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My Salvia Collection (Past and Present) part two

meanie

By meanie

7 comments


Early in my collection Simbad sent me some seeds. The first of them was S.sclarea…………..

It is a biennial or a short lived perennial. The flowers are quite small but what is really grown for is the distinctive flower bracts.

Another one from Simbads seed was S.forrskoalii……………..

Fully hardy this plant grows a basal rosette of large leaves (anything up to 25cm long) from which emerges a many branched flower spike. In full bloom this is a spectacular plant……………..

The third one from Simbads seed is S.glutinosa…………….

The plant is fully hardy and it secretes a sticky substance which takes care of aphids and small flies making it trouble free. However, its common name is Jupiters Distaff and if I’d thought about that I might have considered that it had the potential to grow large – it does! The plant in the photo below was close to two metres tall and it spread out at least the same distance………….

Easily grown from the plentiful seed that it produces it is also easily propagated by layering.

Amy sent me a young S.buchananii plant which thrived but unfortunately it did not survive the winter……………….

It is one that I will be replacing next year as it is a really good Salvia.

Salvia confertiflora is hardy in mild parts of the country but certainly not here in the Cotswolds. The flowers are small but eye-catching…………

The further back that you view it from the better it gets…………..

Despite being borderline hardy it is easy to grow. Mid to late October I lift it and shove it in a pot which is put in the shed/garage for the winter. Then in mid March I put it in the greenhouse and introduce a little water to coax it back into growth. Planted out early June it is usually in bloom a couple of months later.

S.transyllvanica is a really nice small hardy Salvia. Usually the last of my hardy Salvia to get back into growth it can be back in bloom as little as five or so weeks later……………

And now my favourite hardy Salvia – S.dolichantha…………

Grown from seed I was chuffed when the first flowers emerged and it had come true as the “Chinese” Salvia are notoriously promiscuous. From a basal rosette of leaves three or four lightly branched flower spikes emerge at an angle before straightening up and growing to a height of about 50cm………………..

Finally, S.stolonifera………….

It is not the most floriferous plant but despite preferring a slightly shady and moist spot it is hardy and soon starts to creep……………

Part three to follow.

More blog posts by meanie

Previous post: My Salvia Collection (Past and Present) part one

Next post: Been Away A While



Comments

 

They are lovely plants but, didn't seem to like my clay soil.even the hardy ones only lasted a couple of years!

28 Sep, 2015

 

No, clay soil is not good when it comes to Salvia!

28 Sep, 2015

 

What a lovely collection Meanie.

28 Sep, 2015

 

Lovely collection Meanie, I've been collecting seed from glutinosa today big mistake bent down to get some lower down it stuck in my hair and I could smell it all day!!
I grew a nice one this year 'Pink Jewel' not hardy but been flowering for weeks now :-)

28 Sep, 2015

amy
Amy
 

Another lovely selection keith , I've been looking at my S. Buchananii in the hope of collecting seed for you this morning the pods are empty which is strange as their are still some flowers on the plants the other thing is each time I look into a pod to see if there are any seed inside an ear wigs pops out I hate ear-wigs and drop the pod every time ., I've taken cuttings which I'm usually more successful with ,the same has applied to the ' Wendys Wish' which has to be one of my favourites , did I send you seed for the S. Fairy Queen a very pretty blue/white if not I have some seed here for you , A friend sent me a message this morning telling me she has bought me a S. Peter Vidgeon plant after I saw and admired it in her garden a pretty pink ,so fingers crossed for seed from that next year .... :o)

29 Sep, 2015

 

It's an impressive collection of Salvia species. As you probably know many Salvia species grow wild here in San Diego...they bloom pretty much all year, also. Most are very drought tolerant which is why it's so widely grown here.

29 Sep, 2015

 

Love them all. Simbad and Amy have shared seed with me too. Adding part two to my favourites too. Going back for another read now, thank you.

29 Sep, 2015

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