I live in Auckland, New Zealand, which has several volcanos, not working at the moment! In the past, when they did, volcanic soil was spread over some parts of Auckland. I am fortunate to have a garden on that soil. Have found in the past that things like dwarf cannas, are not dwarf in my garden. So have started off gardening easily soil wise.
I have always been a gardener, having moved often, but established a garden wherever I was. Have lived here for 13 years now, and likely to stay here. Auckland is wonderful for growing fruit trees and enjoying the fruit!
In the garden, I seldom use sprays. In 2008 I discovered on the Internet the variety of colours and sizes of Zephyranthes and was lost. I have learned so much through the PBS, and am now much more conversant with Facebook (Thailand has LOTS of growers of my favourite bulbs!).