Advice Needed - Filling in the Spaces

Hi, I'm new here and not the most knowledgeable when it comes to planning the most appropriate plants for my yard. We've bought plants only to have them die because of multiple problems we have to contend with. Even in pots we haven't had the greatest luck. What tropicals grow in 9B full sun? Stay green year round? Provide lots of color? Etc... We need some serious help.

The first area we need help with is near our pool that we had restored a couple years ago, it gets full sun year round. We also had a retaining wall pushed back to give us more room for lounges and what-not. This also eliminated some growing space, so we have to make due with the space we have. We also have quite a few trees that are established that we'd like to keep and a couple that we don't mind getting rid of if need be. This is a love-hate matter with me, since I like the dwarf orange, the plum and the apple trees as they produce well, yet don't quite mix in with the tropical look we're now trying to establish. All-in-all it looks like a real like a real mixed mess. During the summer we have 3 umbrellas that slide into holes in the deck. Sorry I can't find a pick of that, but will keep looking.

Our soil situation is a disaster and has been since we moved in. Unless replaced as you go, so-to-speak, it's horrible to plant in. This is simply course sandy loam. I cannot afford to have it all taken out, unfortunately.

In the images below I've labeled the three levels that make up the growing space in our upper-yard.

These levels are:
Level 1 - the lowest level just behind the retaining wall. This area consists of a drip system that waters red Mandevilla's (Sun Parasol) planted a year ago. There's also a few bulbs planted there that we can't recall the names of, "Bearded..."? The soil in this level is the sandy loam except where the plants are. The plant spots are a mix between a bagged Miracle Grow garden blend and the sandy loam Below that is, again, the sandy loam. I need to keep this area's soil low or when it rains it bleeds over the wall and stains the stucco wall. There also a green chicken wire fence here to allow the Mandevilla's to crawl on. My idea was, once the Mandevilla's hare established they can fall over the wall here and there adding a bit of color which we badly need.

Level 2 sits about 4-5" higher than level 1 and is separated from that level with cedar fencing staked in horizontally and has the drip running along it. It's about 6" deep of a bagged Miracle Grow garden blend throughout. Below that is the sandy loam again. This area has a mix of tropical looking plants, yet we'd like to plant some colored bulbs in between for more color. There's about two feet of space between each plant here. Enough room for the right bulb? If some plants aren't right for this area I don't mind moving them as long as we can save them for somewhere else. If it would work here I was considering a Hawaiian Tropical Bamboo Orchid. Thoughts?

Level 3 is the upper most level and consists of just the course sandy loam and has a slight slope. It's border to level 2 are railroad ties that were there when we moved in 13 years ago. This level is a miss mash of trees, Cherry, olive, Birds, King Palms and fruit. We planted Mandevilla's to the back of this area as we thought they'd cling to the lattices and cover the ugly wall, but they haven't taken in the three years since we planted them in a bagged garden soil. The only thing that's grown in this soil and made it look better is typical ground cover, yet we never bought enough to cover the entire area. The other downside about ground cover is walking on it to get access to the fruit and bird feeders. Is there a ground cover that will look very tropical and not look dead in off seasons?

All three levels are watered by a drip system twice a day up to 15 minutes depending on the time a year. Three times a year I give this area Mirracle Grow powder through the drip system.

There are other areas in this "upper-yard" with other plants. I'm okay with those and would rather tackle the above first. I mainly looking to add color with new plants and improve the growth of what I have now. I like bulbs because once you plant they come back each year and, hopefully, multiply. If tropical bulbs can help us I'd like to get on it now since it is planting season if not mistaken. I'd like to accent the red Mandevilla's with a different color bulb. We'd like to continue a tropical look all around and if it made a significant difference, I'd be willing to part with the cherry and olive to be replaced with something more appropriate.

We don't vacation very often and like the back yard to be our get-away.

What could the fine folks at DG recommend from what you've read and see in the images below?

Sorry about the length,
Tony

Hi Tony,

I am in the same zone as you (9B) and have the tropical look around my yard as well. Some plants that grow well for us are heliconias, hibiscuses, Hawaiian Ti's, bromeliads and birds of paradise. Other plants that you might want to think about as filler are palms or cycads. Since you bring up the poor quality of your soil, have you thought about starting your own compost? It will be slow to start, but once you get it going; you will have great dirt to use in your ward.

Shauna

I know this is probably not what you want to hear but, if I were you I would spend days going to local park gardens, neighbourhood gardens where they are quite established, these will let you see what looks good growing beside what, don't be embarrassed to ask questions of gardeners in their neighbourhood either, Most gardeners are always willing to bore the pants of you with there plants and OH how hard it was to get the garden established but remember, by this time, they have gained much experience.
Go to the library / book store and look through their books on Californian landscaping to give ideas, I just hate pool areas that are smothered in plants but prefer more sculptural layouts using a few larger plants alongside large rocks and smaller pebbles ect but, everyone's taste is different so, I'm sure flicking through some books will give you much needed insight into laying out landscaped areas using different shades of green as well as textures side by side.

