EHR Tropicals Playbook 2027 by EHR

PLAYBOOK 2027

Florida color, brought closer to your business Florida is where tropical product earns its keep. Through EHR, you can source premium foliage, flowering tropicals and specimen-size patio material from a connected network of Florida growers—from clean 6-inch programs to statement plants ready to command the corner of a sales floor. We bring the growers, freight and seasonal opportunity into one plan. You get more ways to build a profitable summer program, plus an EHR team helping you make the right call before the order ships. A Florida grower network, working for your retail program Our team stays close to the crop. We visit growers, review programs and share updated photos through the season so you can see how material is sizing up. Before a routed order ships, the grower reviews the pull; if something misses spec, we will tell you before it reaches your dock.

One relationship. An entire team behind it.

Terms and Conditions

Plan early. Choose better.

Florida tropical freight is most flexible before the spring rush. Use these guidelines to protect selection, timing and freight efficiency. Season: EHR tropical trucks run from late February through June. Freight typically rises as produce season and Mother’s Day approach. Shipping early helps protect both freight and selection. Lead time: Place spring at-once orders at least two full weeks before the desired ship week. Prebooking in autumn provides strongest availability for spring shipments. EHR routed minimum: 400 shipping units—roughly 225 10-inch pots, or a mixed-size equivalent. Plant-cube rates appear on individual supplier programs. Supplier minimums: Some growers set their own minimums in addition to the EHR routed minimum. Tags and UPCs: Available from most suppliers for an additional charge. Request them on the purchase order. Pallets and racks: Available from most suppliers by request and may carry an additional charge. Specify the need on the purchase order; a pallet jack or forklift is required at delivery. Quality claims: Report shortages or damage within 48 hours. Send photos and retain a signed bill of lading noting the shortage or damage. Terms vary by supplier and approved account. Ask EHR to help build the most efficient route for your order.

Florida is a long state. Your freight bill does not have to be. This playbook is organized around the three Florida growing regions that anchor the EHR tropical network: Apopka, Fort Myers and Homestead. When you consolidate more of your order within one region, you reduce miles, simplify routing and give your truck more room to earn its keep. Use the color-coded sections as a planning tool. Build the regional order first, then let EHR help you fill the remaining space with the right add-ons.

Build the region. Fill the truck. Grow the opportunity.

REGIONAL GUIDE REGION

NURSERIES

Apopka / Central Florida

Hanging Tree Nursery; Classic Caladiums; Proven Winners Caladiums; Phillip Rucks; Record Buck Farms; Excelsa Gardens

Gulf Coast

Topiary Creations; Keepsake Plants; Tradewinds Hibiscus

Homestead

Andersen Farms; Bernecker’s; Butler’s Foliage; Excel Farms; Florida Tuxedo; Island Tropical Foliage; Morejon Farms; R. Plants; Railroad Nursery; Sturon

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Hanging Tree Nursery Shade, scale and tropical range When a summer program needs more than one size or shape, Hanging Tree helps you build the bench. The program reaches from fern texture and patio palms to bananas, cordylines and larger foliage forms, with a broad year-round availability list to support the fill-in order. Use it for dependable breadth, then layer in the pieces that give a display its finish. Best fit: Mixed tropical orders, shade programs and larger patio foliage.

Classic Caladiums Finished caladiums, ready to move Keep the caladium story simple: finished, colorful and ready for the retail bench. Classic Caladiums supplies finished caladiums in 4.5-inch, 6-inch and 8-inch forms, from fancy- and strap-leaf assortments to branded Heart to Heart® selections. These are finished plants—not bare root—so the color story reaches the customer at the point of sale. Best fit: Finished caladium color for the summer bench, patio table or shade display.

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Proven Winners Caladiums A recognized name for the shade bench Heart to Heart® brings branded confidence to a category shoppers already understand: bold foliage, flexible placement and color that photographs beautifully. Classic Caladiums offers finished and prefinished Heart to Heart® product in quart, 6.5-inch and 8-inch forms, with Proven Winners containers, tags and royalty included in the plant price. 2027 spotlight: Heart to Heart® ‘Bottle Rocket’ is a Proven Winners National Plant of the Year. Give it the hero position, then build the display with the shades, colors and heartshaped foliage customers already know how to shop.

