Spiders and shady area plants

I've mentioned the shady area at the entrance to my house, so today I am sharing some of the shade loving plants that I have planted It has been an ongoing learning experience to get the right plants matched up with this area but I am learning as I go.

When I bought my home, there were Spider plants everywhere- under the Olive tree, in the front flower beds, and in the side flower beds. Having grown up in the Midwest I thought Spiders were houseplants but here in Arizona they do seem to do very well planted outside in a shady area. I've moved many of these plants to give room for new things, but I still have many Spiders. The first picture is one that is loaded with babies, but really isn't in a good place as it is competing with several other plants. However with so many babies, I haven't had the heart to pull it out and start it over somewhere else.

The second picture is the bed, directly beneath the big Olive tree. This bed currently holds many Spiders, some Callidium I am trying to get going, and in the upper left corner, there is a mass of Red Apple Aptenia, which has pretty much taken over that whole upper area although it isn't real visible in this picture. My main issue with this area is the mess of leaves and olives that drop from the tree- the leaves are non-stop and the olives fall when small and green and then in huge numbers once they turn black. I'm not a big fan of black olives, and I've read it takes days to "cure" them, so they go to waste or become playthings for the puppy to bring in and leave half chewed around the house!

Across the little walkway, in the 3rd picture, is a Shrimp Plant (Justicia Brandegeana "Red"), and a Philodendron. I also have an African Iris, and a Bleeding Heart is in this bed too. All are fairly new plantings. The potted plant is an Umbrella Plant I believe. I had this in my house for a long time, but nothing does well for me inside, so I ended up bringing it outside and the change has been amazing! The bottom portion used to be completely bare, with leaves only on the upper 2/3 of the plant, but since being re-potted and brought outdoors the entire bottom has filled in and it is doing so well!

The last two pictures are of the Olive tree itself- one shot straight up and the other of the gnarly trunk.

Happy Bloomin Tuesday- To see more lovely pictures and to join in yourself please visit "Ms Green Thumb Jean's"