Philadelphia-area gardeners may turn to tropical plants as dramatic additions to their home gardens. The prime time to plant them is coming soon.

Dreaming of a beach vacation ... Then, put the money you’d otherwise spend on new plants toward a water feature, firepit or tropical drink ingredients. After all, it is always five o’clock ...

“That’s big time,” says botanist Kenneth Wood of the Hawaii-based nonprofit National Tropical Botanical Garden. Working alongside Hawaii’s Plant Extinction Prevention Program ...