Branded genetics. Clear retail story. Easy-to-merchandise color.

Phillip Rucks Patio citrus with a story to tell The right citrus tree turns a patio into an experience. Phillip Rucks brings a focused citrus program with specimen scale, unusual fruit and ready-to-gift forms—from finger limes and kumquats to Meyer lemons, variegated pink lemons and cocktail trees. Use it when the sale needs more than color: taste, conversation and a plant that keeps giving. Best fit: Patio citrus, edible gifts and conversation-starting specimen trees.

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Record Buck Farms Edible trees with staying power For customers who want a backyard orchard, Record Buck Farms gives your program a deeper bench: citrus, fruit trees and cocktail combinations in sizes that can anchor a patio or landscape. Build a display around recognizable fruit, then add the conversation-starting trees that make a visit feel like a discovery. Best fit: Citrus, cocktail trees and larger edible specimens.

Excelsa Gardens The collector’s foliage bench Excelsa is where a standard tropical display becomes a plant conversation. Use its deep bench of Alocasia, Colocasia, Cordyline, bananas, ferns, succulents and unusual foliage to give a program more texture and more reasons to browse. It is a strong source for trend-led silhouettes and less-everywhere varieties. Best fit: Statement foliage, collector appeal and mixed tropical color.

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Topiary Creations Bougainvillea, in every retail rhythm Topiary Creations is EHR’s top pick for bodacious bougainvillea—a specialist built around the moment this plant earns its place: color on a patio, a trellis or the first table customers see. Choose from bushes, hanging baskets, trellises and patio trees, then use the grower’s-choice mix to keep the display full without making it feel repetitive. Best fit: High-impact flowering vines, standards and patio statements.

Keepsake Plants Finished color, chosen for the selling moment Tradewinds® Hibiscus is the premium hibiscus brand exclusive to Keepsake Plants. Selected genetics, vivid color and developed buds help the plant arrive ready for immediate sales—or as fast as you can unpack them. Use the line to create a more premium color block, then offer multiple forms to lift the average ticket. Product forms: 4.5-inch Pixie, 6-inch, 8-inch, 10-inch, tree and hanging basket. Retail proof: Budded finished product, branded tags and a clear genetics story.

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Tradewinds Hibiscus. Premium hibiscus with a retail-ready head start

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Andersen Farms A practical foliage program with a new-item pulse Andersen Farms gives the foliage program a clean, flexible base: palms, cordylines, ferns, ZZ, sansevieria and mixed foliage assortments in the sizes independent garden centers can sell through. New items such as Ponytail Guatemalensis Palm and Spathiphyllum Flower Bunch add a reason to refresh the bench without rebuilding the whole program. Best fit: Dependable 6-inch and 10-inch foliage, mixed assortments and new-item tests.

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Bernecker’s A broad bench for building the mix Bernecker’s is a useful source when the program needs breadth without losing retail shape. The list moves from blooming mandevilla, hibiscus, gardenia, ixora and jasmine to palms, vines, sansevieria and larger foliage. Use it to fill core demand, then choose a few less-expected forms to keep the display moving. Best fit: A varied tropical bench, blooming plus foliage, and larger forms.

Butler’s Foliage Foliage with color, texture and a little edge Butler’s Foliage brings the categories customers stop to touch: saturated cordylines, graphic sansevieria, sculptural Alocasia, and unusual cacti and succulents. The program is especially useful when the display needs contrast—not just more green. Best fit: Color-rich foliage, premium accents and tropical texture.

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Excel Farms Build the spring table around bloom Excel Farms is built for a seasonal color push: hibiscus, mandevilla, dipladenia, ferns and palms in a program that rewards early planning. Use the prebook to secure the main color story, then keep room for new Suntory varieties and the flowering pieces that make the display feel current. Best fit: Volume spring color, flowering vines and coordinated blooming assortments.

Florida Tuxedo Color, foliage and forms that arrive polished Florida Tuxedo brings together the pieces that make a tropical table feel finished: flowering hibiscus and mandevilla, clean foliage, palms, Alocasia and specialty material. It is a useful source when you want a coordinated mix that reads premium without asking the customer to understand the supply chain. Best fit: Mixed tropical color, flowering forms and specialty foliage.

