You should start with what plants you like and see what conditions they require, and think about whether your yard can provide them.

Healthy soil leads to healthy plants.

Diversity leads to stability in the gardening system.

When it gets hot, it gets bad quicker because you've got all these living plants not only using water but losing water.

There are only about 4,000 marine-plant species compared with an estimated 250,000 species of terrestrial green plants. Similarly, of the 1.7 million-or-so known animal species, only about one-tenth are from oceans, with most of these living on or close to the bottom in relatively shallow water.

The plants are in a weakened state. Moisture is the key. We need rain.