Hey folks, so a lot of people recommended that I nix my fortnight lily (african iris, morea), so I yanked them out, and some of those spots I could put a rose in,...

but I would like to have some evergreen non-roses in a few spots.

I need something that doesn't require a ton of water and will play well with agapanthus, penstemon, salvia, etc.

My soil is heavy clay alkaline. Mild winters, hot/dry summers.

I need something that isn't thuggish, but that I can't kill. Seriously. I've had a lot of problems with plants not liking my heavy badly draining soil because I'm a new gardener and I'm still getting the hang of watering in this area.

extra points if it's hummingbird friendly.

I liked the upright lily-like leaves of the fortnight lily... but I need something a little less thuggish, I guess? So... maybe society garlic... or flax lily... or daylilies... or...? what else has that kind of shape? (but those aren't really evergreen....)

or maybe I could go with some type of grass? That would give me the long-leaf look that I like in that spot. hakonechloa perhaps?

I'm open to other shapes, too. But I definitely want something with a shape to contrast with all the more shrubby plants (like salvia). Maybe I could go with some type of shorter arbutus or manzanita?

any ideas?

To help, here's what my yard looked like a month or so ago before I pulled out the fortnight lily.

Left side: (you can see 4 fortnights behind the rose-pot-ghetto)

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a couple more fortnights behind the agapanthus:

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and then about three more near the cherry tree in the right corner:

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