(Elk Red-Violet Hybrid Sage) A very special new hybrid Sage, featuring small but very numerous deep red-violet flowers on a vigorous, easy to grow plant. Loved by bees, butterflies and hummingbirds. A FBTS introduction.
(Royal Bumble Mountain Sage) Almost black, the stems and calyxes of this UK hybrid form a pleasing contrast with its medium-size scarlet flowers and glossy green leaves. Bloom time is spring to fall. This Mountain Sage suckers freely and forms a dense clump.
(Wild Watermelon Mountain Sage) Large, watermelon-pink flowers and the fruity fragrance of this long-blooming sage's mid-green, veined leaves make this Mountain Sage a treat to grow.
(Golden Girl Sage) Sages can be such tough plants. Many, such as Salvia 'Golden Girl', withstand heat and drought yet have delicate looking blossoms. Golden Girl features yellow flowers with a hint of rosy pink along with dark rose calyxes.
(Scarlet Spires Sage) This is a brilliant cross between the sturdy D'Arcy's Sage (Salvia darcyi) and the beautifully colored 'Raspberry Delight' Littleleaf Sage (Salvia microphylla 'Raspberry Delight').
1. Drought-Resistant Beauties: A Guide to the Salvia greggii and S. microphylla Group |
It can be a long journey from discovery to popularity for a plant. Currently, the most widely sought group of Salvias is the one encompassing S. greggii , and S. microphylla , which are commonly known as Autumn Sage and Mountain Sage. They caught the eye of naturalists traveling the American Southwest and Mexico's Sierra Madre mountains in the mid-to-late 1800s. However, they didn't take root in garden catalogs for well over 100 years. |
Hummingbirds in the Garden |
2. Seeing Red and Loving It: Hummingbirds and Salvia microphylla |
As with so many aspects of life, the hummingbird-Salvia relationship is circular. It is difficult to have one without the other. Unfortunately, many species of hummingbirds are threatened or endangered. By planting Mountain Sage ( Salvia microphylla ) you invite hummingbirds into your garden, expand their habitat and ensure pollination for abundant blossoming. |
3. Happy Hybrid Surprises from Salvia greggii and microphylla |
Sometimes surprises occur in the garden, especially if you plant Salvias. Sages in the Salvia greggii and Salvia microphylla Group are particularly inclined to hybridize naturally. |
Celebrity Salvias |
4. Celebrity Salvias: Hot Heatwave Hybrids from Australia |
Waterwise landscapes don't have to be cactus gardens if you grow leafy, colorful drought-resistant Salvias, such as Australian Heatwave™ Mountain Sages, which are crosses of Salvia microphylla and S. greggii . Hybridizers Howard Bentley and Steve Eggleton of Plant Growers Australia used these tough American and Mexican native plants to create their series. One goal was to aid water conservation during their nation's hot, dry summers. |
New at FBTS |
5. New at FBTS: Suncrest Salvias |
Drought-resistant, heat-tolerant, vibrantly colored Suncrest Salvias (sages) have arrived at Flowers by the Sea and will be available for shipping in April. Suncrest Salvias are floriferous hybrids of species native to the American Southwest and Mexico, including Mountain Sage (Salvia microphylla), Autumn Sage (Salvia greggii), Jame Sage (Salvia x jamensis) and Royal Purple Autumn Sage (Salvia muelleri). |
Cultivating Color |
6. Cultivating Color: Tracking the Elusive History of Autumn & Mountain Sage Warm Pastel Hybrids -- Part I |
Whether planned or accidental, hybrids happen. This is especially true among the closely related Southwestern and Mexican species of Autumn Sage (Salvia greggii) and Mountain Sage (S. microphylla). They are native to different areas of the Southwest and Mexico, but cross freely when they meet. This story is the first installment in a two-part series initiating our Cultivating Color series. It involves the late Dr. Richard F. Dufresne, a Salvia specialist who helped us track the history of warm-colored S. x jamensis hybrids. |
Salvias Down South |
7. Salvias Down South: 15 Sages to Pink Up Landscapes |
Winter is a good time for warm thoughts about rosy colors pinking up the landscape. Not only is pink pleasant, but it is soothing. As psychologists discovered in the late 20th century, it's also the color of calm and is used in serenity gardens. Flowers by the Sea details a variety of pink sages here, some of which bloom in winter. |
Getting Started with Salvias |
8. Getting Started: Salvias for the Southwest |
Ask anyone to describe the American Southwest, and they're likely to sum it up in three letters : "D-R-Y." Yet precipitation can vary a lot here state by state and even within different parts of the individual states. One thing that is consistent about the story of water throughout the Southwest, is that rain and snow can rapidly swing from famine to feast to misfortune. |
Cultivating Color |
9. Cultivating Color: Tracking the Elusive History of Autumn & Mountain Sage Warm Pastel Hybrids -- Part II |
Luminous Salvia x jamensis pastel flowers began warming up nursery catalogs in the late 1990s. Their journey from steep Mexican mountains to American and European gardens began in the mid-19th century with the discovery of Autumn Sage (Salvia greggii). This is the second post in a two-part article about these Jame Sage hybrids of Autumn and Mountain Sage (S. microphylla). It includes descriptions of ten favorite Jame Sages. |
Salvias Down South |
10. Salvias Down South: 8 Must-Have Salvias for the Southwest |
You don’t have to be a fine artist to create a work of beauty in the garden. By selecting hardy, vibrantly colored native Salvias that can withstand Southwestern weather ranging from sullen heat and drought to raging rainstorms, you become a landscape painter. FBTS Online Nursery carries many choices for your palette. |
Salvia Small Talk |
11. Salvia Small Talk: Botanical Plant Names II |
The conclusion of this series on plant names. |
Sage Words About Wildlife |
12. Sage Words about Wildlife: 4 Seasons of Hummingbird Salvias |
Regional differences in seasonal temperature and humidity affect the choice of Salvias to plant in hummingbird gardens. The varying seasons in which particular sages bloom and the part of the world where they originated also determine whether they attract hummingbirds. Flowers by the Sea Online Nursery offers suggestions based on regions and seasons. |
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