Buy another ceonothus and place on panel next to the one you have. Train both to espalier on the fence.

Great idea how long do you think that will take?

I do not know how fast the ceonothus grow. It should not take too long. Espaliering is a lot of fun. I have a fig tree espaliered against a wall.

Yes it sounds like a cool project

If the type of ceonothus that is planted is a true low growing shrub, I would still buy for the bare panels. Then 2-3 wrought iron trellises in back on the fence. This person used red berry toyon and it looks great. http://www.nativeplantdesign.com/MIKRes.htm

Queen Palms for a little tropical look?

I like the Idea of Queen palms for trees, I'd say 2-3 behind the raised section of the pool. You can also install 8-10 podocarpus or some vines on the wall with smaller shrubs in front of them.

okay that's sounds like a great idea...genesis pools and spa...would arborvitrae be too tall?

There are many different varities of Arborvitrae. If you can find the Holmstrup version that would be best. I would'nt go with the tallest growing one because it may 1) look too big and 2) look funny if you top it; unless you want to grow it into a hedge. Here is a link for info on different versions of it. http://www.garden.org/plantguide/?q=show&id=3351. I hope this helps.

Tall Italian Cyprus. Up to zone 10. Several close together would create a privacy backdrop.

Another fast filling tall and lush full green wall is bamboo. http://www.bamboohq.com/catalogsearch/advanced/result/?boo_rhizomes=&boo_usda=167&boo_exposure=158&boo_height=156&boo_height=155

that should have a list of the ones available in your hardiness zone.

Palms or Cyprus are the best. The roots won't damage the fence or the pool structure, they're not messy, low maintenance and they can help screen the neighbor's 2nd story windows.

This might be out there...but a small magnolia could be an option. They are not decidous so you wouldn't have to worry about leaves in the pool, the blossoms are fabulous, and I believe you can find a hybrid that will not grow so tall as to dwarf the area. As for bamboo, unless you plant it within an impermeable barrier, you and your neighbors may quickly be overrun with it. It's a great sceen but I've seen more unsuccessful attempts using it than successful ones.

Is the wall used for jumping off of? If not you can place some colorful planter pots on the top of the wall with some nice flowers or just green plants. Drip tubing can be ran up to them. Just make sure you use a pan under the pot so dirty water doesn't drip all over the coping. If the wall is used for jumping you can place the pots behind the wall and just elevate them with something so they are visible.

Some varities to check out:
Podocarpus, Pittosporum Tenuifolium, or Acacia stenophylla.

so i see a lot of folks using palms and cyprus and I wanted to be different. But not sure what other plants will work around a pool. I like it to look lush.

Oleanders?

pretty i like the flowers darzy

although poisonous?

would limelight hydrangeas work back there?

Hydrangeas are deciduous. I think you'd want something evergreen.

What direction exposure is the wall? South? North?

Hibiscus could give a tropical look if the wall is sunny.
I also like bougainvillea.

Camelias if the wall is a Northern or Eastern exposure.

Taiwanese Parasol? You might have to stay on top of it because they get about 15' high and between 12-15' wide. But...one tree would make a nice screen without taking over the wall. And it's deciduous and has pretty blossoms. I can't get my image to attach so you'll have to look it up.

im a newbie to this mmilos. But that wall gets all day sun

will check out tawanese parasol

I would stay away from the bamboo. It is a total nightmare with leaf drop and they are small and blow everywhere. Plus the roots from the bamboo can be invasive. Consider a Magnolia grandiflora, it is evergreen, grows fast but is easy to prune and keep shaped and it has a lovely, fragrant white flower. Yes they will drop leaves but they are very large and would be easy to pick out of the pool.

i love magnolias however i heard they can get very big and roots are invasive? is that not the case?

There are a couple of dwarf or compact varieties that would be best. Try "Baby Doll", "Teddy Bear", or "Little Gem"

Yes, there are small magnolias. Just look for the ones best suited to your growing zone. I actually have a hybrid (second one at second house) in Pennsylvania. And while they do drop leaves, it's occasionally.

