I'm new to these plants, so I'm not sure if this is considered a tree or a shrub....I'm getting these from Lowes on clearance ($3 each) they are in gallon sized pots and are about 3 foot tall, they are flowering and have many unopened buds and a decent amount of new growth.

Our winters are relatively mild here, we dont ever go below the mid 20's to low 30's and when we do, it's for a few hours and maybe for a few days in a row at most. We do get some frost, but again, it never lasts long.

I know I have seen these (or something in the same family) in landscaping in nearby homes. So, if I were to decide to plant these in the ground vs pots, will they be ok?

The tags on the plants have varying info , although they appear to be the same plants. One says cold hardy to 20 and another say 30-40.