Few plant genera offer the amazing diversity and ornamental potential found in the genus Salvia. These members of the Lamiaceae (formerly Labiatae) family are first cousins to Nepeta (Catmint), Mentha (true mint), and monarda (bee balm), to mention but a few. Salvias range from woody subshrubs to annuals, and are native to virtually every continent. Salvias are known for their fragrant foliage and subsequent deer-resistance. Most salvias are full sun plants although a small handful are shade tolerant. I am omitting the popular herb, Salvia officinalis, since it is a short-lived plant that does not like our NC climate.
The focus of this article is salvias which make good perennial garden specimens between Hardiness Zones 3 and 8. For the sake of making sense of the genus, I'll divide the salvias into three groups; those with woody stems, those which are both herbaceous (non-woody stems) and deciduous (die to the ground) in the winter, and finally those which are herbaceous and form basal rosettes.
Woody Stem Salvias
The woody salvia group include several worthy garden subjects, Salvia greggii, Salvia microphylla, Salvia chamaedryoides, and Salvia regla. Salvias in this group could also be classified as shrubs or subshrubs. Most of these salvias are evergreen to a certain temperature, below which they can behave as herbaceous perennials. Species, cultivars and hybrids include:
S. chamaedryoides
S. greggii
S. greggii 'Big Pink'
S. greggii 'Dark Dancer'
S. greggii 'Diane'
S. greggii 'Flame'
S. greggii 'Furman's Red'
S. greggii 'Lipstick'
S. greggii 'Pink Preference'
S. greggii 'Teresa'
S. greggii 'Texas Wedding'
S. greggii 'Variegata'
S. microphylla
S. microphylla 'Hot Lips'
S. microphylla 'La Trinidad Pink'
S. microphylla 'San Carlos Festival'
S. microphylla 'Wild Watermelon'
S. x jamensis
S. 'California Sunset'
S. x jamensis 'Cienego D'oro'
S. 'Maraschino'
S. x jamensis 'Moonlight'
S. x jamensis 'Pat Vlasto'
S. x jamensis 'San Isidro Moon'
S. x jamensis 'Sierra de San Antonio'
S. x jamensis Stampede Series
S. 'Christine Yeo'
S. regla
Deciduous Herbaceous Salvias
The next group of salvias are those which die to the ground during winter. These include Salvia azurea (syn. Salvia pitcheri), Salvia darcyi, Salvia disjuncta, Salvia elegans, Salvia engelmannii, Salvia farinacea, Salvia glabrescens, Salvia glutinosa, Salvia guaranitica, Salvia koyamae, Salvia leucantha, Salvia longispicata, Salvia madrensis, Salvia mexicana, Salvia nipponica, Salvia puberula, Salvia reptans, and Salvia uliginosa. Some members of this group are particularly sensitive to cold, wet winters at the northern end of their hardiness range. We have found that not cutting them back until spring greatly helps winter survival. When they are cut in fall, the stems have a tendency to fill with water and freeze during the winter.
S. azurea ssp. pitcheri
S. darcyi
S. disjuncta
S. elegans
S. elegans 'Frieda Dixon'
S. elegans 'Golden Delicious'
S. 'Scarlet Pineapple'
S. engelmannii
S. farinacea
S. farinacea 'Augusta Duelberg'
S. farinacea 'Blue Bedder'
S. farinacea 'Henry Duelberg'
S. farinacea 'Strata'
S. farinacea 'Victoria'
S. glabrescens
S. guaranitica
S. guaranitica 'Argentina Skies'
S. guaranitica 'Black and Blue'
S. guaranitica 'Brazil'
S. guaranitica 'Costa Rican Blue'
S. guaranitica 'Kobalt'
S. guaranitica 'Omaha'
S. guaranitica 'Van Remsen'
S. koyamae
S. leucantha
S. leucantha 'Midnight'
S. leucantha 'Santa Barbara'
S. longispicata
S. madrensis
S. madrensis 'Dunham'
S. madrensis 'Red Neck Girl'
S. mexicana
S. nipponica
S. nipponica 'Fuji Snow'
S. puberula 'El Butano'
S. reptans West Texas Form
S. uliginosa
S. 'Anthony Parker'
S. 'Balsalmisp'
S. 'Indigo Spires'
S. 'Phyllis Fancy'
S. 'Purple Majesty'
S. 'Silke's Dream'
S. 'Waverly'
Evergreen Rosette Salvias
The third group is those which form an evergreen rosette. The primary garden species with this trait include Salvia lyrata, Salvia nemorosa, Salvia haematodes, Salvia pratensis, and their hybrids. Other similar species include Salvia verticillata and the unique Salvia penstemonoides. Many of the salvias sold as these species are actually interspecific hybrids known as Salvia x sylvestris (formerly called Salvia x superba).
S. lyrata 'Purple Knockout'
S. x sylvestris
S. x sylvestris 'Blauhugel'
S. x sylvestris 'Blauk?nigin'
S. nemorosa 'Caradonna'
S. 'Eveline' PP 14,905
S. x sylvestris 'Haeumanarc'
S. x sylvestris 'Mainacht'
S. x sylvestris 'Ostfriesland'
S. x sylvestris 'Pink Delight'
S. 'Rhapsody In Blue'
S. x sylvestris 'Rosak??nigin'
S. x sylvestris 'Royal Crimson Distinction'
S. x sylvestris 'Schneehugel'
S. nemorosa 'Sensation Rose'
S. penstemonoides
S. verticillata 'Purple Rain'
I hope you agree that salvias are an incredibly versatile genus of plants with a very long season of interest. Whether you grow them for their ornamental garden value or relaxation value (for medicinal use only), we hope you find several of the selections we mentioned worth trying in your own garden.
Tony Avent is the owner of Plant Delights Nursery in Raleigh, North Carolina (http://www.plantdelights.com/). Tony founded this nursery to help fund the activities of Juniper Level Botanic Gardens, a display and research garden with over 11,000 plants. A graduate of North Carolina State University, Tony was a student of the late horticulture professor J. C. Raulston, who instilled in him the quest for the newest and best garden plants from around the world.
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