The variegated gingers are slated to be planted in the backyard where they will get dappled shade So, hopefully, they will thrive in their new home.

If your going to plant Bird of Paradise, consider planting a regular orange/blue S. reginae and a yellow/blue 'Mandela's Gold' in the same area. The color contrast is fantastic. Also might want to consider a variegated Manihot esculenta- (tapioca)- very tropical looking.
I sure miss SoCal gardening!

That is spectacular and I'll definitely try to locate both the Mandela Gold and the tapioca. Absolutely stunning !!

Elephant ears and bananas are about as tropical as you can get!

If you can plant them in very large containers with rich soil, they may perform better than in ground. People in arid regions seem to have better results with that than planted in that dry ground, the areas you don't water will wick all the water you give...

Another suggestion I'd have woukd be tetrapanax, not sure if it'll tolerate SoCal heat and dry but they are about as close to bullet proof as plants come!
Can't put em in a pot tho...

I'd also suggest castor bean plants, I know...SoCal folks don't like em much...
But they are undeniably tropical lookin!
Just nip the flowers out and you won't have reseeding issues!
Careful...highly toxic!

Also...be very careful with cannas!
The canna virus is rampant these days!

It WILL ruin any cannas in the area!

If your neighbors have cannas, look for signs of canna virus, it transmits so easy!

Most often it's brought in with new plants, before you know it, you have no idea where it came from, cuz all the cannas you own are sick...
The plants will persist...but they'll be ugly as sin! And often merely serve as a constant source for more infection!

Best of luck

Swayback, You are correct about the castor beans. They are considered a noxious weed in So. Cal. They are pretty when small, but when they hit 10' or more , they're ugly! Add to that that every seed is viable for years, and all parts of the plant are toxic.

Thank you so much for the suggestions, Swayback. I am going to have to pass on the Castor Beans due to having dogs and grandchildren. I just could not live with myself if either were inadvertently poisoned.

I checked into the tetrapanax that you recommended. It looks very interesting. Do you know if it is a garden thug or not (or a lung irritant)? If so, I may not plant it in the main garden but I definitely have some rougher areas where it could spread without being an issue. I am just trying to figure out how and where it could fit into the scheme of things - I really like the look.

Oddly, bananas seem to enjoy being in the open ground here. I have been careful, though, to plant them in 3-4 inch deep swales so that they receive all of the extra water available.

Again, thank you all for the suggestions. We are close to finishing planting for now and we will pick back up come autumn. I really do appreciate all of the help!

We'd sure like to see some pictures!

I'll definitely try to get some photos this weekend.

'Mandela's Gold' Bird of Paradise was recommended above but none of the vendors that I typically use carry it. Almost Eden has the normal Bird of Paradise and I am on their list to notify when it is available for purchase, but can anyone recommend a vendor that they like who sells 'Mandela's Gold' ? I would like to use a vendor that comes with a recommendation rather than one of the unknown entities out there. Thank you so much

We had tetrapanax for years in Garden Grove. Don't know if I'd call ot a garden thug, but it will spread past the area it's planted in. The 'fuzz' from the flowers and stems can get in your eyes when handling/trimming the plant, but is not a problem unless you 'disturb' the plant. Nice tall tropical look, with flower spikes that look like schefflera flowers in form, but covered in light grey/yellow-green velvet. As far as Mandelas Gold goes, I grew mine from seed- takes 5-6 years here in north TX to flower. We're not really in S.reginae growing country, if you know what I mean. I see them at independent nurseies in SoCal from time to time, but most mail order places sell only very small starter plants.
Happy hunting!

pniksch said:We had tetrapanax for years in Garden Grove. Don't know if I'd call ot a garden thug, but it will spread past the area it's planted in.

That will work out great for the area I am considering. It is just below the main yard and it is a little rougher area - definitely room for it to spread and do its thing

pniksch said:Nice tall tropical look, with flower spikes that look like schefflera flowers in form, but covered in light grey/yellow-green velvet.

