I've thought it would be nice to be able to search members by location, but we can't at the moment.

If you keep 'posting' on here someone from your region will hopefully see and respond to you. Many friendships have grown between members on GoY who live fairly close to each other.

I might be able to help you with some things, since there are some similarities between central Florida, and my climate, here in Phoenix, AZ. Delonix1 is likely to have some useful info, too, since he gardens in San Diego, CA.