The MGS Forum
Plants for mediterranean gardens => Perennials => Topic started by: Pescalune on June 30, 2011, 08:36:53 AM
-
I love Salvia nemorosa 'Mainacht' for the deep blue of its flowers in April/May.
The Australian nurseryman Marcus Ryan told us (at an MGS meeting in Mallorca) that at his nursery they pruned it and obtained a repeating of its flowering later in the summer. But can anyone tell me if he meant simply to dead-headed it or to cut it back to the ground?
My second question is: have you tried any of these techniques, or do you know any other to obtain the same result (a second flowering in the same year)?
I garden in the Languedoc, my Salvia nemorosa were planted three years ago and I no longer water them for they are in a part of my garden which does not get any irrigation.
Jean
-
I asked Marcus about this and he has kindly sent a reply. He may at some point join our forum but as you can imagine since his trip to Europe he is now very hectic with work and family.
At Lambley Nursery, we grow a dozen or more selections of Salvia nemorosa and the related hybrids S. x sylvestris, and S. x superba. These are collectively known as Meadow Sages, and the varieties we cultivate include, 'Lubecca', 'Ostfriesland', 'Amethyst', 'Caradonna', 'Wesuwe', 'Mainacht', 'Blauhugel', 'Scheehugel', 'Viola Klose', 'Marcus', 'Tanzarin', and several of our own selections. Perhaps the most beautiful is the naturally occurring Salvia nemorosa ssp tesquicola, with its rich claret coloured bracts and violet flowers.
Our Nursery and gardens are situated in the windswept plains of central Victoria, Australia, with temperatures from -7C to 45C. This group of Salvias are frost and drought tolerant, thriving in our conditions. Our gardens are watered only 3-4 times per year, during the extreme dry of our summer months.
These herbaceous Salvias emerge in early spring, and flower strongly for 8 weeks until early summer. By late December we cut the entire clumps to the ground, leaving neither stem nor foliage. For mass plantings we use a powered hedge trimmer to save time and labour. Though this seems severe, within a week new foliage emerges, and by February (six weeks after pruning) the salvia's are in full flower again. The flowers hold well until late autumn. This second flowering is usually a shorter height than the spring display, as the rainfall is much less for this time. During late autumn the plants are cut to the ground again, to make way for the emerging under-planting of spring bulbs.
This mid-season pruning will also encourage other garden plants to flower more strongly in the Autumn: Achillea hybrids, and the globe flowers Echinops bannaticus and Echinops ritro will also benefit from this treatment, flowering strongly again in the autumn.
I urge you to try this technique: the well timed hard prune in summer saves one from otherwise diligently dead heading all season, and rewards with a strong second flowering, giving strength to the Autumn garden!
David Glenn, the proprietor of Lambley has penned some more detailed notes regarding these Salvia's on our website, http://www.lambley.com.au/garden_notes/in_my_garden_salvia_nemorosas
-
I wonder if this S. nemorosa 'Mainacht' is available here in Northern Greece? Sounds like an ideal plant for my conditions.
-
Thanks to Marcus and to John for this very complete and satisfying reply. I'll try Marcus' method and will come back to you.
Jean
-
I too have decided to try out Marcus's suggestion and have cut to the ground half my established group of Salvia nemorosa "Mainacht" and half the Salvia x superba. The beds now look rather ugly, but I shall watch with interest to see what happens and report back.
-
I came across this by accident.
Las Pilitas Nursery have a detailed description of it -
http://www.laspilitas.com/nature-of-california/plants/salvia-sonomensis.
It sounds like it would be ideal for a steep soil bank I have topped with Cupressus sempervirens var. sempervirens (not fastigiate) (which holds the top edge) and which casts light shade on much of the slope during midday to afternoon.
Here's what it is capable of
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2292/2366664751_da41b026d4.jpg
---perfect for me, beautiful, fantastic!
(context for that image - http://back40feet.blogspot.com/2008/03/regional-parks-botanic-garden.html)
I find myself thinking 'I've got to get me one of these' (like Will Smith in 'Independence Day').
