Bamboo drops a ton of litter. The areca palms (Dypsis lutescens) are an easy grow in south Florida and will not be so messy. Maximum height is around 20ft. Maintenance consists of removing spent fronds, very easy.

I was thinking of installing a vinyl lattice for privacy around pool. It would only be at the one end and it is a freeform shaped pool so no straight lines. Thinkin of maybe some flowering vines. Any ideas about how to build the structure? I was thinking of going to home depot and buying the 4x8 panels. Any ideas of what to use to build the frame and what size lumber for posts? Want it to be sturdy. Don"t want to repair it every year.

We have a fenced yard. There are no requirements for the pool to be fenced as well. (We're in Oklahoma. I understand from the pool forum that there are places that require a fence around the pool, even if the yard is fenced, but we're not one of those states.) Every other house on my street has a pool. No one has a pool fence (we were the only house with the fence around the pool), but all the yards are fenced. All the houses on my street back to the neighborhood greenbelt. So when walking on the greenbelt, all the other yards look so open and pretty, and then you'd get to our yard. It looks like Herman Munster designed a fence LOL!! I'm glad the rotten old thing is down. Because of the greenbelt and the view, we'll likely just build a retaining wall around the pool and plant some privacy plants instead of putting in another fence.

Hopbush is widely used as a hedge because it fits the job description for a desert hedge plant so well. Saying it's "over planted" here is like saying boxwood is over planted in England. Native to this area, deep green, evergreen, thornless, not toxic, vertical growth habit, and easy to keep in bounds ... as a landscaper, I'm in love with that list of qualities. It will grow quickly if you water it deeply and regularly, and then you can slow down the growth by reducing the frequency of the watering.