One of the ways to judge hardiness is to see how easily the plant can be found in your area :-) Not a guarantee by any stretch of the imagination but a very general rule of thumb. Especially with a plant like dymondia, which has little use beyond that of a groundcover. Since I have never seen it for sale in this area (and I've bought for both retail and wholesale nurseries in the Puget Sound area), I'd be inclined to accept the hardiness of zone 9 or 25-30F that most sources report.

Thanks, gardengal. I saw one reference to zone 7 but most say 9. I like it so much I may actually dig most of the plants and keep them under lights over winter, but may leave a few out and cover them when temps fall below 25*F. I divided one 4 or 5" pot into 11 plants. They have extraordinary root systems and are very drought tolerant, and also seem to spread well. I bought them at a county fair and thought the seller was reputable but cheap, so I guess I expected the plants sold to be hardy.

We replaced a grass lawn with dymondia last fall in Santa Monica and it is wonderful! We started with flats, and it took nearly nine months to knit together, but now we have a lovely walkable lawn with little maintenance. There are still some weeds that come through, chiefly oxalis (the little tiny leaf type), but we are diligent at digging those out. We have just planted dymondia in a semi-shady area, and we hope it will do well there too. I had to go to two nurseries to find two flats, but Armstrong Nursery will order it if requested.

Thanks, smgardener. I'm still not sure if Dymondia will live through the winter in zone 8, so I actually dug up 11 out of 14 plants outside that all came from one 6" pot in April. I'm keeping them under lights for the winter then replanting, and I will see if the remaining plants outdoors can make it through the winter. I think they're great, if they will live here. Do they bloom continuously for you or seasonally?

One of my Dymondia under lights is blooming! They are doing great. I left 3 plants out in the garden and will cover them during low temperatures to see if they will make it.

Nancy

I saw Dymondia last weekend in a Stepables display, and the tag claims it is hardy to 0*F, zone 7. I think the catch may be that it is not evergreen. I looked for the 3 I left in the ground but didn't see them, perhaps they can still come up. I decided I will try planting some of the ones I grew under lights out next to the south facing wall of my house to see how they do there.

smgardner,

when you replaced your lawn, how far apart did you space the dymondia? I've read/heard recommendations ranging from 8" to 24"...

Thanks!

Jen- I was just using them in a bed as a ground cover. They seem to spread out pretty fast. I bought one pot and divided it into 11 plants, and they spread pretty fast. The more plants you use the faster you will get coverage, so it's a matter of cost and how fast you want them to fill in. Don't be afraid to divide up a pot into rooted pieces when planting.

I don't see any of the 3 I left in the ground coming up, I may try some on the south wall of my house where they would be warmer.