Birds of paradise, Elephant ears, giant taro, banana plant/tree, rubber plant, bamboo palm. These are all tropical and will provide a very lush look and they are all large leaf plants which means they are easy to clean up after

Try wysteria. It grows along a trellis, has magnificent flowers in the spring and lively foliage all year long, especially in Northern CA. You can make your trellis as tall as you wish for privacy. Since you already have a lovely patio cover, the trellis can be in that style to match and/or compliment it. This will also give you some variation in heights along your back wall, giving a grand appearance.

okay it sounds like a cool idea. are the flowers easily blown by wind? It gets extremely windy in our area

Magnolias are beautiful but yes, the roots are invasive and they make a BIG mess when the leaves and pods drop. Smells fantastic though.

Not knowing your soil or other factors, I would suggest the ideas of Poseidon Pools. They are in business to know what works best. Yet others seem to know quite a bit about your area. The final choice is yours. Cactus is not a bad choice.

What about a perennial flowering shrub bed? In your zone, Russian Sage in the back would give you lavender blue flowers and grey green foliage, a few Desert Sunrise Agastache for some coral and lavender spikes gow slightly shorter, and in front, yarrow might be a nice bright yellow. These attract hummingbirds and bees too. Good xeriscape varieties with minimal care.

thujas are columnar and will provide a nice screen. They are evergreen, so no messy leaves or flowers dropping. Will provide some privacy.

Crepe myrtles are the WORST trees to have around a pool. The flower frills are shedding from spring to winter and fill up cleaner baskets continuously. Maybe yours is better behaved?

I was going to say the same as Boulder Pools,,Crepe myrtles are very messy. We have one and moved it at the back of the yard. It sheds a lot so you will have to clean your pool almost daily. If Thuyas work in California, get some of those. I live in zone 7 so, for us, the work really well. You could do some lemon trees. Bougainvillea would look nice there

This is our first season with our pool so don't know quite yet how maintenance w crepe myrtle is however... I don't mind cleaning up . If tree is beautiful then I'm willing to do it.

The tree is ok,,it has nice flowers in summer...not sure for how long they last in CA. You will see how it works this summer. My MIL loves gardening, but she is fed-up with the crape myrtle that close the entry..she needs to clean daily once they start dropping the dry flowers and seeds.

Yes I also didn't know much about plants and didn't like how it looks dead right now by pool

I am a former nursery owner. don't think you want a crape myrtle by a pool. Messy when it drops .

I agree about the mess from the crape myrtles. We had several by our pool, and while they were beautifully sculptural, the blooms matted across the surface and clogged the filters when they dropped off in late summer.

Add Christmas like lighting to the trees and fence

Zone 9 is where I build swimming pools. If you are going for the formal look, there is a hybrid variety of Italian Cypress called "tiny tower." They only grow to about 15' tall and work great in a tight area like that.

It appears that privacy is possibly something that you are trying to achieve. Try to keep in mind that greenery usually means shedding of leaves or other items that could cause future problems for your pool. Code requirement will make it difficult to erect a 20' wall so that your neighbors aren't constantly watching you in your pool, I have a couple of ideas. The first was to erect a partial ramada that would achieve the privacy, provide shading, and have an aesthetic appeal. The second way is to erect a trellis that is separate from the wall and have it filled with a climbing vine that will fill it with greenery, provide privacy, and can be erected quickly usually without a permit or permission from your neighbors. Enjoy all the comments. May God bless your family.

Here are just a few photos similar to what I mentioned earlier.

The white bird of paradise is tall, looks sort of like banana but much more cold hardy and enjoy full sun. Mine are 12' tall growth is med so get the biggest one u can it fans out and looks tropical with being a palm. It does not flower often so when it does it's a treat.

Oh as an addedcbonus the cut leaves are long lasting so I use them in the house like flowers wherever I need some thing tall.