Scott Elliott's garden on St. Teresa Drive in Lexington is tropical, based on his interest in Mexico, the Dominican Republic and other lands. He has always enjoyed the rainforest plants, palms and banana trees.

The field rocks in his garden were collected from creek beds, rivers and old washed-out rock fences. He used mortar to keep the rocks from falling.

Here are Elliott's five tips:

1. Pick the right plant for the area of the back yard. It's pretty easy if you follow the guidelines listed when you buy the plant itself. Full sun plants need a minimum of eight hours of sun per day, for example.

2. Keep plants watered on a consistent basis.

3. Fertilize. Osmocote is my favorite. It's a slow-release fertilizer. I've had some bad experiences with others and have burned plants.

4. Plants will let you know if they like the area in which they are planted. I've had to move plants on occasion if they were getting too much sun or sometimes, not enough.

5. Gain experience. During the past 20 years or so I've gained knowledge of certain plants and know their dislikes, and comfort zones. I also think luck factors into things, as well.