Send away for growers catalogues for pool / water gardening and landscaped or tree's / shrub growers, these give as much info re all there plants for sale as you will get anywhere, they will give flowering times, size and soil conditions required for each type of plant.

Good luck, slow down and research as much as possible, remember you also want to be able to look after the garden so the more area you use for growing, the more you have to maintain it, not easy IF you have limited time.
Best wishes. WeeNel.

1) Remove the rail road ties and cedar retaining wall materials. They are not going to last much longer.
Build new walls that will last, perhaps only one wall where the rail road ties are now. A wall that only raises the level a few inches is not doing anything for you.
Conserve the improved soil, haul off some (not much) of the original soil. Backfill once the walls are built with a blend of 2 parts original soil and 1 part soil conditioner (compost, nitrified redwood or any other organic material), purchased in bulk, not bags. Top off with the conserved material (your Miracle Grow blend)

2) Improve the irrigation. Drip works just fine, but you must understand where the water is going when you use a drip system. If your drip system is old, replace it with a new one. If yours is a mix of emitters, misters and what-not added over the years, scrap it. Start all over, and get expert input about a system that will do what you want. Some irrigation stores will do this. Try Ewing Irrigation (if there is one near you)
Water flows VERY slowly from the drip system, so it takes a LONG time to deep soak the plants. This is why the Mandevillias are doing so poorly. You are treating them like they are still in 4" pots, watering only to top couple of inches of the soil. That is where their roots are staying, and that small root system cannot support the lush plants you want.
Set your timer to turn on the drip system only once, and run it for 15 minutes. Then go dig a hole where a wet spot is. See how deep the water got in that 15 minutes. See how wide it spread. Then turn the system on for long enough to irrigate a foot deep, based on how deep it went in 15 minutes. (If it only got 2" deep in 15 minutes, then you will have to run the system for 1.5 hours) I'll bet it really takes a couple of hours to get the water in deep enough to properly irrigate the larger plants. Then you should not have to deep soak them again for several weeks in mild weather, perhaps once a week in the heat of the summer. Might be a good idea to think about 2 systems: One is run infrequently to deep soak the trees. The other is more for surface rooted plants and might run every few days in the hottest part of the summer. Perhaps a drip-mist combined system.

3) Plant. Look around your neighborhood for plants that will work in your area. Ask at nurseries. Buy and use the Western Garden Book, by Sunset.
Planting concepts: Group plants so several of one kind make a cluster, then repeat that cluster somewhere else, and somewhere else... You can make a cluster out of 1-2 specimen plants and half a dozen 'basic' plants, for example: 1-2 New Zealand Flax (Phormium tenax or P. hybrid) in a group with half a dozen Asparagus Fern (Asparagus sprengeri) Or 1 Bird of Paradise (Strelitzia) in a mass of Scented Geranium (Pelargonium species and hybrids) Add groupings, masses of bulbs, not singles. Naked Lady (Amaryllis belladona) has lush foliage, and large flowers. Just not at the same time. Freesias are delightfully fragrant, my favorite are the yellow ones. Plant not less than a dozen in any one patch. 2 dozen is better. Research bulbs that you can leave in place, and do not have to dig up every year.

Think fragrance, as well as foliage. Gardenias are very fragrant, and there are several varieties, different sized plants. Gardenia augusta 'Veitchii' is one of the longest blooming Gardenias.

Ground cover plants that can be walked on enough to harvest the fruit: Thyme- any of several species, but probably Creeping Thyme is slightly more tropical that some of the others. At least the leaves are the richest green.

More plant ideas: you will have to look into their needs and determine if you can grow them:
Canna Lily
Calla Lily (Zantedeschia)
Bougainvillia (thorny)
New Zealand Flax (many sizes, varieties, colors from 12" dwarfs to 12' giants)
Lavatera
Lantana (Causes skin irritation in some people. Many colors, some more upright, some sprawling)
The newer varieties of Agapanthus, with rich purple flowers
Hardenbergia- a vine that may trail the way you want.
Iris, many varieties and species. The Bearded Iris are just the tip of the iceberg!
Salvia- A very large group, mostly perennials and shrubby perennials, very wide range of flower colors, most will bloom throughout the warm season.
Penstemon- The Garden Penstemon group will have the largest leaves and flowers Used to be Penstemon x gloxinoides. Many varieties.
Fill in the first couple of years with seasonal annuals. As the permanent plants get going they will fill in all but a few pockets, so you will buy less annuals each season, perhaps just enough to fill in where the bulbs go dormant.

4) Thick mulch. Ground bark, chips, or any other organic material. Make sure it won't blow into the pool. I use a lot of chips that I get free from the tree companies. This will...
Hold moisture, so you do not need to irrigate so often,
Gradually break down, improving the soil over the years,
Improve the soil pH, and soil structure,
Make it so beneficial organisms from bacteria to earth worms thrive in your soil,
Keep the dust down,
Keep weeds down,
Visually tie it all together with a more lush looking soil surface,
Probably a lot more benefits...