There are a lot of new Pittosporum tenuifolium cultivars out there these days, with variegated/purple/or other variations of foliage, and they are well suited to shearing and stay dense to the base with sufficient light. I also like Pittosporum eugenioides for the yellow green foliage, and it also handles shade well. You might also consider something like Luma apiculata, which does have showy flowers and also gives edible fruit, but without good air circulation, this one tends to get attacked by thrips.

Hi Jahhn,
We have a link here on California Gardening FAQ that might help you. I have listed it below.

It depends too on how much space you have, how tall you want it, and how much water you want to use.

I can't think of any flowering hedges that get tall and stay narrow, but if you have some room, Springtime Viburnum has dark green foliage and a pretty pinkish white flower. I have one in the conditions you describe next to a Duranta and a Pittosoporum eugenioides, and the Pittosporum has no leaves at the bottom. The Duranta is lovely, with purple flowers and yellow berries, but I believe they are short-lived. Both the Pittosporum and the Duranta are willowy, whereas the Viburnum is bushy.

Of course the ultimate was Oleander; drought-tolerant, flowers galore, large size-- but they have been attacked by a blight. Boo.

You can also read the recent thread on Hedgezilla, otherwise known as Podocarpus gracilis.

Good luck.

Here is a link that might be useful: Hedges for California FAQ Page

I'm becoming more and more convinced, after a lot of experiments with privacy hedges on my own property, that the best hedge, if you really want privacy, is good old Ligustrum japonicum, available at any big box store, which will grow in sun or shade, take terrible conditions, dreadful soil, and extreme drought, yet grow thick and dense, clipped to any size desired. No, it's not imaginative, its ordinary, mundane, boring--but it's also thick, dense, and tough as an old boot. And not always, but sometimes, thick and dense and tough as an old boot is exactly what you want.

Tecomaria capensis/cape honeysuckle has bright orange flowers and glossy dark green ferny foliage. I'm not sure of the spacing for a hedge, perhaps 6 to 8 feet apart. It's a vigorous grower that should do fine in the conditions described, but will need regular shaping.

I agree on the cape honeysuckle. I have seen it in red and yellow also. I have 6 in a 2 foot wide strip of about 45 feet. They were 1 gallons 1 1/2 years ago and have already grown to 6 feet high and wide and I cut them back twice. They are against a west wall and only get sun from about noon to 4pm. Once in a while a branch tries to root thru the mulch. So very vigorous grower and the foliage is sort of bright and shiney.
There are others types of honeysuckle the vine type, you won't want that.

Wow! Thanks for all the great suggestions and advice everyone!

Jahhn