I live in Chicago, Zone 5. Our freeze free date is May 15. My problem
is that I have a bunch of perennials in containers that overwintered
outside. I'm waiting and waiting for something to happen with them but
they seem kind of dead. Here are three in particular:

http://www.brandylion.com/images/fennel.jpg

This is a fennel plant that grew to about 5 feet tall last summer. I cut
it back but after reading the label, I guess I should have extracted the
bulb in the fall. I didn't.

http://www.brandylion.com/images/lemon-balm.jpg

This is lemon-balm perennial that was in one of my milk crate containers.
So far it isn't showing any sign of growth.

http://www.brandylion.com/images/rosemary-sage.jpg

This is a Rosemary Sage plant that grew to about 4 feet high last summer.
I cut it back and it was also outside all winter. I did get cuttings and
grew some inside over the winter.

So far, my mints in containers are starting to come up but no other
perennials. I'm wondering how long I should wait before trashing these
and reusing the containers. I also have a purple coneflower that isn't
showing any signs of growth either. I'm kind of bummed about it.
Perhaps I should have taken them inside but I really don't have a lot of
inside space with sunlight. Would it have been OK to overwinter them
inside without any light at all and just periodically water them?