I am assuming your zone is 7. I keep my Norfolk Island pine outside from about April through November (bringing it into a frostproof garage by early December. This conifer will not survive heavy frost and would have to be protected by temps below about 28 degrees F.. I have used mine as a Christmas tree for years (except this year as it's gotten too big--so my X-mas tree was a Ficus tree). Hope this is helpful. Good luck and Happy New Year!

I agree with njoasis. This pine looks like a Christmas tree and, like poinsettias, makes us think they are winter hardy but they are not. I have seen several N.I. pines killed by cold. You will need to protect it during freezes and frosts. In Arkansas, I think you would need to bring it indoors or in a garage or shed probably from late Nov to early April, as stated above.

Thank you for the comments and suggestions. Now, another question:

The tree is in the house now in a fairly sunny room with a humidifier (vaporizer) running. When it comes time to take the tree outside should we attempt to "harden it off" like we do garden plants or simply take it out of its current environment and hope for the best? Maybe letting it set in the garage for a week or two would be best...? Comments? Suggestions?

Thanks & God bless...

You might even consider keeping your plant inside all year round. That's what I do, to avoid the transitional stress as well as the opportunity for 'critters' to take up residence in plants while they're outside.

However, indoor plants do need to be protected from the full sun when placed outdoors. A good idea would be to locate this plant in a shady (not your garage) site so that severe burning won't be a problem. A 'fairly sunny' indoor room probably means that your specific plant will not be able to tolerate a full-sun location at all. That should be your only consideration, if you decide to move it outside for the warm months. Of course, always remember that this is a tropical climate plant, not a pine, at all. It will not tolerate cold temperatures.

Isn't there a sub base up in Norfolk Island. Gets pretty cold there.

Kidding aside, I don't even see them up in Jacksonville.

The only places you'd see them in Florida would be those locations where the temperatures don't dip much below 40 degrees. :)