Your local S. California botanic gardens such as the Huntington, LA Botanic Garden, Quail Botanic Garden, the San Diego Zoo and gardens at Balboa Park, the new Getty, Alice Keck Park in Santa Barbara, Lotus Land in Montecito, would all be places I would recommend seeing. Favorites on a smaller scale would include Venice Beach neighborhoods, or at the opposite end, Beverley Hills.

You have quite an interesting list of new plants to go into the garden, it should be fun to get them into the landscape. Don't overlook adding bromeliads and succulents to the mix, as they do so well in your area.

Thank you Bahia! The Getty and Huntington are very do-able as a day trip.I forgot about the San Diego places. I have heard good things about the grounds at the Wild Animal Park too. The worst thing is that we visited Lotusland three years ago, before moving into our current home, and we only had eyes for perennials at the time. We did go to the Fullerton Arboretum last saturday. It was a pleasant surprise. A lot of wonderful succulents and natives. The "Potting Shed" plant store there is great and has some wonderfully unusual plants for sale. There was also a great Bonsai show there too.

It is funny you should mention succulents and bromeliads. I have several that were given to me by a very generous woman who handed me an armful of billbergia and aechmea and other pups from her garden as I walked by one day, but I haven't ID'd them yet. I also half promised my sweet wife an Undersea Garden based on a photo of the one at Quail gardens, which I guess we must visit very soon!

Thank you for the great suggestions.

Here is a link that might be useful: Quail Undersea garden.

Quail has a nice small banana section, and a few gingers & heliconias. They have many bromeliads on display right now. Bamboo is not on your list, but they have an outstanding section of bamboo. You did not mention orchids, but I believe they have a very large orchid event/sale coming up soon.
If you travel south to visit some of the San Diego gardens, there are 2 small gardens at the Cuyamaca college. One is a garden sponsored by the Water department  it has water conservation ideas, artistic ideas, as well as a variety of palms. The king & Queen palms are side by side there (or at Fullerton). You might want to research your palms & consider the Queen if you want a rapid growth rate. The other garden is sponsored by the horticulture department & is on the Cuyamaca campus. It is not on your list, but there are some nice Brachychitons & yucca rostrada up there.
I see you have visited Fullerton. They have a nice vine collection there  supposedly the clerodendrons are part of their collection.

all you list will grow here except---,spathocircinata is marginal.
allamanda and heliconia dwarf jamaica will not,unless you bring them indoors for the winter.
there are many heliconias that will survive here.
i have over 40 varieties
gary

Baci, thank you for the recommendations. I have several mature queen palms around our pool. They are beautiful (and messy).I guess you have to give a little to get a little. I have heard bamboo might be messy too, so I haven't given them much thought. Are there any you would recommend? We get a steady wind every afternoon at 4:00. Orchids are on my list of filler plants, but I have zero experience. We have one in a pot that has been doing well, and has flowered for the past 2yrs. Also regarding Fullerton Arboretum, they are really bad about labeling plants! I would like to go there again when they have a docent guided tour.

Gary, thank you for your input. We seldom get under 60 degrees here accept for the occaissional early morning in the high 40's. I am hoping that the Dwarf Jamaicans will be happy in a funky microclimate in the SW corner. Is there anything I can do to increase my possibility of success? When I bought the allamanda it was labeled "Mandevilla", but I knew it wasn't, but the Mrs. liked it. I am hoping it will do well on a west facing wall. With the heliconia 'Gaudalupe'I am taking the shotgun approach. I have 7, that will be planted in different places, and I am hoping a few will survive.

I have been buying most of my plants online and have tried to research their preferences before buying, but sometimes I just take a gamble.

The Huntington Library is hosting an orchid show/sale this weekend (10/20-22/06) -- you can check out the conservatory while you're there. (Part of the show is there.)