Banksia prionotes, a Western Australian native, growing in Valley Center; red-leaved Leucadendron behind at right.

Malvaviscus arboreus, grows in a brambly fashion.  Fills in airy space, informal, intertwines amongst other plants.

After pruning, which is done annually in spring:

(Click underlined title to see more) Vulpia myuros, a common non-native annual grass that grows in wild areas of the San Diego region, native to Europe, and gets up to about a foot tall.  One caution about it is that it's highly flammable if ignited when dry.  However, makes attractive golden straw color when dry.

 Peach and Apricot on the same plant/'tree', by grafting.  I do this, I did this.

(Click on underlined title to see more)The Bismarck Palm has silvery to blue-grey-green foliage color(described as 'glaucous').  Green leaved strains are also available but the glaucous strains do better in SoCaL and other similar climates.  Grows to around 40 plus feet to the top of the foliage, and with adequate conditions can do so in about as many decades, and potential to 100 feet in a century.

(Click on the underlined title to see more)Brahea brandegeei, a great replacement for the very common 'tall skinny telephone pole' palm(Washingtonia robusta - Mexican Fan Palm), which it very much resembles but grows much more slowly,  about half as slow.  In the photo it's the palm in the middle with the old leaves 'petticoat' along trunk.  It's about 25 to 30 feet tall, and probably at least 40 years old. Native to Baja Sur and Sonora Mexico.

Eucalyptus rhodantha, aka Rose Mallee, gets about 10 to 15 feet all around, loosely and slowly.  A see through gawky big bush or small tree.  Silvery-white to silvery-blue-green leaves.  Blooms in Spring with red stamens yellow tipped.  Photo location:  Cubic Corp. in Kearny Mesa.

(Click underlined title to see more)Acacia pendula, weepy limbs of silvery to blue-grey-green foliage, gets about 30 feet all around.  Top photo in El Cajon, bottom photo in Point Loma.  Great for creating a 'haunted' themed landscape, with a living tree rather than a dead tree.  In one way of describing it, it has an eerie ghostly presence, being ashen colored and having a 'cloak' of weeping limbs.    WoooOooOOooooo.....

Silvery-blue leaves, golden inflorescences, growing in Fletcher Hills, grows slowly to about 30 feet, native to Baja and Sonora Mexico.

Dudleya brittonii, native to Baja California.  These are the glaucous colored form.  Green forms also exist, but are less spectacular looking. Top photo in Encinitas, bottom photo in Ocean Beach.