If anyone has tried it in mediterranean gardens and/or knows of a source or has other comments, please reply!
-
Southwestern Native Seeds (see draft List of Plant Suppliers attached to this plant suppliers posting (http://www.mgsforum.org/smf/index.php?topic=158.0)) should have seed - if you're prepared for a wait! (They don't dispatch till the autumn, which would be the best time to sow.)
-
Thanks v. much Alasdair.
Now I have looked at their seed list, I have a few others I fancy trying.
-
Here is the first result of the technique inspired by Marcus Ryan's talk I heard at Sally's house in Mallorca last spring.
I severely cropped the half-dried stalks in July, after they had finished blooming, leaving only the basal leaves; I used the dried sticks to cover the rosette to protect the plant from the heat of the sun. I watered twice; but we had some unexpected and unusual rains in Languedoc in July and August, so I was lucky.
And a few days ago, a first flowering stem, rather shorter than usual, began to grow and produced the flowers you can see here.
(http://)
-
This herbaceous species now comes in a wide range of colours but the typical habit is quite short, to maybe 60 cm. A friend of mine, from Kew student days, James Compton was in Mexico around 20 years ago (was it so long ago) where they collected this form. Salvia patens 'Guanajuato'. I personally don't think it should be a cultivar as there has to be several clones around. I grew about 6 from wild seeds and distributed them. This is from a wild population in the Sierra de Guanajuato with plants up to 2 m high and flowers 5 cm long. It maintains this habit in cultivation as seen here.
-
As Salvia patens is a relatively thirsty species, this prompted a lively discussion on choosing plants to minimise water use, which we have moved here (http://www.mgsforum.org/smf/index.php?topic=420): do join in!
-
Hi Mike,
Here are couple of salvias that work well for me here in San Jose California: S. chionophylla (Mexico) & S. aurita var. galpinii (S. Africa). Both are shown on Robin Middleton's website: http://www.robinssalvias.com They are low growing, spreading, rambling types. S. chionophylla spreads more rapidly. I will try try to get seeds to Chantal for our seed bank.
Cheers
-
Thanks R.!
I am struck by how the foliage of S. chionophylla, in Robin's web site, looks so much like Leucophyllum frutescens.
-
Can I also recommend salvia chamaedryoides for a hot, dry summer garden. Great silver foliage, almost lobelia blue flowers, and excellent droubt tolerance. It never misses a beat. 8)
-
Salvia Chamaedryoides has been in flower for months and is still in bloom. Planted out last autumn.
-
Fleur, were you able to by Salvia chamaedryoides in Greece? If so, where?
-
Salvia chamaedryoides duely noted; thanks folks.
-
Thorun - MGS garden nursery, last year. Sally did cuttings from her mother plant. I'm going to try taking some cuttings this autumn if it stops flowering!
-
Salvia chamedrioides in my garden is blooming almost all the year, from january to december ! It is in full sun. This a picture that I made in november this year. It is a green foliage form, not grey foliage. I have tried to make cutting of this specie : is not easy...
-
Fleur, that lovely S. chamaedryoides is so delightful with the Euryops.
-
Has anyone grown Salvia 'Allen Chickering'? It has very pungent leaves.
-
Can anyone give me some guidance as to how I should treat my Salvia cacaliifolia now that winter is here? It was planted only a year ago, and has done really well in a modest sort of way. Should I cut it back? If so by how much? My inclination is to take to it with the shears and reduce it by about half, but if there is an expert out there I would be glad to hear from them. Frosts not an issue here... :)
-
Not an answer, but of oblique relevance...
I see John Whittlesey has written a book on Salvias (reviewed in the RHS 'The Garden' magazine, Nov14, p.98).
I know John through violets, and am sure his book will have been well researched and based on a good amount of his own experience as a grower and nurseryman (in northern California).
