china dolls are not indoor
plants by any means. they cannot be grown inside. they need to be pruned heavily, i.e., down to a stump, either in fall or
spring, every couple of years. they must be grown outdoors in a mediterannean climate. if you live where it snows, forget it. i live in the east bay area of the SF suburbs, near oakland. i live close to foothills on the east and the bay to the west and there is a great microclimate here (there was no frost a'tall last winter, but one or two days the winter previous) that allows me to grow more exotic
plants. i have an old china doll...must be 12, 13 years old. it's about 6 feet tall now, and i'm getting ready to cut it back to a stump about 2 feet tall. it lives on a north-facing, covered porch. i have a piece of clear plexiglass with a bamboo shade over one of the side openings to protect it from the heavy wind we have here, and to provide it with filtered sunlight, which it gets in the afternoon only. it suffers from leaf drop, but if you prune it regularly, it comes back and takes a couple years to get leggy. again, these may be sold as indoor
plants, but they are not. they are totally susceptible to mites, scale, you name it, it'll catch it if grown indoors. my outdoor
plant was almost dead from neglect when i inherited it, and just covered with mealy bugs and spider mites; it has never gotten any pests since i left it outdoors. my suggestion to those of you who live in unacceptable climates, i.e. northwest/east, is to just not waste your money with these
plants as they will *never* live up to your expectations.
i also know of a china doll which is planted on a north facing wall with no shelter whatsoever. i don't know the owners, but i see they also prune theirs back every year and it grows about 5 feet by the time it gets too cold for it to survive without pruning.
Although, it kinda looks like it's been there already... 
This will be another 
