Hi Margo. I'm somewhat of a noob myself but I will say a few things. Yes, some varieties are notoriously more difficult to keep than others. If Zoftic is keeps dying for you there's nothing wrong with forgetting about it. Why fight it? There's plenty others. I would also suggest not paying attention to names. Collecting all the 'Pacifics' may satisfy a collector's mentality but otherwise hasn't any value. Pick the ones you like and keep the ones that perform. But if names make you happy, then go for it but understand that names mean little.
23 degrees below zero... that is cold... colder than alot of us here have ever had to deal with. If covered in snow I would say no problem. They are supposed to be hardy to 30 below but I would grant that only in their native alpine habitat. If they get covered in a sheet of ice or bound up in water-saturated, frozen ground, I think that would be trouble. A covering of snow is actually quite protective and insulating. But bare ground exposed to -20 degrees... I just don't know.
