Quote: and WHAT is wrong with expensive plants? Quote: Err nothing if you can afford them,which i can't! As for tall i mean something fastigiate,tall and narrow as its a small space. Being a fulltime Mom/Nursing student I can't afford them either--most of mine I got as cuttings for the asking or for trade (I often have offered 50¢ per cutting because I don't like to fell as tho' I'm mooching off of others, but am almost always given the cuttings and even sometimes a whole plant for the joy of giving). I also go to the local home improvement center and check for sale plants--got 3 bromeliads for $1.75 and 2 orchids for $1 apiece! Each is past flowering and looks to be overwatered, but with a bit of proper care is putting out pups! :) As for the plant for the tall narrow space, have you considered an ivy hanging down? English Ivy (Hedera sp.) seems to be tolerant of a range of light and moisture and drapes down rather nicely. Philodendrons (P. oxycardium) are also known to be pretty tolerant (got one each but keep them near the windows). Couple of nice wallpockets with starts of various ivies or a rabbit's foot fern......

Seeing the situation I'd really suggest making the bed much wider. There's too little room to grow anything much other than tiny edging plants if you don't want them to spill out onto the grass. Even the things you have listed as being in there already need more room unless you are happy to keep hacking them back to an artificially small size and unnatural shape. As a rule of thumb it's really best to make beds as generous as you can or they risk looking parsimonious and prissy. Your plants will have space to develop their true natures and you will not have them going through the fence to the neighbour's side. A wider bed will also be easier to keep the grass out of, which I see is already creeping in. Plus you would get a far greater sense of privacy from the neighbours. However, if you are wedded to the foot width, clematis would be perfectly happy on that fence. BTW anything behind the barbecue is at risk from the heat.

I thought of you. Finally got time to read the garden section of today's Dallas Morning News. They have two. Both are said to be avilable at HD and Lowes. I have not heard of either. They are new. You can find the article online. Title "New Arrivals..." sometimes they change the title from the actual paper. Emeral Snow Loropetalum. Green leaves(yes green!) with white flowers. Big bloom in spring. Sporadic bloom through summer and fall. 3 ft tall 4 ft wide. For sun or shade Jubilation gardenia. Compact reblooming, same blooming habit as above. Garden Glow dogwood. A deciduous shrub. 2-3 ft tall. White flower clusters followed by pale blue berries in summer. Bright red twigs in winter. (looks nothing like a dogwood!)

I hope you love your elephant ears.. We do! Thanks again for your help. I bought and planted a small specimen almost exactly one month ago and this week it has come into its own: