Annual Candytuft

I planted this annual last spring (2011) in one location on the west side of my residence to a bed facing south but in partial shade a pa...Read Morert of the day. I moved a mass of this colony in the autumn to a nearby location on the same side to plant a small shrub requiring shade. The new location provides more afternoon sun and they quickly accepted the move. Surprisingly, as the days got colder, most of the colony remained vibrant and evergreen through a mild winter. Is this really an annual, I asked myself? Occasionally, I would check on them, expecting them to succumb to nature's will, but they never did. In early spring of this year, several plants were weakened or killed by frost. I cleaned the colony of weak plants and covered the remainder with soil over healthy stems and added a row cover. Currently, the plants are beginning to show signs of blooms and their height and vigor appear to be exceptional as the colony quickly multiplied and spread once the weather warmed and it is now encroaching upon a transplanted hosta. I'll post a photo once the blooming begin.