It really does look nice. Thank you so much for suggesting it

pniksch said:As far as Mandelas Gold goes, I grew mine from seed- takes 5-6 years here in north TX to flower. We're not really in S.reginae growing country, if you know what I mean.

Our permanent home is in central Tx - between Gatesville and Lampasas so I definitely get what you mean

I think it is fantastic that you grew yours from seed.

I'll keep looking. Hopefully, one of the vendors I normally use will decide to carry it. Thank you, again, for the suggestions. I truly appreciate all of the help.

I just wanted to send my thanks to all of you for your help. As it turns out, I ended up taking everyone's advice and, with the exception of two plants, have already located and purchased them all. Dutchlady1, thank you for recommending the bananas and Bird of Paradise. I used your recommendation as a good excuse to expand the types of bananas I grow and added 'Praying Hands', 'Ice Cream', 'Truly Tiny', 'Lacatan' and 'Zebrina' to the ones I already have (a great big thank you to Kabby, too, for recommending more bananas). I also located some starter Bird of Paradise and took both your and Pniksch advice and purchased both the standard orange and the gold ones (2 of each). I will keep my eye out for more mature plants but at least I have the starter plants and all have really nice root structures. Pniksch, I also purchased 2 of the variegated tapiocas that you recommended. Thank you for introducing me to them - the foliage is fantastic!

Tennessee Dave and Kabby, I couldn't agree with you more when you said I had to get more elephant ears and cannas. I purchased more of both - both alocasias and colocasias and also more of the aquatic cannas to boot - to fill out what I already had. TDave, that 'Maui Punch' is still calling to me so, if I end up with more room when I am done, I will purchase that one, too. It really is a stunner!

Dyzzypyxxy, thank you for encouraging me to look deeper into gingers. I purchased a variety of types - hedychium (thank you, Kabby, too, for the heads-up), asarum, and alpinias to add to the 'Luna Moth' and 'White Butterfly' (thank you, Dr. Dawg) that I previously had. I planted the (2) variegated Costus in shade as both you and Dutchlady1 advised and they are doing incredibly well (they have nearly tripled in size since planting).

Kabby, thank you for bringing up Crinum to me. I purchased some 'Sangria' and can hardly wait for them to get large enough to bloom.

Tarev, the Schefflera has finally overcome the shock of being transplanted and it has a nice new corner to itself where it can shine (it is underplanted with some ajuga which is filling in quickly). Thank you for your suggestion!

DrDawg, the cannas are working out well. They really do have that beautiful tropical feel about them.

Swayback, I am still searching for the Tetrapanax for the slope and I refuse to give up until I locate one. Hopefully, I can get one planted come autumn so that the yard is complete. I will be careful about adding cannas and I appreciate the warning about the virus. It would be so sad to get the yard done only to find out that my cannas had a problem.

And finally, Xeramtheum, I keep peeking at the Anthuriums. I am sure by next year there will a pair on potted up on either side of the steps.

CTCarol and Extranjera, thank you for your comments. Both impacted the decisions that I made and I am sure that my garden is all for the better due to your advice and observations.

Anyway, I apologize for the length of this post but wanted to thank each and every one of you for your help. I will be sure to take photos in the autumn after everything has had time to grow. Again thank you for making this yard possible!

Sounds like you are going to have a full yard! Looking forward to pictures.

with Hetty, now we want payback pictures, OG. Don't be shy, we all started our gardens somewhere. Besides it's fun to have 'progress' shots to show what it looked like starting out and what it looks like next spring, summer, fall etc.

Put a flat rock or a stepping stone in a good photo spot, then come back and take shots from there at intervals. I did this, and my stepping stones have been overgrown so they can't be found any more. I live in a jungle . . . and last summer I had a weekly helper to clean up and prune to keep things civilized. This year, he has disappeared and my house is about to also. Luckily so far we have had less rain than last year so the weeds are not so bad, yet!