Salvia discolor
Andean sage, Andean silver sage
- Height × spread
- 0.75m × 0.9m
- Position
- Full sun
- Hardiness
- Heated greenhouse 10C & above (RHS H1b)
- Flowers
- Summer, Autumn
Availability
Please ask in store about availability
Many plants are seasonal. Call 01234 567890 to check current stock.
About this plant
A tender plant of some character which is somewhat lax and spreading in its ways. The flowers are near-black and have a subtle elegance, their open mouths protruding from the long corset of the silver-green calyx. They appear at intervals in summer and autumn. The flowering stalk carries long, rather spear-shaped, often dangling leaves. Large leaves, held on white stems sit at the base of the plant. The flowering stems are sticky to the touch. Difficult to position satisfactorily, one expert recommends its use in hanging baskets, and it can gangle over a raised bed, or may be induced to climb or rather clamber since it lacks tendrils. This is really a plant for the discriminating connoisseur. This is unlikely to be hardy except in the very warmest parts of the country.
- Flower colour
- Black, Purple
- Foliage colour
- Green
- Variegated
- No
- Scent
- No
- Shape
- Dome
- Height
- 0.75m
- Spread
- 0.9m
- Season of interest
- Summer, Autumn
- Flowers in
- Summer, Autumn
- Evergreen
- Evergreen
- Garden style
- Small scale garden, Seaside garden
- Sun or shade
- Likes full sun, tolerates part shade
- Soil type
- Chalk, Loam (normal)
- Soil pH
- All types
- Drainage
- Well drained soil
- Hardiness
- Heated greenhouse 10C & above (RHS H1b)
- Borders & containers
- Borders and containers
- Use for
- Bee attraction, Sensory garden (tactile)
- Maintenance
- Easycare – low/no maintenance
- Hazards
- No
Spring
Spring - late · Outdoors
Feed with slow release fertiliser
Apply a general purpose slow release fertiliser, spreading it around the root area of the plant as it is coming into growth. (Or apply a liquid feed at regular intervals throughout the growing season.)
This is a simple way to provide a nutrient boost as a single annual procedure.
Spring-Autumn · Outdoors
Water in dry periods
Established plants in the ground can cope with 7-10 days of dryness, and shrubs often manage 2 to 3 weeks. Water one section of the garden thoroughly each day rather than a little everywhere. Check plants in pots more often, especially in hot weather.
Spring - mid-late · Planting
Trim the plant
Trim the plant to give it a general tidy. This includes removing any lengthy or awkward shoots that make the plant look visually less attractive. Remove any spent flower heads at the same time.
Planting & general
Compost · Planting
Loam based compost + grit for repotting
Use a free draining loam based compost rather than one which has been modified to be 'moisture retentive'.
Alternatively prepare a compost using three parts of loam (John Innes no. 2 or 3) to one part of (horticultural) sand or fine (horticultural) grit.
Found in
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