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Island Tropical Foliage A full tropical program, ready for the route Island Tropical Foliage gives you range across the categories that define a Florida summer: palms, flowering tropicals, foliage, patio trees, edible plants and the varieties that make a seasonal display feel fresh. Rack shipping, tags and UPCs help the product arrive ready to merchandise, while a deep availability list gives you room to build a more complete order. Best fit: Broad mixed orders, patio trees and add-on edible tropicals.

Morejon Farms Hollywood Hibiscus, ready for its close-up Morejon Farms is the focused source for Hollywood Hibiscus®—a Proven Winners patio hibiscus story built around big color, natural branching and a plant that earns space at the front of the display. The program includes the branded pot, tag and royalty, so the product reaches the bench with its retail story intact. Best fit: Premium patio hibiscus, branded displays and larger flowering forms.

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Hollywood Hibiscus The patio hibiscus with star power Hollywood Hibiscus® from Proven Winners combines big tropical color with a naturally self-branching habit and a retail story customers can recognize. The program is bred for patio performance, disease and insect resistance, and a steady show of flowers whenever growing conditions allow. Morejon Farms supplies true #1 and true #2 forms with Proven Winners pots, tags and royalty included in the plant price. The display arrives branded, sized and ready to sell. Big color. Better branching. A name customers can remember.

R. Plants The broad tropical bench R. Plants helps fill the spaces between the hero plants: reliable palms, foliage, vines, sansevieria, flowering tropicals and larger forms that give a program depth. Build a mixed order around the proven sellers, then use the 14-, 17- and 21-inch sizes to add scale where the sales floor needs it. Best fit: Dependable breadth, larger foliage and mixed tropical orders.

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Railroad Nursery Spring color, routed with purpose Railroad Nursery is a strong fit for a spring program that needs volume, color and a clean route. The list combines hibiscus, mandevilla, dipladenia, palms, ferns and tropical foliage, with mono and assortment options that make it easier to build a deliberate display instead of a random mix. Best fit: High-volume spring color and rack-ready flowering programs.

Sturon Core sellers with room for discovery Sturon gives a tropical program both anchors and accents: palms, sansevieria, vines, succulents, flowering color and foliage in a wide range of sizes. Start with the familiar shapes customers already know, then use the broader list to add a few darker, bolder or more unusual plants. Best fit: A balanced tropical bench with strong core availability.

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Tropical color, ready for its close-up The gallery is where the program sells itself: recognizable names, big foliage, high-color blooms and the plants that make a customer stop mid-aisle. Use the next pages to build a display with a clear hero, supporting texture and enough variety to invite a second look.

Sun Parasol Mandevilla Introduction One name. Several ways to sell it. Sun Parasol® gives a tropical flowering program a recognized name with more than one retail role. • Original: Compact, bushy and available in the widest color range. Easy to sell in containers, baskets and patio displays; can also be trained to climb. • Giant: Large flowers, large foliage and vigorous climbing energy for trellises and statement patios. • XP: Superior branching and flower power, with novelty colors that give the display a fresh look each season. No deadheading keeps the care story easy to say. Product forms across the supplied programs include 4.5-inch, 1-gallon hoop, 10-inch trellis and 12-inch hanging basket. Put compact color in front. Put climbing energy behind it.

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Original Sunbeam

Original Crimson

Sun Parasol Varieties You Need to Know VARIETY

RETAIL ANGLE

1 XP Double Pink Blush

Double-flower premium story

2 Giant Peach Sunrise

Warm patio color; new-item energy

3 XP Bluephoria

Blue-flower novelty

4 XP Maui Sunset

New color story

5 XP Mauvelous

Brushstroke mauve; collector appeal

6 XP Sunbeam

Yellow flower power

7 FireDUp Orange

Hot orange impact

8 FireDUp Coral

Coral color for mixed displays

9 Giant Dark Pink

High-impact pink

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Madinia® Dipladenia Tropical Color, Patio Sized. Madinia® Dipladenia offers a more compact, polished habit with glossy foliage and vivid color. Together with Sun Parasol mandevilla, they give retailers two complementary ways to build a flowering-vine display—from statement-making color to patiofriendly appeal.

