This is for the section left of the front walk and above the short curved wall/palm tree well. It looks like you already have liriope in there. That can stay.

Plant two, maybe three, Needle Palm, Rhapidophyllum hystrix, in the front left corner with the house side wall as backdrop and palm trunk in foreground.

Plant a big drift of Coontie, Zamia pumila in front of the palms using the majority of the space. Add some cardboard Plant, Zamia furfuracea if you like more texture and diversity.

Let the liriope fill in or add more for fill.

Plant a big fat sack of Rain Lily bulbs, Zephyranthes sp. scattered through the bed.

Done.

If you are adventurous, add a few Amorphophallus bulbifer for a touch of gothic tropical.

Thank you for your suggestions. I think the space is around 10' x 10' so I think the Needle Palms might be too big for the area. I adore Coontie and, you are right, that would be a perfect place for it. And the rain lilies are a great idea. Cardboard plants are dramatic and I like the way they look but since they are poisonous to animals, I don't want to take a chance. I wasn't familiar with the Amorphophallus bulbica so I looked it up and laughed - the corpse plant! There is one at Selby Gardens that draws crowds when it blooms..

It it were me I would probably plant roses.... there are some that do quite well in just morning sun.... but roses are my thing..... If you aren't into roses, what about a "little john" dwarf bottle brush and then some other salvias (sp) to bring in some hummingbirds and butterflies.

P.U. - don't think you'd want that by your doorway! Those also attract houseflies & carrion flies when they bloom.

Have you considered having an arbor put in that spot - something you could use for hanging plants? This one looks cool:

If not, I can visualize a low maintenance groundcover near the walkway, then some more height as it gets closer to the house. Ti plant is practically foolproof and attractive, IMO. Fragrant plants can be a pleasure in areas of frequent traffic.

UF Extension's Yards & Neighborhoods has lots of info and lists of FL friendly plants:

http://www.floridayards.org/

Sharon, I was toying with the idea of roses - I have a Louis Phillipe garden rose that I love on the east side of my house that has so far done well in morning sun. I was thinking maybe an iron gate hung on the side of the house with a rose bush crawling all over it, but DH kind of groaned when I suggested it. Probably thinking about how heavy that gate would be to hang! This area gets less sun than the east side of the house so am a little worried about rose diseases.

Carol, I showed the trellis wheel to my DH and he loves it because I am sure he can visualize his orchids hanging on it. But, unfortunately I am kind of over hanging orchids there. I love fragrant plants near the doorway, which is why I have that rosemary bush where it is. Also, this year my dopey snake plants bloomed and they had a fantastic aroma. The groundcover idea might be the best since I don't need another area to weed and maintain!

By the way, that window behind the area in question is a dining room although for now it is mostly serving as an art gallery.

Fragrance is good. There are a number of common named rambling to vining jasmine shrubs you could grow. I think most of them would like the lower light. One specimen shrub to replace the Needle Palms would work.

If you are adventurous, look for a Pikake, Jasminum sambac. It's not the most attractive shrub, but they bloom lots. Good kind stink. You can make leis.

A simple and well built architectural arbor across the front face of what looks like a courtyard entry could be a fun project and good landscape and home improvement investment.

I love the scent of snake plant blooms = )

And I have Panama Rose, which has an evening scent and has been carefree to grow here.

https://www.south-florida-plant-guide.com/panama-rose.html

Bromeliads make good groundcovers, IMPE. Mine are all in partial shade. The only drawback is they can harbor mosquitoes.

Plumeria might do well in that spot too.

Native + fragrance = Passiflora incarnata

I love passionflower and I did not know it has a fragrance. That would look really nice along the left side of the area in question.

I'm presuming this is your front entryway?

Maybe consider a small seating area - even just a bench?

Yes, it's my front entryway. DH loves the idea of a bench (he also wanted a fire pit) but the mosquitoes are awful and I just can't imagine sitting out front for any extended period of time. The mosquitoes used to leave in the winter but they don't anymore!

Then I'm thinking bromeliads would not be the best choice.

And FYI, I understand mosquitoes like areas that are still, with no breezes or wind. Have you tried running a fan?

Also, I use this - I got it at Publix. It does have strong minty smell, tho:

That stuff looks good. I will pick some up. Sometimes we do use a fogger in the area around the entryway but the stuff we use is not labeled safe. Now that the tree is gone, maybe that will help with mosquitoes. Probably not, but I can dream, can't I? :-)