'The Plant Lovers Guide to Salvias', 2014, Timber Press, 2014 220pp
-
Can anyone give me some guidance as to how I should treat my Salvia cacaliifolia now that winter is here? It was planted only a year ago, and has done really well in a modest sort of way. Should I cut it back? If so by how much? My inclination is to take to it with the shears and reduce it by about half, but if there is an expert out there I would be glad to hear from them. Frosts not an issue here... :)
I'm no expert, Caroline, but yes, go ahead and cut it back as you suggest. It tends to sprawl, so that will keep it in shape.
-
Thanks Alisdair - I gave it a haircut yesterday and noticed that new shoots are already starting to push up from the lower 'branches", so very timely.
-
Does anybody grow Salvia pachyphylla? I saw in the plant supplier's list that you succumbed, Joanne. Has it fared well/lived up to expectations? Would it grow in a pot?
I bought John Whittlesey's book "The Plant Lover's Guide to Salvias" recently (lots of good offers on Amazon) having read Mike's comments above. It is full of tempting photos and lots of useful information.
-
Hello David, Sad to say the S. Pachyphylla was short lived under my watch, but I would like to try again.
-
Thanks Joanne for the reply. Sorry to hear that it didn't last long. I might give it a try anyway :-\
-
Apologies Joanna. Misspelled your name, or rather, got it wrong twice!
-
Hi David,
I had it growing for a number of years in a raised rock garden bed with little supplementary watering but I think it finally succumbed to either severe drought or unseasonal summer rain! I can't remember which - it was a few years ago.
I have a new plant from seed which will hopefully go into a new bed this year,
cheers
fermi
-
Thanks Fermi. Looks like I'm going to go for it :)
-
Salvia 'Indigo Spires' is doing quite well in our garden despite the intense heat. We do give it a bit of a drink every now and then when it looks thirsty.
-
Salvia muirrii benefitted from a trim back and getting some water in a dry spring.
cheers
fermi
-
I take BAD photographs and that stops me from posting photos of flowers which bloom in our garden as often as I would like. However, a friend, a retired school teacher, is a good photographer so when he came to photograph the Arum sintonisii Wednesday morning I asked him to help. The following are his snap shots
1 and 2 Salvia leucantha which seems to be the favourite for most of my visitors.
3 Salvia microphylla very fresh looking.
4 and 5 Salvia indicare-growing from last year. An on going battle with baby snails that escape my daily round up. I have also grown three others from last year's seeds as an insurance.
6 No name as the label faded. It is 3 years old but has not flowered yet so can not identify it. Seeds from MGS seed bank.
7. Second year in the ground. Same story. If anybody recognizes it from the leaves please help. I have looked up all the Salvia names from the MGS seed bank but I am none the wiser as to their names.
8 A sea of fresh green. Includes Salvia 'Hot Lips', S. discolor, S. africana-lutea and S. greggii[/i.
-
I think the many varieties of Salvia make wonderful ' backbone' planting in any Mediterranean gardening with their long season of flowering in many colours, variety of form and lovely aromatic leaves. I am fortunate to have a nursery close to me that specialises in them and am steadily building up my collection. At the moment we are suffering an unusual spell of arctic weather conditions and they are all looking rather sad but I am confident they will soon be bursting into new leaf and flower.
-
I agree with you Carol. There are so many varieties and I am discovering that they do survive here if placed in a favourable position. We don't get the variety here because people don't apparently ask for them. I have acquired a few salvias at a low price in early Spring last year because they were left unsold the previous year. They looked sad but soon recovered in the ground. I have Salvia coccinea that has been flowering all year. It came as a seedling in the pot of the Pavonia that I was given by Sally R two years ago. It drops seeds in the nearby pots and now I have lots. I have introduced Salvia officinalis and leucantha into the village church garden. I have been asked where the leucantha can be obtained. They sell for 8 euros when they do bring them in. I have taken 'rootings' from our own for planting in April in the New Church Garden. I am also planning to introduce Anthony Parker too as it has proved to be a winner. Thank you David.
