Dear Mark, Waterloo, IL is about 20 miles south of downtown St. Louis MO My climate data is in my signature. It translates to USDA zone 6. I get about 35 inches of rain a year, which falls as 3 inches a month. In the winter it falls in quarter inch increments, while summer rains tend to fall as 3-4 inches every 4-6 weeks, a sort of "modified mediterranean" A rubrovittatum has been in the ground for 3 years. It flowers well and is multiplying nicely, though I have not yet found any seedlings. I checked the patch earlier today and there are green shoots at the base of the dried leaves. This past winter has been mostly mild, although the last 2 weeks of Jan, and the first week of Feb were teens during the day and single digits at night (in farhenheit). Ice, but no snow cover. Last winter was very long and consistantly cold; the temp didn't get above freezing for 10 weeks. Summers are consistantly hot, with temps in the 90's fairly common. So yeah, I think it is reliably hardy. Now, if I could just get A. caeruleum to stick around! Lisa Antennaria@aol.com wrote: > Lisa, from a follow-up message I understand you garden in central USA > someplace. Can you tell us whwre and what you climate and zone are, to give context > to the fact you are able to grow Allium rubrovittatum outside. Do you > consider it reliably hardy for you? How many winters has it survived outdoors? -- Lisa Flaum Waterloo, IL central USA clay soil, Hot humid summers (to 105F, 40C) generally dry, punctuated by gully washers Cold, wet, cloudy winters, little snow cover, intense freeze/thaw cycle (-10F, -25C)