I got rid of 8 holly bushes that became trees in my too small backyard. One caution about holly is that if you like to go barefoot anywhere near it, those leaves are sharp! Plus, when my terriers would go after a rat that was visiting my pool for a drink during the 5 year drought we had here, the darn varmints would skedaddle up the hollies to get away from them. Used to go outside to swim at night and you could hear those nasty things rustling in the bushes. No hollies, no more rats...
Not impressed by the plant choices... there are better choices for this area... lots of good natives, some grasses for movement, some plants for color. Why not a crepe myrtle or two for color away from the pool? Or if you want a native, try Desert Willow-- it has blooms that look like orchids.
As far as roses in North Texas-- a word of caution. Rose Rosette Disease. I lost two gorgeous huge roses to this and haven't planted any replacements yet because I still see sick bushes some of my non-gardening neighbors haven't gotten rid of yet... guess they are waiting for them to finish dying, looking awful isn't enough to motivate them to remove them.
Consider natives for color-- salvias, coneflower, butterfly weed, mallows... and perennials like daylilies, phlox, sages, buddleias,... your pocketbook will thank you for picking plants that can look beautiful with the rainfall we get (or don't) and with watering no more than once a week. We can grow bearded iris here and I've planted dozens (order a lot of them from Schreiner's in Oregon).
Consider some grasses for movement... my personal favorite is Lindheimer muhly. They look like this in the autumn... gorgeous!!
Seriously, I wouldn't consider any landscaper who doesn't recommend using a lot of natives.... after the drought we just came out of, and could experience again, it just makes sense. Plus, since they are adapted to this area, they grow faster and do better here.
But then, I've always been our landscaper... have planted all the beds surrounding our house, and we now have more flowers than lawn.. currently redoing the overgrown backyard, removing cannas, and putting in some different perennials and small trees. Got rid of a yaupon holly tree that was planted near the pool by the previous owner... don't ever do that-- they drop berries that stain the pool and are soapy, plus they send up suckers everywhere... nasty mess every year so I finally got rid of it before our replaster. Would be fine away from a pool and in an area that got mowed underneath to get rid of the suckers.
Check out this website for some info on natives for our area...
Texas SmartScape Landscape Management Program - Native and Adapted Plants. If you're interested, I can recommend some books on natives, too.
