I love growing plants. I have been at it since I was five years old. Mom and dad had a big tent witch they set up in the back yard that year. It was a big tent, and killed a big spot in the yard. I decided to plant a garden in the bare spot. I started by collecting plants, mostly cactus, from the surrounding vacant lots. I have been at it since. It's like an addiction. Even when I was living in the dorms at Yellowstone I had a Fuscia plant on the windowsill.
I still like cacti.
Orchids are probably my favorite. Part of that is because the plants themselves, and sometimes the flowers, are strange. Part of that is because the flowers are so beautiful, and there are so many kinds. Part of it is because the plants are tough and easy to grow, especially in south Florida.
It's not just the Florida climate either. I had a couple dozen orchids
when I lived in the rainy Willamette Valley of Oregon, and they did just
fine. Florida's climate does allow you to keep them outside year round,
unless it threatens to freeze or a hurricane approaches. When this happens
my house looks like a jungle because I take them inside. Otherwise they
hang in trees, on awnings, or in the portable, modular orchid house I built
(I got tired of leaving stuff behind when I move). When I get around to
it I will put up plans for the orchid house. I pot most of them in cheap
xeriscape pumice rock, fertilize every other week with Miracle Grow (watch
out for "orchid fertilizer - it's usually meant for orchids growing in
bark chips), water every now and then if it doesn't rain, and watch them
grow and bloom. Yes, the plants can be a bit pricey, but they can live
a very long time, so it's worth it.
Carnivorous plants are another favorite. The big trick with them is water. Most are swamp plants, so lots of it. Chlorine or minerals in tap water can kill them quick, so use rain water or distilled water. Fertilizer also kills them. They catch their own food, remember?
I like growing vegetables too. A vegetable garden in coastal south Florida
is a big challenge. The soil is nearly pure sand. It repels water. If you
add topsoil or compost it oxidizes away in a season or two. The soil is
also infested with nematodes that stunt your plants roots. There are an
amazing variety of bugs that will eat the plants. At this house there are
thousands of really big exotic African snails that love to feed on my garden,
especially the lettuce and peppers. Summers are brutally hot and humid,
with sometimes violent thunderstorms. Winter is the prime growing season.
It's cooler, but there is often drought, or damaging wind from storms,
and it might freeze.