You had me at 'Roger's Red', seriously it's so spectacular when it turns color you'll wonder how you ever lived without it. I vote for Plan B! :)

Kerry, thanks for your input. I am sort of leaning towards Option B.

When I plant new stuff, I like to try for things that provide food and/or shelter for birds and other critters.

Lots of red in option B; unless you really like red, I'd go with "A".

Why choose, use them all!

Thank you for test-driving the book!
I like them both.

My vote -- option B. To play a nice, cooling counterpoint, add an edging of Artemisia californica 'Canyon Gray' (enough sun?), and tuck in a trio of Carex spissa (San Dlego Sedge) bunches and/or Festuca californica 'Serpentine Blue'. Enjoy!

Is there a structure that the Roger's Red can climb on?

I'm tempted to use RR instead of or perhaps with the choices in combo A.

The Heuchera will have stopped blooming by the time the RR turns color in fall so you'll extend the red color without having too much of it at one time.

The RR can climb and be beautiful without taking much horizontal space, so that would tempt me to use it in back of the Holodiscus that you've already picked as your "tall" plant in list A.

If you start RR a year before planting H. discolor then perhaps it won't get shaded out.

Plan A; because it has a combo of colors.

One thing to keep in mind is that Roger's Red can grow to HUGE proportions. Give it at least 30-40 feet in each direction, and plenty of strong support.

Owen

Hi Sharon, I meant to comment on this but couldn't decide! Anyway, what about Calycanthus, Heuchera and Roger's Red? I have a Holodiscus that I got because someone told me it was his favorite native shrub. It has never looked that good here, probably because I am more inland. Calycanthus looks great at Rancho and it is a great habitat plant, though it can be wild and twiggy, especially when it goes deciduous - but I love the way the leaves feel and smell and the flowers are so beautiful. If you go with Calycanthus and Roger's Red, you will need room!

Thanks for your comments, Barbara. I think I am reluctantly abandoning the idea of Roger's Red. I probably don't have enough room to justify it. Still considering Calycanthus, though, especially after Susan Van Atta told me the foliage--or was it the flowers?--smell like wine barrels.

We have two Calycanthus plants in our front yard. They both started as plants in 4" pots, and have grown over the course of one season to being over 2' tall and wide. They are tough plants and don't mind being shaded by our oaks. Most talk about Calycanthus flowers, but I agree with Barbara- the foliage is beautiful too! They do go deciduous so you might want to find a companion to add interest in winter. Our wild grapes (not the cultivar "Roger's Red," but volunteers planted by birds) also go deciduous in winter. Just something to think about...