Happy New Year! 2013!
I have an Italian Cypress tree out on my patio. The temperatures have been very cold and the tree so far, has fared very well. One thing I have learned in raising cacti, yucca, palms, and other plants is location, location, location is key.
A microclimate is an area that is protected somehow by a sheltered area. It can be the side of a house or a mountainside. The prevailing climate has a certain season such as winter, a barrier or weather phenomenon keeps certain areas at a higher temperature or protects them from such things as snow and windchill.
Two years ago by this time my Italian Cypress that died showed bad signs of winter burn. It was out in the open in my yard. The cold winds from the north got at it and it freeze dried. It was a fighter but alas spring thaw left little of the tree to recover.
This specimen is doing very well. Just a few feet away my cold hardy cacti are taking the cold and snow near the patio opening. If you have a plant you can't bring inside and want to protect find a microclimate. You may increase the area a whole zone just in one spot and protect your otherwise doomed plant.
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