Rick, I'm in 7a, and if my B&B grew any better, I'd have to use Roundup on it, lol. I've never noticed any winter dieback at all. And it can be a serious spreader in good loose soil. I think you should at least try it, just make sure it has good drainage. Depending on the micro-climate, you can probably get it through most winters where you are. John

Thank you for the comments. We bought the paint in a pearl finish at a Benjamin Moore dealer and the sales person said the shake time was longer than normal so she did that. We used a Purdy brush on some chairs and the foam roller on the head board. We sanded and primed with a Benjamin Moore oil based primer. We do stir the paint before and during use. I wondered if anyone else had this issue with this color. It is a beautiful color-- perhaps it needs more shake time.

OP's location shows up as "8b PNW"...........which is one of the few places in the US outside of Alaska one can get Himalayan poppies to grow :-) For how long is the question. I could never get these to hang around for more than a couple of seasons at most. Butchart Gardens seeds and plants them as annuals. (PNW = area west of the Cascades, roughly including lower British Columbia, western Washington and Oregon. AKA 'Cascadia')

I ordered seeds from 5 different sellers, and attempted germination 3 different ways, and none of the seeds germinated. I assume the seeds have to be fresh. related discussion: https://www.houzz.com/discussions/5488361/hybridizing-blue-poppies-about-chromosome-numbers