Some Heliconia would give it a very tropical look.

DM

I agree heliconias would look great and they have leaves that look like bird of paradise. Lobster claw heliconia (Heliconia rostrata) grows to around 8 ft and has a beautiful hanging red inflorescence. If you can find it Heliconia collinsiana would also look great since the underside of the leaves have a white powder that reflects light at night. Don't get heliconia psittacorum! It spreads like a weed. You see different varieties for sale with names like 'Lady Di', 'Andromeda', or 'Fire and Ice'.

Night blooming jasmine would also be nice. I have a large one next to my pool screen. It makes the whole area smell great at night but it gets tall and has to be cut back.

Karin, what is it about the white BOP that you don't like? I have had some near my pools for 20+ years and never had any problems. It does "spread" but it's a slow spread and you can easily cut down any new growth to keep it the width you want. You can even start with 2 or 3 plants and dig up the side shoots to propagate more. It will eventually get to 12' or more feet tall in the right conditions but then you can allow one or two of the side shots to grow and cut down the main one if it's too tall your needs. I find heliconias and gingers to be much more difficult to control and those I have learned to keep in pots. I think your fence will look great with some soliataire palms and white BOP and some chordyline (sp?) for a pop of color.

Helen

I can't recommend heliconias. They get ratty looking and may not bloom suitably in your zone. I think a white bird would fit your needs. As they age they do require thinning & cleaning up. I can also recommend Ti plants(tons of varieties, search web beyond box store varieties), alcantarea bromeliads (no spines), carpentaria palms, crotons (some fantastic varieties outside the common box stores), plumerias, bordelon ornamental bananas (skinny stalk, corm easy to maintain, almostinstant canopy) so many more plants but that's a good start

wanna_run_faster thanks for the advice! I love the look of the solitaire palm - I didn't know whether there were palms suitable for narrow spaces so that's great. I actually love the white BOP and after some more research will definitely plant a few of those. I was only worried about the roots interfering with the pool or fence, but it seems it's not as invasive as I thought. Perhaps I was reading about the Giant BOP.

junglegal I've heard the same thing about heliconias from others so I'm a bit torn. I think the lobster claw heliconia looks amazing and is exactly what I'm after, but not sure how well it will thrive in zone 9b. Ti plants definitely - we saw some beautiful deep purple ones that I love. I'm going to look into the other varieties you mentioned - so many choices!!!

I agree with Junglegal about getting what you really love :} and getting everything ready and planned then planting in the late Feb or so. You can do it little by little...buy some black cow a couple of bags at a time and work it into the soil.

Everyone has their own gardening preferences. Previously, I didn't mind keeping things in check every couple of weeks. Now my "style" is tropical and LOW maintenance...I'll dump some mulch or fertilizer down 1 or 2 x a year, take my clippers and dead head or trim back a garbage can worth...but that's it lol! No more covering plants in the winter, no more digging up heliconas and gingers that are threatening to take over the whole yard, no more trying to keep hedges trimmed, etc :} So it also depends on your interest and energy.