Maria Santos

Maria is a tropical plant grower in Miami who maintains a half-acre property packed with palms, fruit trees, and tropical ornamentals. She grew up in Puerto Rico surrounded by tropical plants and moved to South Florida for college, earning a biology degree. Maria worked at a major tropical botanic garden for several years before transitioning to freelance writing and consulting. She specializes in tropical fruit growing, hurricane-resilient landscaping, and the particular challenges of gardening in South Florida—salt air, limestone soil, intense rain, and the threat of tropical storms. Maria's practical about the realities of tropical gardening: it's not paradise if you don't understand what you're dealing with.