So here's my challenge. I live in zone 6 (Kansas City) and we have winters that are too harsh for ranuculus to survive (even if they were covered with a frost blanket). However, I LOVE these flowers and they've always been on my bucket list of things to grow. I have success with cannas, gladiolus, elephant ears, tulips, daffodils, etc. but not ranuculus.

Last year I tried planting them in the spring (as soon as Holland Bulb would ship them which ended up being the end of March) but they didn't have nearly enough time to grow and bloom before our sizzling summer temps heated up and they just sat there.

I've thought about buying them in the fall (when they're more readily available) and holding them, unplanted, until mid to late February when our temps aren't as frigid, then planting them and covering with a frost blanket. However, from reading other GW forums I see that the unplanted tuberous roots might dehydrate and die between now and February.

So, I had a thought the other night. I have a basement window well on the south side of my house that gets full winter sun for 6ish hours per day. There's a clear window well cover on top of it but a 2-3 inch gap that's open to fresh air between the house and the well cover. WHAT IF I potted up some ranuculus now and placed the pot in the window well, elevated by bricks so the sun shined on the soil. Is it possible that the heat from the basement window (the basement is heated) and the insulation of the soil and window well could keep the temperatures in the pot warm enough to sustain ranuculus over the winter? Or would they be cooked or frozen?

Or am I just being too desperate and instead I should just buy the potted ranuculus plants from the nursery in the spring for $6 each?

Thanks!