Salvias

Red Salvia

Red salvia with Lantana and milkweed.

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Bog sage.                                             Salvia uliginosa

Salvia uliginosa, the bog sage, is a species of flowering plant in the family Lamiaceae, native to southern Brazil, Uruguay, and Argentina. It was described and named by botanist George Bentham for its typical habitat "of swamps and marshes", or uliginosa.

 

Uliginosa is from latin, meaning marshy or wet. The bog sage thrives in marshy conditions. Dragonflies and damsel flies can be found in wet areas. They eat larvae of mosquitoes.

The bog sage has a long blooming season and pollinators seek the nectar.

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Henry Duelberg Sage                                Salvia farinacea

A native Texas plant, Salvia farinacea belongs to the mint family, Lamiaceae. The Henry Duelberg Salvia is a variety of the mealy cup or blue sage and is a perennial native plant of South and Central Texas. It is known for its low maintenance and heat, drought and humidity tolerance. A growing favorite of Texas native plant gardens, plant this gem in the rear of flower beds due to its three foot height and width. It grows thicker and will flower better in fall if cut back in mid-summer. It is a hardy plant up through Zone 7.

Prefers well drained soil, full sun and is drought tolerant once established. Water regularly until established, then once a week through the height of summer if weekly rainfall is less than one inch. The plant is low maintenance although deadheading spent blooms will help produce more flowers. A general fertilizer in spring and summer will produce more flowers, but this activity is not at all required if soil has good fertility. Maintain two inches of mulch. Cut to ground after first frost and mulch over for winter. The plant will reseed itself after established and seedlings are easily transplanted to other areas in the garden.

The Henry Duelberg Salvia was discovered by Texas horticulturist Greg Grant in a Central Texas cemetery on the gravesite of Henry Duelberg. Mr. Grant also discovered and named the white-flowered Augusta Duelberg salvia he found nearby on Augusta Duelberg’s gravesite. These two salvias make a pretty pairing when grown next to or mixed together.

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Augusta Duelberg Mealy Cup Sage.     Salvia farinacea 'Augusta Duelberg'

Texas native Salvia farinacea makes a compact 30″ tall x 4′ wide specimen, topped from May until frost with hundreds of spikes of silvery-white flowers…attractive to hummingbirds.

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Pineapple Sage.                                                          Salvia elegans

The flowers are a vivid scarlet vermilion. I consider pineapple sage an annual in my eco-region. It is a perennial in zones 8 and greater. Pineapple sage can usually be found in the herb section of your local nursery in the spring. Many people grow it for the lovely pineapple scented leaves and use the leaves for tea. The best luck I have had with my salvias is planting them along the edge of a retaining wall. The raised nature of a retaining wall allows for good drainage. 

 

Mexican Salvia                                Salvia leucantha 

 I have the 3-5' Mexican salvia and the more diminutive Salvia leucantha 'Santa Barbara'. If you have ever grown Russian sage you will find this sub-shrub comparable excepting the shorter height of the plant makes it less likely to topple in winds and requires no support. We usually get temperatures below 25 degrees so I considered it a perennial in zone 7b-8a.Lovely Lavender

Perennial Mexican bush sage  (Salvia leucantha) 

 

References                                                             

ITIS  Integrated Taxonomy Information System

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