greene said:Question please; Is the status of a plant as an 'annual' or a 'perennial' determined only by whether it survived the winter? In my garden I have had many so-called perennials which did not find my garden a suitable place and did not come back a second year.
No, the ability of a plant to survive winter in a given location is irrelevant in determining its life cycle. The term is often misused by gardeners, but the technical definition of annual is a plant that is monocarpic (dies after setting seed) and is capable of completing its life cycle within a single year or growing season. The fact that they often die with the onset of freezing temperatures is, to a large extent, incidental. Actually, if you pay close enough attention, you'll notice that many of them die well before winter. Depends on the species, of course.
