Ornamental salvia
The genus covers three quite different plants: the hardy border salvias that come back every year, the tender ones like 'Amistad' and the microphylla hybrids that flower until Christmas in a mild autumn but need a dry winter to survive, and culinary sage and rosemary, which are Mediterranean sub-shrubs.
What unites them is drainage. Salvias survive cold far better than they survive winter wet, so a gritty soil or a raised spot does more for them than any fleece.
SagePerennial salvia
Sage
Leave old growth uncut through the first winter to give young plants maximum frost protection.
Care
Full sun.
Reasonably drought-tolerant once established.
Free-draining soil of low to moderate fertility; avoid heavy wet clay in winter, the main cause of losses.
Leave the previous season's growth on over winter to protect the crown from frost, then cut back hard to new basal shoots in spring.
A single light feed as growth appears, over a compost mulch, is enough. These are Mediterranean plants at heart: a rich, generous regime gives lax stems that flop open from the middle of the clump.
Basal or softwood cuttings from the new spring growth root in a couple of weeks. An established clump can also be lifted and divided as it comes into growth.
Month by month
Months change with the climate: in southern Italy tomatoes go out two months earlier than in England.
- MarchCut back to new basal shoots. how ›
- AprilLight feed as growth resumes. how ›
- JuneDeadhead to prolong flowering into autumn. how ›
Months based on climate: UK. Your choice stays on this device.
- MarchCut back to new basal shoots. how ›
- AprilLight feed as growth resumes. how ›
- JuneDeadhead to prolong flowering into autumn. how ›
Months based on climate: Northern Italy. Your choice stays on this device.
Common problems
How to spot it. Rot at the base.
What to do. Improve drainage; don't mulch directly against the crown.
Tender salviaSalvia
Tender salvia
Take cuttings in late summer as insurance, or plan to bring the whole pot under cover, before the first frost arrives.
Care
Sheltered.
Standard container/border watering.
Free-draining, moderately fertile soil or peat-free container compost.
Deadhead through summer; cut back only once brought under cover for winter, or in spring after overwintering.
Feed every couple of weeks through the flowering season with a high-potash liquid feed, in pots especially — these flower for months on end and cannot do it on nothing. Stop as the nights cool, so growth hardens before any frost.
Softwood cuttings in late summer, overwintered frost-free, are how these are kept from one year to the next in the UK: assume the parent will not survive a cold wet winter outdoors and take the cuttings anyway.
Month by month
Months change with the climate: in southern Italy tomatoes go out two months earlier than in England.
- MarchCut back and restart growth after overwintering under cover. how ›
- JuneDeadhead regularly through summer. how ›
- OctoberLift and pot up, or take cuttings, before the first frost — will not survive a hard frost outdoors. how ›
Months based on climate: UK. Your choice stays on this device.
- MarchCut back and restart growth after overwintering under cover. how ›
- JuneDeadhead regularly through summer. how ›
Months based on climate: Northern Italy. Your choice stays on this device.
Common problems
How to spot it. Blackened, collapsed growth after frost.
What to do. Plan the winter move; don't leave it to chance — the single biggest risk for this group.
Popular varieties
Questions
Ornamental salvia: is it hardy?
Sage: H7: Fully hardy anywhere in the UK. It survives below −20 °C. Tender salvia: H5: Hardy in most of the UK, but can struggle in the coldest inland or upland spots. It survives down to −15 °C.
Can it grow in a pot?
Sage: Standard container culture. Tender salvia: Growing in a pot from the start makes the essential autumn move indoors far easier.
Ornamental salvia: when do you prune it?
Sage: Leave the previous season's growth on over winter to protect the crown from frost, then cut back hard to new basal shoots in spring. In the calendar for UK, pruning falls in March. Tender salvia: Deadhead through summer; cut back only once brought under cover for winter, or in spring after overwintering. In the calendar for UK, pruning falls in March.
Ornamental salvia: when does it flower?
Sage: In the climate of UK it flowers in June–September. Tender salvia: In the climate of UK it flowers in June–October.
When do you feed it?
Sage: A single light feed as growth appears, over a compost mulch, is enough. These are Mediterranean plants at heart: a rich, generous regime gives lax stems that flop open from the middle of the clump. Feeding months, UK: April. Tender salvia: Feed every couple of weeks through the flowering season with a high-potash liquid feed, in pots especially — these flower for months on end and cannot do it on nothing. Stop as the nights cool, so growth hardens before any frost. Feeding months, UK: May–August.