A salvia change of heart?

As far as salvia go there's only one that has my heart, Salvia discolor (Andean silver-leaf sage), I love it.

Those dark—almost black—blooms, the ribbed light-green and while calyx, that jaunty little curl at the tip of the petals, what's not to love? Well I suppose that they're frost-tender and I can't manage to over winter them.

There is one other salvia to be found in my garden, Salvia clevelandii 'Alpine Form', but I don't have a photo of it, because these photos are all from the gardens I visited in New York. Where I started to have a change of heart about salvia...

Back in 2014 I wrote a story on salvia for the Oregon Association of Nurseries. The story was assigned to me, I didn't chose it. I knew nothing about salvia and didn't have any interest in learning, but learn I did. I interviewed nursery folk, and read, and wrote. I faked it, but I still didn't care for salvia. Well, until now.

These Salvia discolor photos are all from the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, several containers were grouped by the visitors center.

I've never grown this plant in a container, I think that's going to change though, they looked great.

But enough about that salvia, there were others! At the New York Botanical Garden there was this mash-up. Truth be told I paid zero attention to the red/pink flowers, is that a salvia too? It might be, but my eyes were drawn to the tall plant in the back...

It's Salvia mexicana 'Tula' and I love the chartreuse and blue combination as well as the very graphic arrangement of the blooms on each stem.

Here is the question: did I start to see salvia differently, maybe have a salvia change of heart while touring NYC gardens?  Or do salvia just grow better there and that's why they caught my attention?

This white fluffy number was in another part of the NY Botanical Garden, I was kind of in love, but wondered if there was more to the flowers.

I finally found this stem, it looks like maybe the flowers are white? Once home I did a little research and found Salvia 'White Flame' PP32429.

At Wave Hill I saw this, Salvia leucantha Danielle's Dream ['Ferpink'] PP21,734 (Pink Mexican Sage).

This color combo of pink and white is pretty much my worse nightmare, my teeth hurt just looking at this photo. I was only paying attention because I feared this is what the plant I loved at the NYBG (Salvia 'White Flame') actually looked like in flower. 

Then in another section at Wave Hill, this. Yes! White flowers not pink, so I was able to feel sure that it's a thing. White flowers aren't usually my jam, I love the fuzz though!

More from Wave Hill, Salvia coccinea 'Forest Fire' (Texas sage cultivar)

And Salvia confertiflora (Red Velvet Sage), oh my! 

I got lucky capturing that red ant (?) in the red velvet.

This one is even more tender than Salvia discolor, but I am definitely going to hunt it down next spring.

One more, this one unlabeled.

But a hit with the locals...

So are you a salvia lover? What are your favorites? Do you grow them as annuals or are they reliable perennials in your garden?

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All material © 2009-2022 by Loree L Bohl for danger garden. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited and just plain rude.

Fragrance in the garden

When you think of fragrance in the garden I bet you think of flowers first, right? It’s only natural; scent is a big part of their appeal (for the ones that still have a fragrance and it hasn’t been bred out of them…but that’s a whole different subject). As a gardener who puts priority on foliage rather than flowers I’ve discovered the garden can still be alive with scent, and the effect isn’t nearly as fleeting.

Herbs are an obvious choice for delicious foliar scent. I can’t walk by a Rosemary bush without dragging my fingers across it. Lucky for me there are several planted in parking strips around the neighborhood. Stepping on or dragging the garden hose across the carpet of Corsican Mint releases a powerful burst of odor that can stop me in my tracks. I highly recommend planting this “stepable” in your garden.For me Basil is the smell of summer. This year my plants are growing along the front of the tomato and pepper stock tanks, when watering, picking a tomato (in an admittedly infrequent occurrence this year) or just walking by, you brush against the leaves and their distinctive scent fills the air.But there is another type of scent that I have been enjoying this summer. This awareness began in the most enjoyable of places. I was invited to a gathering of plant people, serious hardcore plant people. They were meeting at Sean Hogan’s house. Since Sean is the force behind Cistus Nursery naturally his personal garden is going to be a pretty amazing place. Well as luck would have it my visit was in the early spring, in the evening. By the time the gathering began it was already dusk. By the time I got a garden tour it was completely dark…so you guessed it. No pictures to share.

But as we carefully made our way around the garden my tour guide, Kate Bryant, mentioned the strong resinous smell that filled the air. On some level I had been aware of it but as soon as it was pointed out it became undeniable, and I was hooked.

In addition to being a garden writer, Kate is also a garden designer; whenever possible she incorporates that wonderful resinous scent in the gardens she designs. As you would expect, in her personal garden plants are placed where she can fully enjoy the aromas they provide. For example this large Cistus ‘Blanche’ is growing near her back steps, and it smells divine! She phrases it best: “I'm a crazed sensualist when it comes to foliar scent and that sticky, resinous Cistus 'Blanche' by my back steps is one of my favorites.” Last June she wrote a post on her blog Plantwise, about planting favored plants where you can really appreciate them…you can read that post here.My garden smells extra good now too, as Kate gave me a Salvia clevelandii 'alpine' from Xera. It smells AMAZING, thanks Kate! I still haven’t managed to find the perfect place for it to go in the ground. So in the mean time it’s in a pot on the patio…right next to the chair I like to set in. It fills the air with aroma of far away places, vacation places, relaxing places. For a few fleeting moments I am transported away and in sunny warm California. We had a freak rainstorm a couple of nights ago (over an inch of rain in less than an hour) and the smell in the garden the next morning was amazing. Of course the fresh air was lovely but that little Salvia was on overdrive. So wonderful…I’d love to learn more about what plants you depend on for fragrance in your garden, and you earn extra credit if they have nothing to do with flowers!