As important as the details of the exact plants you install will be their locations, final height, form and geometric shape of their footprint. You should remove the remaining hedge encircling the bay window addition. You might want to remove the hedge and post another photo showing what plants are behind the hedge. Or possibly a photo taken from another angle could explain what's happening at the right side of house, closer to it. It would be helpful to remove the low hanging foliage that obscures the view of the 1st floor roof areas.

Thank you Yarkvaark, here are some more photos of that bed. There isn't anything behind the gardenia bushes. I need a plan before I pull everything out, and then must have that plan approved with the HOA.
I am not going to worry too much about that right side of the house, mainly the front area with the rocks, and the rest of the bed. I am on a tight budget, and would love things that don't need a lot of trimming. We have tried the dwarf bougainvillea, but they did not work too well.

I really appreciate any ideas. We are zone 10.

Here is the front of that bed.

Bromeliads massed under the tree would look very nice with a mondo grass border, or the rhoeo suggested above.
{{gwi:50476}}

A bed of smaller bromeliads with some larger specimen accents could be very beautiful. I find it useful to keep them in the pots, partially buried and surrounded by mulch or large chunks of lava stone.
{{gwi:50477}}

It's easy to get carried away...

Note: My original photos are much brighter. The latest version of Photobucket seems to have drained the color from my photos. Sorry.

Catkim, I love the idea of bromeliads. Even Costco has them for sale. Should I look for any certain one? Wondering what else would go around them? I have a large area to cover.
Thank you so much, the photos are gorgeous!

I found Bromies to be just the ticket for places where digging out spaces for large rootballs was not doable.Your Bromie choices depend on what sun exposures you have there. Neoregelias are plentiful and quite varied for bright shade and a few can go full sun.
Aechmeas enjoy full sun if you don't mind the serrated edges.
Aechmea blanchetiana:
{{gwi:50478}}

Vresias, cryptanthus, guzmanias- they all have their place. Just research what light each needs and purchase the correct species and varieties for your conditions.

I had lots of Bromie patches when I lived in Broward.
Most came from Tropicana's "From the Loading Dock" section or local plant shows where I could buy in bulk on the cheap.
I've included a link to Tropiflora- they are in Sarasota and I am sure they come to a plant show near you a couple of times a year.

More beauties:

{{gwi:50479}}

{{gwi:50480}}

{{gwi:50481}}

Here is an enormous Neo grown in full sun and 48" across- don't need too many of them to fill a space!

{{gwi:50482}}

Here is a link that might be useful: Tropiflora

Those are gorgeous, and I live within an hour of both Bromeliad places! I don't have the budget to buy very many, but will definitely incorporate some into the landscape in pots.
I am now looking at the foxtail ferns, crotons, ground orchid, panama rose and the purple Ruellia. I am going to a class in the morning for landscaping for beginners. Just hard to know how many to purchase without a diagram.
Thanks everyone for your thoughts, I may have to start a new hobby with those gorgeous bromeliads! They should grow very well in zone 10, SWFL.

I feel an obsession coming on... a bromeliad obsession.

One of the best things I ever did was join my local Bromeliad Society Club. It has helped me grow my collection on a shoestring budget while meeting great people and learning more about the wonderful world of bromeliads.

Hopefully the class experience will help you come up with a plan showing where plants would go. That will help you calculate quantities. Post it here if you want constructive criticism/feedback.

Ruellia is great but don't get the standard species as it is invasive. 'Purple Showers' is sterile so is a better choice. It's sold here but usually without the name being labelled so it's difficult to tell that you're getting the good option. You might need to live with a sample for a short while to see if it produces seed.

I understand the desire to incorporate color into the plan, but Croton never impresses me as a great looking solution. Hopefully, you will use it sparingly. Color will be more meaningful if it is concentrated judiciously. Only some color needs to be incorporated.

Yardvaark, thank you so much for your last comment! I do not want something invasive~~been through that. I do agree on the Crotons, and they are so overused in my neighborhood. I just want something that is easy to maintain, interesting, and something beautiful to my eye~
I loved all the geranium bushes when they were small. They were put too close together, and became one huge bush.
I am thinking about doing a rose garden in the front where the other rose bush is. We have white stones up there, although I may either cover with mulch or take them out.

I'm not saying don't use croton. But use it where that particular color is needed and where a 6' ht. x 6' width shrub fits. That precludes it from being a little hedge in front of the windows. (Where I usually see it!)

I would definitely NOT cover the white rock mulch with any other type mulch. I would remove the white rocks and replace with a wood-based mulch. 2nd choice would be to leave it as it is (with whatever you wish planted in it.) But don't mix rocks and wood-based mulch. It would be a mess.

You mentioned that you're doing this on a tight budget. A single 'Purple Showers' Ruellia can be turned into the start of a 25' (or more) hedge in one season. It's easy to root cuttings of it using rooting powder. (A bright, shady, hidden area of the yard works well as a little "nursery.") If you space cuttings at 15", it only takes 20 of them to create 25' of hedge. Of course they're small (only 12" ht. after a couple of months) but next year ... it's a hedge. Unless I'm in a big hurry or the plant is slow growing I rarely buy multiple plants for myself. I buy one and make many plants from it. Another example, one gallon of Spathacea tradescantia can be immediately split into its individual plantlets and produces more than one dozen. A short time later, what was a single gallon plant can cover a dozen square feet.

The class at Riverland Nursery was fantastic! I got so many wonderful ideas. I am starting with the rock area. I called my "yard" guy, and he is taking out the white rocks next week. He will put in a Bridal Bouquet Plumeria in the back of that area, closest to the house and add some Drift rose bushes.
That will be my first section of that bed to do. They were very busy and suggested that I come back on a weekday and they will help me design something, with the plants that I love!
Some of the ones that I think might make a nice grouping are: Mrs. Shiller's Delight, a dwaf podocarpus, Carissa Boxwood, Song of India (dracaena), foxtail fern, and a croton or two. So exciting, but the placement is what worries me. The other side of my yard is a more formal bed, and I live in a very strict neighborhood. Don't know if it will look unbalanced?