Beaucarnea need just as much sun or bright light as Yuccas (and both genera are closely related). In fact, I would wager that Y. elephantipes is MORE tolerant of less than ideal sun compared to Beaucarnea. More a challenge, I rarely see Beaucarnea being sold in the trade, especially large ones. But I do love both plants.
CCP, the plants that you list are almost all in my yard. I am not sure any of them would survive in a heated home, air is just too dry, and I cannot imagine being able to get a tall pittosporum in Canada, in the winter.
I have been wracking my brain over potential candidates for your circumstance..., the chief problem, is that forced-air heating, it's lethal. I used to have that kind of heating, now boilers/steam heat and I have thick marble slabs on the top of the radiators and actually can grow tropicals on the top. Also, I don't want you to bust the bank to purchase something that may not survive anyway, and plants can be soooo expensive, mostly for shipping costs these days. I also see you are in Canada and am unfamiliar with your access to the East Coast/Florida interior plant trade, I know in my own area, I see many fewer types of different plants being sold compared to past days. I mentioned Yucca and Norfolk Island Pines (Araucaria) and NIP's are very seasonal around my parts (Christmas time/NOW). Good luck and Season Greetings to everyone!
