OMG, that's gorgeous! Want!!!

Very nice and in that sahde of blue too. But I have two questions; (1) usually, the ones with black stems do not have blooms on new wood but since I have not seen this one before (have only heard its name), can you double check? (2) what happened to the tomatoes???

Oh never mid. I just saw your tomato comment at the bottom! Hee hee hee! I did something like that with groceries at Walmart last Wednesday. Went to get "x" and came out of the store with "y". Sigh...

I got mine at a Walmart of all places a few years ago in a 2-gallon for like $17. Never bloomed outdoors. After a couple bad winter freezes, it now resides in a 7-gallon pot. Only catch with black-stemmed macs (of all kinds) is that they're so freaking upright in habit that they look almost stupid in pots and are equally as hard to place in beds. My best recommendation it that (if no success outdoors) you try container-growing this and just sticking it in the middle of a bed somewhere where the pot itself is masked but the foliage and blooms are easily seen.

I always try to use 7g or larger pots. It is about 3x3' currently. It has bloomed fine since (on previous growth). Luckily I have a 2-car attached garage that doesn't have heat vents but soaks up heat from the house proper. The doors have windows and I water everything about three times a winter.

I realize that dragging heavy pots and/or root balls around twice a year isn't for everyone (I use a dolly) but I've seen it done with success (I believe Martha Stewart even has a crew that does this!).

Alternatively, I've had moderate success with many different kinds of plants by simply putting the root balls (with some soil attached) into black garbage bags and sitting them against my foundation outside. Burlap with plastic over that would be doubly nice.

Picture:

My mother bought a pair of pink Zorros.... it looks (although I was advised you couldn't do this with lacecaps) that they take to being different colours quite readily. I took cuttings from her Zorros and they've taken very well....

Hers are potted in tow huge terracotta planters which she brought over from Italy when she moved here....