Hi Kathi,
If you already have one, just take a cutting from it, pop it into some water and it will grow roots quite easily. I then pot up the cutting and overwinter it in the house. Then in mid spring, you can take a few cuttings from it and start as many plants as you want to put into containers.

It would definitely be happy outside during the warmer months. It's also somewhat hardy. I've grown it outside and not in the best location in terms of drainage and it came back from the roots for two or three years, although I eventually lost it. Once you have a large enough plant, it wouldn't hurt to root a few cuttings from it and see how they do outside over the winter. I would plant them outside early in the season so they have time to get established. Some mulch might help too. I'm actually leaving one out again this year, but this time the area it's growing in has excellent drainage and it also has a rain cover for the winter. It will be interesting to see how long it survives this time.

Linda....thanks....do you mind me asking where you are located? I am in Olympia. I am going to head to the nursery to buy one...I called and they said they had one. I asked where it was located in the nursery, if it was with the Perennials....she said "absolutely not....it's a houseplant". This made me wonder......

Hi Kathi,

I live on Denman Island, British Columbia. I wouldn't try it outside unless I had an "insurance" plant, in which case it won't matter if the one outside doesn't survive. You won't know until you try and it's fun experimenting. Speaking from my own experience, it did survive a few years outside in a less than ideal location. It's difficult to know what background knowledge the woman at the nursery is basing her opinion on. You may find some of the comments at Dave's Garden interesting.

Here is a link that might be useful: Tradescantia pallida 'Purple Heart'

I keep mine in the greenhouse during winter. It is evergreen not dormant in winter so a garage would not be good unless there is a lot of light. It is widely grown as a houseplant and also as a ground cover in warmer states. I had them in full sun outside in Arizona.

about rooting: you won't need to start this one in water. laying it on the soil and watering it every once in awhile is good enough. as buyorsell888 says, it's commonly grown as a groundcover in the SW and would appreciate as much sun a you can give it, else it'll become lanky and lose its strong purple color. it's also quite drought tolerant, so you may rot it if you keep it too wet.
definitely keep an "insurance plant" around in the wintertime. they're very vigorous so if you start cuttings outside early in the year, you'll have a nice carpet at the end of the growing season. here in tucson, they take some cold weather (several freezes, a few weeks of night time temps in the 20s), but it isn't coupled with the wet like in the PNW.
-ming