Mexican Sage
Interesting Facts about Mexican Sage
Mexican sage is a shrub generally bushy and evergreen, that grows in frost free climates, and is a perennial in areas where the frost cuts it back in the winter. It grows in a spreading, loose mound up to four feet tall. The leaves are shaped like lances, much like the leaves of the willow. They are white and woolly underneath, and puckery on top. The stems are fast-growing and white, woolly and thick. From September until the first frost of the late fall or winter, this sage blooms with lovely white flowers that extend from lavender blue or purple calyces.
This lovely sage grows natively in Mexico and Central America. It grows best in full sun, but it is able to tolerate some afternoon shade. If it has to reach too much for the sun, it can get top-heavy and leggy, however. It can tolerate drought better than many of the other salvias.
Mexican sage sometimes is grown as an annual plant. It needs a long growing season, and it starts blooming in late summer or early fall. It is easy to grow from cuttings of the root, or from stems of the plant where the ground is touched. You can also root ordinary stem cuttings.
Be sure to give your sage plenty of room to grow. It usually grows all summer long, and its foliage is lovely, but it really shows itself off in the fall. As the flowers bloom, the plant spreads out, and it may fall over, breaking off stems. To prevent this, you can remove the clusters of flowers as they are aging, to cut down on the weight the stems are supporting. You can prune the whole Mexican sage bush back in the early summer months, to promote a more bushy look and to keep it from getting so top-heavy.
You can use the versatile Mexican sage in hedges, alongside butterfly bushes, rosemary and other salvias like autumn or anise sage. Its grayish, soft foliage is handsome all through the summer months, as an eye-appealing accent to the other blooming shrubs. Then, in the fall, when the other bushes are tiring, this bush will come into its own.
The graceful stems and the downy soft foliage make the Mexican sage one of the favorite salvias for gardeners. Growers love the purple, fuzzy calyces, and these will continue to grow even after the flowers fall off. This makes the sage versatile enough to be used as a cut flower. You can make dried arrangements from them as well, since the calyces keep their color even after you dry them out. This late-blooming salvia attracts butterflies like a magnet, and you'll spend a lot of time enjoying them.