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I grew up on a farm in New Jersey. I have lived in Hawaii and Oregon as well as San Francisco and now Sacrsamento CA.
I love all of nature, particularly plants and animals. My favorites are tropical plants and animals.I only have a patio now and have to grow all of my plants in containers, but I manage to pack an amazing number of plant species and varieties in a small space. Sacramento is a kind of strange place, with just high enough humidity to help things like camelias,cannas and bananas thrive, but with enough winter chill to make wisteria, peonies and lilacs bloom in the spring. Then we have withering heat during the summer in which the crepe myrtles and oleanders thrive. We have both pink dogwoods and orchid trees blooming at the same time right now.
The only tropicals that I have not had any sucess with here, but long to grow, are heliconias and the red alpina gingers. That is my only regret. Of course I grew them in Hawaii, but so far no luck here. If I have to choose one favorite tropical, it would be the tropical hibiscus. My favorite plant families are palms, malvaceae ( hibiscus family) the aroids ( philodendron, calas, anthurium, monstera, jack in the pulpet) and the banana tribe (bananas, heliconias, gingers, bird of paradise, cannas) Between my patio and the couryard of my apartment building, (which my landlord lets me have free range over)I curently am growing;
4 varieties of Hisicus xrosasineisis, a H. syrasusic, H. coccineas, lavatera zebra, Abasinian banana and dwarf Chinese banana, euonamus japonica, Mexican fan palm, brugmansia, bird of paradise, dwarf dahlias, four o'clocks, moon flower and morning glory, lantana camera and trailing lantana, verbena, gazania, trailing geranium, scented geranium, zonal geranium, oleander, Podocarpus macraphila and gracilior, several herbs, camelias, hardy philodenron, taro, cyperus, tropical water lilies, water hyacinth,fatsia, frezia, star jasmine, Easter lily, hyacynths, zinnias, marigolds, cosmos, globe amuranthus, azaleas, bamboo, begonias, two species and four varities of impatiens, 5 types of cannas, 2 species of ginger, pluroma or princess flower, plumbego, bilbergia, bouganvillia, two types of passion flowers,two types of salvia, cordeline stricta and Hawaiian ti plant, sheflera, rubber plant, draceana marginata (or as they call it Hawaii, money tree) miniature rose, varigated ivy and vinca major, yucca, crepe myrtle, acuba, oxalis, several types of tradensia, three species of fern, several types of gardenias, two types of cala lilies and a mimosa tree. I have recently sent for the seed of Zea japonica, nicotiana and colias.
I am mostly interested in communicating on a non expert level. While I was a horticulturalist by trade, I prefer to use common names and discuss gardening in general rather than focus on just one species or type of plant.