7 L)
Regular price $26.00Regular priceUnit price per -
Adiantum raddianum 'Barberton'
Item #: 7446
Zones: 7b to 10b, at least
Dormancy: Winter
Height: 12" tall
Culture: Part Sun to Light Shade
Origin: South Africa
Pot Size: 3.5" pot (24 fl. oz/0.7 L)
Regular price $22.00Regular priceUnit price per
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Agapanthus 'Blue Yonder'
Item #: 15717
Zones: 5b to 10b
Dormancy: Winter
Height: 36" tall
Culture: Sun to Part Sun
Origin: Hybrid
Pot Size: 3.5" pot (24 fl. oz/0.7 L)
Regular price $25.00Regular priceUnit price per -
Agapanthus 'Ellamae'
Item #: 3514
Zones: 7b to 10b
Dormancy: Winter
Height: 36" tall
Culture: Sun to Part Sun
Origin: Hybrid
Pot Size: 3.5" pot (24 fl. oz/0.7 L)
Regular price $25.00Regular priceUnit price per -
Agapanthus 'Galaxy White' PP 31,431
Item #: 17107
Zones: 6a to 10b
Dormancy: Winter
Height: 36" tall
Culture: Sun to Part Sun
Origin: Hybrid
Pot Size: 3.5" pot (24 fl. oz/0.7 L)
Regular price $25.00Regular priceUnit price per -
Agapanthus 'Navy Blue'
Item #: 12996
Zones: 6a to 10b
Dormancy: Winter
Height: 48" tall
Culture: Sun to Part Sun
Origin: Hybrid
Pot Size: 3.5" pot (24 fl. oz/0.7 L)
Regular price $25.00Regular priceUnit price per -
Agapanthus 'Prolific Blue'
Item #: 12997
Zones: 6a to 10b, at least
Dormancy: Winter
Height: 30" tall
Culture: Sun to Part Sun
Origin: Hybrid
Pot Size: 3.5" pot (24 fl. oz/0.7 L)
Regular price $25.00Regular priceUnit price per -
Agapanthus 'Stevie's Wonder'
Item #: 8250
Zones: 7b to 10b, at least
Dormancy: Winter
Height: 36" tall
Culture: Sun to Part Sun
Origin: Hybrid
Pot Size: 3.5" pot (24 fl. oz/0.7 L)
Regular price $25.00Regular priceUnit price per -
Agapanthus 'Storm Cloud'
Item #: 1342
Zones: 7b to 10b, at least
Dormancy: Winter
Height: 48" tall
Culture: Sun to Part Sun
Origin: Hybrid
Pot Size: 3.5" pot (24 fl. oz/0.7 L)
Regular price $25.00Regular priceUnit price per -
Agapanthus 'Twister' PP 25,519
Item #: 13692
Zones: 7b to 10b, at least
Dormancy: Winter
Height: 48" tall
Culture: Sun to Part Sun
Origin: Hybrid
Pot Size: 3.5" pot (24 fl. oz/0.7 L)
Regular price $25.00Regular priceUnit price per -
Agave albopilosa
Item #: 9610
Zones: 8a to 10b, guessing
Dormancy: Evergreen
Height: 12" tall
Culture: Sun to Part Sun
Origin: Mexico
Pot Size: 3.5" pot (24 fl. oz/0.7 L)
Regular price $65.00Regular priceUnit price per -
Agave applanata 'Butter Cream'
Item #: 13072
Zones: 9a to 10b
Dormancy: Evergreen
Height: 3" tall
Culture: Sun
Origin: Mexico
Pot Size: 3.5" pot (24 fl. oz/0.7 L)
Regular price $150.00Regular priceUnit price per -
Agave applanata 'Cream Spike'
Item #: 7241
Zones: 9a to 10b
Dormancy: Evergreen
Height: 10" tall
Culture: Sun
Origin: Mexico
Pot Size: 3.5" pot (24 fl. oz/0.7 L)
Regular price $30.00Regular priceUnit price per -
Sold outAgave asperrima
Item #: 6327
Zones: 7b to 10b
Dormancy: Evergreen
Height: 36" tall
Culture: Sun
Origin: Mexico, United States
Pot Size: 3.5" pot (24 fl. oz/0.7 L)
Regular price $28.00Regular priceUnit price per -
Agave bracteosa 'Daddy Longlegs'
Item #: 1922
Zones: 7b to 10b
Dormancy: Evergreen
Height: 18" tall
Culture: Sun to Part Sun
Origin: Mexico
Pot Size: 3.5" pot (24 fl. oz/0.7 L)