Madinia Deep Red

Madinia Petite Pink

Madinia White

Palms Put the patio on island time. Palms are the fastest way to add height, movement and a vacation signal to a tropical display. Mix familiar shapes with a few sculptural forms so customers can build a complete patio—not just buy a plant.

Top palm varieties VARIETY

1 Pygmy Date Palm 2 Fishtail Palm 3 Queen Palm

4 King Sago Palm 5 Foxtail Palm

RETAIL ANGLE Familiar, feathery texture Distinctive leaf shape Familiar landscape anchor Architectural, low-maintenance shape Premium feathered form

6 Cardboard Palm

Bold, structured foliage

7 Chinese Fan Palm

Fan texture and height

8 Majesty Palm

Vacation cue and seasonal pull

9 Ponytail Palm

Sculptural, conversation-starting base

10 Lady Palm

Refined, multi-stem form

11 Kentia Palm

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Premium, elegant silhouette

Alocasia and Colocasia Big leaves. Bigger displays. Elephant ears give tropical merchandising its scale. Lead with the varieties that create an instant focal point, then add dark foliage, unusual silhouettes and color-patterned colocasia for the customers who want something they have not seen everywhere.

Top Alocasia and Colocasia varieties VARIETY

1 Colocasia Royal Hawaiian® ‘Waikiki’ 2 Colocasia ‘Mojito’

3 Alocasia ‘Stingray’

4 Colocasia Royal Hawaiian® ‘Black Coral’ 5 Alocasia ‘Calidora’

6 Alocasia 'Regal Shields’ 7 Alocasia ‘Metalhead’ 8 Alocasia ‘Sumo’

RETAIL ANGLE Bright variegated color story Patterned foliage with collector appeal Sculptural, conversation-starting shape Dark, high-impact foliage Reliable large-leaf anchor Ribbed texture and deep color Moody, dark-foliage trend Bold, oversized presence

9 Alocasia ‘Low Rider’

Compact, display-friendly habit

10 Alocasia ‘Portora’

Tall statement form

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Cordyline Color with a backbone. Cordyline gives the tropical bench a strong vertical line and a reliable hit of color. Use reds, pinks, greens and variegated forms to create rhythm across a mixed display.

Favorite cordyline varieties VARIETY

1 ‘Cherry Cordial’ 2 ‘Superstar’ 3 ‘Red Star’

4 ‘Harlequin’

5 ‘Red Sister’ 6 ‘Electra’

7 ‘Auntie Lou’

RETAIL ANGLE Extra-wide variegated foliage Broad, glossy purple-red foliage

Upright red foliage Bold variegated foliage trend Familiar red seller Neon pink-and-white striping Classic, deep burgundy ti plant

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Ferns The shade department’s soft power. Ferns earn their space with lush texture, shade appeal and a range of forms that moves beyond basic green. Keep the core forms in volume, then use scale, texture and sculptural varieties to create a more premium bench.

Favorite fern varieties VARIETY

RETAIL ANGLE

1 Bird’s Nest

Rosette shape and texture

2 Australian Tree Fern 3 Boston

4 Foxtail Asparagus 5 Kimberly Queen 6 Kangaroo

7 Lemon Button 8 Macho

9 Staghorn

Scale and shade drama Familiar basket seller Soft, architectural shape Rich, durable texture Distinctive leaf form Compact, playful texture Big, bold texture Sculptural, giftable form

Musa and Bananas Go big. Go bananas. Bananas bring instant height, movement and summer energy. Mix edible interest with foliage-first forms so the category can work in both patio and landscape conversations.

Favorite banana varieties VARIETY

1 Musa ‘Dwarf Cavendish’

2 Ensete maurelli Red Banana 3 Musa ‘Pink Nono’

RETAIL ANGLE Compact edible story Red foliage drama Collector-led novelty

4 Musa ‘Ever Red’

Strong foliage color

5 Musa acuminata ‘Rojo’

Red-fruited color story

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Sansevieria Low maintenance. High retail drama. Sansevieria earns its space with strong silhouettes, easy-care messaging and a color range that moves beyond basic green. Keep the core forms in volume, then use silver, black and sculptural varieties to create a more premium bench.

