Post #765095 by AkronTiki on Thu, Jun 16, 2016 5:51 AM

Always very interested in this subject; our spot in Ohio is 6b now – apparently they adjusted the zones about 4 years ago due to sustained warming. We just used arborvitae as a natural fence for our pool area (not tropical, but it is green) and the rest is surrounded by loads of daylilies, hostas and an assortment of tropical-looking potted plants (palm, fern, canna, coleus) that I have scattered around. With the Japanese maples and Chinese dogwoods (which seem to hold spring blooms forever) the effect is pretty good.

I also bring out 6 large potted hibiscus that I keep alive in the basement every winter – I just water them and leave a full light spectrum bulb on 24/7 down there. After I cut them back, they drop about 90 percent of their leaves, but often still bloom. Once I put them back out on the pool deck after the last frost, they snap back and usually look pretty good in about 3-1/2 weeks; I’ve had them for about 6 years now.

If I could add a couple hardy tropical perennials that would survive the winter I might. Have considered hardy bamboo in the past – but really have no place to put it now, and its potential invasiveness scares me, anyway.