Regular price $38.00Regular priceUnit price per -
Agave bracteosa 'Squidget'
Item #: 10538
Zones: 7b to 10b
Dormancy: Evergreen
Height: 6" tall
Culture: Sun to Part Sun
Origin: Mexico
Pot Size: 3.5" pot (24 fl. oz/0.7 L)
Regular price $35.00Regular priceUnit price per -
Agave bracteosa 'Stingray' PP 30,280
Item #: 2167
Zones: 7b to 10b, possibly colder
Dormancy: Evergreen
Height: 18" tall
Culture: Part Sun
Origin: Mexico
Pot Size: 3.5" pot (24 fl. oz/0.7 L)
Regular price $38.00Regular priceUnit price per
More Information About Tropical Looking Plants
It's a jungle out there! We have a large selection of cold hardy tropical plants including Curcuma (Hidden Cone Ginger), Canna (Canna Lilies), Musa (Banana), Hedychium (Ginger Lilies) and more. These exotic plants make your temperate garden resemble a tropical paradise.
Some of us here in the cool latitudes (and even some people in the nerdy latitudes) have exotic plant envy and want a garden full of tropical looking plants. Luckily for us, there are a few equatorial plants that have developed some cold hardiness and there are a few temperate zone plants with a distinct tropical exotic plant look. Make your temperate garden reminiscent of Hawaii today with tropical-looking exotic plants like bananas, cannas and aroids.
Hardy Tropical Plants
Exactly which cold hardy tropical plants you can grow in your garden depends on where you live. In our zone 7b garden in Raleigh, NC we have many hardy tropical plants for sale including:
- Bananas like Musa, Musella, and Ensete
- Large-leaved perennials and tall perennials like Tetrapanax, Philodendron, Heliconia, Manihot, Hedychium, Canna, and Curcuma
- Hardy forms of exotic tropical ginger lilies like Zingiber and Alpinia
- Elephant ears like Colocasia, Alocasia, Remusatia
- Exotic aroids like Amorphophallus
- Tropical tall ornamental grasses and other grass-like plants such as Arundo, Saccharum and Chlorophytum
- Exotic-looking bamboos like Fargesia, Borinda and Bambusa
- Shade-loving exotic plants like Aspidistra, Rohdea and Tupistra
- Tropical flowering exotic plants like Bauhinia, Begonia, Cuphea, Gloxinia and tropical Dahlia
- Woody-perennials like Cycas, Hibiscus, Abutilon and Brugmansia
- Tropical-looking hardy Ferns like Coniogramme
- Hardy Palm trees such as Phoenix, Sabal, Washingtonia, Rhapidophyllum and Butia
Exotic Desert Plants
In addition, there are certain temperate zone and desert plants that are distinctly exotic- looking in temperate climates including:
- Succulents like Agave, Aloe, Yucca, Dyckia, Echeveria, Nolina, Opuntia and Dasylirion
- Bulbs like Dracunculus, Zantedeschia and Hymenocallis
- South African natives like Eucomis and Scadoxus
- Ferns like Onoclea, Thelypteris and Pteris
The list below contains many more cold hardy tropical plants for all types of gardens. When you are ready to buy tropical looking plants for your garden, check out our online list of exotic plants for sale.
Additional Resources
Read our article - How to Over-winter Tropical Plants
Check out our Gardening Unplugged videos
Gardening Unplugged is our series of short garden chats recorded during our Open Nursery and Garden Days.