Post #514653 by Tacky Tiki on Tue, Mar 2, 2010 8:27 PM

Bamboo for sure. I have golden and marble in pots. I have one long planter with the marble and it makes a nice living partition. I may be able to ship you some in a poster tube, since we are both in CA. Besides, if it looks like a poster, who is to say it isn't a poster?!

Shell ginger would be good too. Variegated leaves-green with yellow. I just moved mine a few weeks ago, but might be able to ship a rhizome of that, too. I also have white ginger.

Birds would be fantastic-they bloom when the weather cools down, so faux blooms from Michaels might be the best thing to suppliment the plant with. They would look fantastic with the MCM apartment. A giant bird would look great out there, too. You can get both at Home Depot or Lowe's for cheap. I had one in a container on my deck in Walnut Creek for years. Now it's in the ground here in Sacto and blooms nicely every year.

Bromiliads are fun, but kinda tricky.

We had a banana in a pot (dwarf cavendish) for 3 years. Put it in the ground last fall. It snowed, so we don't know if it will come back, but we are still hoping! The trunk is not mush, so we may be in luck. You could get a small banana. Just be careful that it doesn't tip over when it's windy!

I've got red and green cordylines, which look a bit palm-like. I trim up the leaves to force growth and so there is a trunk.

Maybe a gardenia? Don't get vetchii-it isn't worth it. Try Mystery or First Love. I just got another one, but can't remember which one it is-they are great to float in drinks and smell great!

That's about all I can think of now. If you can get a plumeria, go for it. Bring it in during winter. They are tricky, but you should be able to grow them since you are in SoCal.

:drink:
Tacky