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This post was edited by GreatPlains1 on Wed, Sep 4, 13 at 1:28

I don't really qualify on the cold question, because it does not get very cold where I live. But I routinely have pushed other range limits, many times. So your question got me to thinking, Paul, and I don't have many pushed plants at the moment. Some I tried didn't survive the experience, or look about to give up the ghost.

The Arenaria montana is my most heat/zone pushed, I believe. It was actually thriving in its little microclimate--until a raccoon or opossum squished the heck out of it last week while raiding my pond fish.

And my other pushing has been in regards to light levels. I have Choisya (Mexican Orange) growing in full shade, and it even blooms strong.

Not much other pushing going on here at the moment. But it is fun when plants surprise us and return strong, isn't it?

I have an historic iris that blooms great in full shade. I also have had snaps and dusty miller come back, or rather I was too lazy to clear the beds and they were still growing in the spring when I went to do it. I had one kind of yellow leaf caryopteris that croaked over the winter, so I am trying Little Miss Sunshine and so far it is doing fine, and blooming right now. I am trying a Helenium, even though it probably wants more water than I am likely to give it. We'll see if I remember to be generous to it. So far so good.

Um, it tends to work out the opposite way for me - those supposedly cast-iron reliable plants....which never see another summer in the blasted wilderness of a windy public allotment. Naturally, I blame pigeons, envious neighbours, weather (always handy), rampaging pets (mine) children (unfortunately mine also), random thieves....anything really, other than the true culprit - my neglectful self.

I had a bunch survive last winter that should not have:

Begonias (annual--come in 6 ct at Lowes): Sone came back, but they never got very big this year, though.

Star sister dahlias: I am seriously excited about these. They were puny-looking last year, but came back gorgeous this year!

Black and blue salvia: my one clearance plant, bought last year, is HUGE. I have 8 total now. The hummers know me due to this. I love it!

Million bells/calibrachoa: It came back on the old stems.

Snapdragons: I had some survive.

Hyacinths: I heard they did not come back, but most of mine did.

All the zone 9 stuff seems to come back for me :) calla, dahlias in certain locations. Our house sits south facing on a hill so perhaps it's warmer here...this has been with no mulch, although I will be doing that this year now that I have cursed myself :)

LOL to campanula (only because I know what you mean - I feel your pain). I especially have to laugh at "rampaging pets (mine)". I tell all of my dogs "You're the reason I can't have anything nice!!!"
But yeah... I managed to kill mint on a few occasions... yup... mint.

Carolinaflowerlover - I am so excited to hear your starsister dahlia's came back. I think these are some of the prettiest dahlias I've ever had, and I can only find them at Walmart of all places. Two years ago I put some in pots, but this year I put them in the ground. I'm anxious already to see if they'll return next year! Thanks!

I have a bare space in the bed in front of my porch where I can't get anything to grow because the dog jumps off the porch to chase some random squirrel and lands there every time. Some lily bulbs I planted there a few years ago send up shoots every year, get a few inches tall, and are smashed at which point they retreat until next year. But they always come back and put out those couple of inches. I don't even know what color it blooms. I'm glad I'm not the only one with this problem.

This post was edited by sara82lee on Wed, Sep 4, 13 at 19:20

Sara, I bet they will! I did mulch my stuff with leaves. They are sooo pretty! :)

Im going to revive this oldie because I am soooo excited that so far, my Calibrachoa has survived! Including days below freezing temps which dipped, (without windchill) down to 5 degree F!

And, in keeping with the rest of the thread, what has also survived here which theoretically should not are Callas and Elephant Ears. I also had a begonia survive several winters, mulched, but, as the other poster noted, it stayed very tiny and stunted that growing season.

Winter is not over yet, but I am seriously hoping my Calibrachoa will make it all the way through!

Mine has too be galds as well. Eleven plus years have come back. They are the late summer blooming none hardy gladiolus. Moved them last fall. Then had the horrid winter and thought they were doomed for sure. Yeah, they came back.

Had such luck with these that I also purchase the hardy spring blooming glads and like above they all died.

Love when a seedling shows up after a decade of on longer growing it.

I have also had glads come back, dusty miller and some annual grasses. After last winter being so difficult it was surprising. The glads bloomed like gang budgets and the other two were smaller versions of themselves. I think cannas and dahlias also come back just by looking around my neighborhood. The people who have them are not the type to dig out, store and replant. I have a few dahlias and cannas in the ground this winter as a test.

The bizarrest thing I have is two young avocados now going into their 4th winter. They grew out of home-made compost and I just left them alone to see what would happen. Still only 18 ins tall as they froze to the ground one year.

Well, I notice that I misread and posted before about something that bloomed where it shouldn't have, and so sorry about that. I can say that I have a variegated sage plant that has survived three years even though it was marked zone six.

Salvia Melissodora, Mexican Oregano, are rated as zone 9 and both have survived a 12F winter and several 16F winters.