If you're in e. Nashville, you are in z 6.

Actually, east Nashville is zone 7a according to the new chart. If you are in the city, the concrete really heats things up, but I doubt that you can stretch to zone 8 plantings.

Cant stretch to z8 plantings? Are you kidding me. David, here in northwest Knoxville, we are at the cusp of z6b. Despite this, we had three varieties of Palm, two Sagos, a Gloriosa vine, wandering Jew, over twenty variety of Canna, a Philodendron, Tapioca tree, and several varieties of "borderline" Gingers come back for us. More often than not I have found that zone listings refer more to the foliage hardiness than the root hardiness. If I see something I like listed as zone 8, it goes in the ground here. A little mulch can go a long way!

I3

Time to repeat my favorite garden quote: "I consider every plant to be hardy until I have killed it myself." :-)

That said, I'd be really surprised if you got creeping fig through a Nashville winter. But give it a try -- you never know unless you try!

I've had some planted next to the house for several years and it grows up the house about 4 feet over the summer and dies back to ground level each winter. Not back to the roots but back to the ground where I cover it with pine needles in the fall. I'm zone 7a. Most of the small leaved variegated ivies that you find in the house plant section of stores grow really well here. All the different varieties of green ones do good too. I collect them and get most of mine from Lowe's.

No, I'm not kidding you. Here, on the south side of Nashville, I've tried a number of zone 8 perennials. So far, most of those with tender root balls have turned to mush when the ground freezes. My saddest loss last winter was the variegated lily of the nile, which I tried because of my success with dwarf lily of the nile. Now, I do leave some gingers, crinums, cannas and gladiolus in the ground successfully, but other cannas and colocasia and zone 8 bulbs have bit the dust. I guess amazondoc's motto is the best one to live by, as long as I don't lose too much of my plant budget to those gambles.
Renee

mww -- where are you located? And are you *sure* your creeper is creeping fig? I'm not surprised about the ivies -- most of the variegated ivies you see are just varieties of Hedera helix (yer basic English ivy), and that's perfectly hardy here. I'd be surprised if creeping fig made it -- but you never know, I learn sumthin new every day!

I'm in Athens, Tn..and yes it is a Ficus pumila. I've seen a whole wall covered with it in Anniston, Al zone 7b. It doesn't suffer any damage at all until temps get below 15 degrees F. Then it starts to die back from the tips.

Ooookay. You're warmer than either Knoxville or Nashville.

I may give it a try myself. Ya never know!

The direction of exposure might make an important difference too. If you wall has a southeastern exposure, you would have a large advantage over having a wall with a northwestern exposure.

The mulch mentioned above would also help moderate the heat that the roots would have to endure because of the concrete in the summer.

There is also a Creeping fig (Ficus pumila) X Edible fig (Ficus carica) hybrid that will grow in zone 7 but it is kind of a rambler. Creeping fig is pretty easy to find in stores anyone that likes to experiment should try it themselves. The Ficus pumila X Ficus carica hybrid is harder to find.

I'm in Murfreesboro,Tn between Nashville and Knoxville. Saw the Japanese creeping ivy in Charleston and have a good spot at home covering trellesis around a porch under treed canopy on N.W. SIDE OF HOUSE. Any suggestions if the creeping ivy might work or nice alternative?