Best in the garden, as it's fairly large and straggly. It is deciduous, even in my subtropical winters, and I cut it right back to the ground. It is fairly cold-tolerant, but in severe winters it is best brought indoors - well before the first frost. In milder climates, a heavy mulching will help keep the roots warm.

A poor soil will help to make stronger plants, better able to cope with the cold.

It can be grown in a container, but it must be well-watered, with excellent drainage. As soon as the leaves begin to fall, gradually reduce the amount of watering. It should be allowed to almost (but not quite) dry out during winter and will need good lighting.

I am in zone 7a, and have had variable success with lemon verbena in the ground. I try to plant them near the house in a sunny location. Raised bed preferred with well-draining soil (it's wet here--all year round). I have two currently in the ground and will leave them there for the winter season. Same with rosemary (arps is supposed to be the hardiest). Realized with certain herbs (verbena and rosemary among them), that their chances for survival are better in the ground than containerized indoors. For me personally, I have not had success overwintering rosemary or verbena inside (for whatever reason). In your zone, it should thrive in the ground.

What and where is zone DFW? new one on me!
Lemon verbena is not frost hardy. Does that help?

DFW is Dallas Fort Worth. Officially rated as cold hardy in zones 8+. Dallas is classified as 8b, and other growers (myself included) have overwintered it in a zone 7. It will loose its leaves as a deciduous plant but should come back in the spring despite moderate frost (marginal in 7 without a microclimate). Should NOT have problem in DFW. Good luck!

I'm in the DFW area and have had a bed of it for several years. When it frosts, I cut it back to the ground and in the spring it has always come back up.

DFW = Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas

According to Herbs for Texas by Garrett, lemon verbena is a tender perennial which freezes easily in the northern half of the state, and recommends it as a container plant. He suggest taking softwood cutting in late summer. And Southern Herb Growing by Hill and Barclay state that it will drop leaves at the first sign of cold weather, but it will survive a moderate winter if heavily mulched. It is hardy to about 25°. However, they too recommend that the northern half of the state lift it and winter it in a container and treat it as a dormant plant and do not overwater.

I grow it year round here in south Texas, but it doesn't do all that well for me. I love it though and keep trying. It's out there in the yard, but it never grows very well for me.

But it looks like some of you have luck with keeping it in the ground year round, so go ahead and try. If it doesn't make it, but a new one. Good luck!

I am probably in the same zone here in Haifa, and I have a history of failure with this plant, we call it "louisa". I have tried it in many locations and every time it lives but doesn't really grow, and doesn't die either. I'll try cutting it back before our rains start next month - we don't get any rain from around April to October. Everyone else I know has huge shrubs, mine just sits there. But if it's supposed to dry out during the winter dormant time, my plant will get soaked with the winter rains, drying out unless I water it during the blazing summers. Right now it's sitting in a tire planter (like the rosemary which is very happy). Lemon verbena tea is well loved around here and for once I'd like to have a thriving leafy plant!!! Any suggestions? Batya