Favorite Sansevieria varieties VARIETY

1 'Laurentii' (Gold)

2 'Zeylanica' (Green)

3 Birdnest Star Series 4 'Black Coral'

5 'Wintergreen' 6 'Black Gold' 7 'Fabi'

8 'Moonshine' (Silver) 9 'Sayuri'

RETAIL ANGLE

Classic yellow-edged seller Familiar green form Compact rosette forms Dark, graphic foliage Clean vertical texture Premium contrast Compact accent Silver foliage trend Narrow, sculptural form

Vines Give the customer something to climb for. Vines turn a plant into a project. Combine flowering bougainvillea, passion flower, jasmine and thunbergia with foliage-led climbers for trellises, fences, balconies and patio displays that invite customers to imagine the finished space.

Favorite varieties VARIETY

RETAIL ANGLE

1 Star Jasmine

Classic foliage and fragrance

2 Cissus discolor

Silver-patterned foliage on a trellis

3 Clerodendrum Bleeding Heart Vine

Tropical evergreen twining vine

4 Wax Jasmine

Uncommon foliage-led climber

5 Passiflora edulis ‘Possum Purple’

Fruiting-vine novelty

6 Passiflora ‘Panama Red’

Tropical fruiting-vine appeal

7 Mexican Honeysuckle

Distinctive warm-season color

8 Cape Honeysuckle

Warm-color flowering climber

9 Thunbergia grandiflora ‘Blue Sky Vine’

Blue flower and trellis pull

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Others The plants that make the display stop. The “others” bench is where a good tropical program becomes a memorable one. Use it for fragrance, fruit, unusual flowers, dark foliage, patio scale and the plants customers recognize from the places they want to be.

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Top Tropicals Needed in Every Program VARIETY

RETAIL ANGLE

Ananas / Green Pineapple

Edible tropical conversation

Gardenia ‘Aimee Yashioka’

Fragrance and giftability

Duranta ‘Sapphire Showers’

Blue flower and airy habit

Eugenia ‘Globulus’

Topiary and patio form

Ruellia ‘Purple Showers’

Long-season purple color

Croton ‘Petra’

Familiar color mix

Cereus jamacaru Cuddly Cactus

Soft and spineless cactus

Calliandra emarginata

Unusual flower form

Evolvulus ‘Blue Daze’

Low, blue-flowering color

10 Strelitzia nicolai / White Bird of Paradise

Tropical scale

11 Leucophyllum / Texas Sage

Silver foliage and dry-garden cue

12 Split Leaf Philodendron

Large-leaf tropical texture

13 Adenium obesum / Desert Rose

Exotic flower cue

14 Ficus elastica ‘Burgundy’

Dark foliage contrast

15 Tibouchina lepidota / Glory Bush

Purple bloom impact

Succulents Small footprint. Serious margin. Succulents give the tropical department an easy-care entry point and a high-repeat browsing category. Lead with familiar forms, then add trailing textures, collector shapes and unusual foliage for a display that rewards close inspection.

Favorite succulent assortments VARIETY

RETAIL ANGLE

1 Assorted Cactus

Easy-care variety with impulse appeal

2 Assorted Echeveria

Rosette color with collector appeal

3 Assorted Succulents

Mix-and-match texture for repeat browsing

4 Aloe Vera

Familiar wellness story and everyday utility

5 Grafted Cactus

Unexpected color and giftable novelty

6 Hanging Baskets

Vertical merchandising with trailing texture

7 Crassula / Jade

Familiar form with dependable staying power

8 Euphorbia / Crown of Thorns

Flowering color in an easy-care form

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The right tropical program changes the whole season. When the assortment is right, the display feels fuller, the customer sees more ways to buy and your truck works harder for the business. EHR helps you connect Florida supply to the opportunity in front of you—bringing the right growers, forms and timing into one practical plan. Growing Stronger With You.

Bring the season home. Build your 2027 tropical program with EHR. Ask your EHR representative about current availability, routed freight, tags and UPCs, and rack programs.

Contact: 800.214.2221 | info@ehrnet.com | ehrnet.com