-
I have had a wonderful present a few hours ago from my photographer friend. He brought me a slightly snail- eaten specimen. It is a Salvia hierosolymitana which he grew from seeds given to him by a friend who collected it from the Pentadaktylos Range in Cyprus. Michalis, the photographer, belongs to a group of plant lovers that collect endangered native plants. He has given me seeds of various endangered plants a few months ago which are growing in many pots in the garden now. Unfortunately the day he arrived with them he had a slight accident and the seeds were mixed up. Now we are identifying them as they are slowly growing. For Michalis' efforts we gave him a Euphorbia dendroides and a Teucrium flavum.
-
Salvia leucantha 'Velour White' was battered a bit last winter but is finally coming into flower now
cheers
fermi
-
My apologies for not participating for a while. I have been busy. Fermi I love the photos of your flowers. The dew on your flowers make me nostalgic for cooler climes. I am posting a photo of my Salvia hierosolymitana. When it arrived as a small plant it showed snail damage but it is flourishing now. The second photo is of my new Salvia hierosolymitana seedlings sown this year. The sticks are to stop my cats rolling on them.
-
I have finally identified one of the Salvias whose photo I have posted on the 23th February (no. 6) It has flowered a few days ago. It is Salvia interrupta.
-
Salvia thymoides in flower today. Small scale with tiny leaves and tiny flowers. Hanging over the side of a pot it adds interest without being the centre of attention. Survived over 40°C in the summer and -7°C this winter. So, small in stature but obviously a lot tougher than it looks.
-
A lovely little thing, David; presumably you have to give it water through those searing summers, or does it go dormant then?
-
Yes I give it some water over the hottest months. I don't have a fixed approach to watering. If a plant is showing signs of distress I give it some water. We have plenty in Rome. Otherwise I leave well alone. That does mean that I have to be careful in selecting plants for a pot which have similar water needs. It is combined with Nepeta (racemosa 'Little Titch'?), a purple flowered Salvia (greggii type but unidentified) and an orange-flowered Sphaeralcea fendleri (var. elongata?)
I killed my Salvia clevelandii last summer by giving it too much water due to a bad combination in that respect. A favourite of mine but I do have some seedlings from it. Are gardeners like parents where having favourites is a definite no-no? Perhaps the other plants willed it to death out of sibling jealousy?
-
We have been watching Charithea's Salvia mexicana 'Limelight' for several days waiting for the flower to open. It started the process this morning but my efforts to catch its true colours was not very successful. The best that could be achieved was the lime green on one photo and the dark blue on the other! :-[
-
Nevertheless that is spectacular- not only the flowering spike but also the leaves.
The variety of Salvia on offer now is mind boggling - yesterday I visited the annual 'Murabilia' plant fair in Lucca with David and found it difficult to decide which new ones to add to my growing collection. Since David brought me rooted cuttings of several I decided to spend my money on other unusual plants that I rarely see on offer in Italy unless visiting such fairs. Am looking forward to unpacking the car and rediscovering them - too tired last night after a 12 hour day. Thanks David both for the plants and your knowledgeable company - such friendships that result from membership of the MGS are invaluable.
-
How lovely to be able to choose your Salvias and not settle for what is brought into the country. What did the two of you buy? I am posting a photo of the Salvia 'Love and Wishes' that belongs to my cousin and fellow gardener. I gave her a cutting as soon as we got back in Cyprus to ensure its survival. She keeps it in a shaded area. Now I know i will be able to take more cuttings when the cooler weather comes along and the salvia puts out new branches.
-
Hi Charithea.
Not sure I merit the "knowledgeable" compliment from Umbrian but compliments are always worth having :-). The event in Lucca is a long train journey from Rome and knowing that L'essenze di Lea http://leessenzedilea.com/ will be present in Rome at https://www.laconservadellaneve.it/en/, I resisted all temptation to buy Salvias and concentrated on Sedums instead. But I did take the opportunity to look at what was on offer Salvia-wise and saw Salvia pinnata. http://www.robinssalvias.com/index.html has photos of an amazing selection of Salvias for anyone who has a moment to visit the site.
I was attracted by the foliage of S pinnata and the fact that the ones I saw were somewhat prostrate, reaching out over the edge of the pots they were in. So, it will be mine in the very near future! I am looking for an off-white Salvia too. Salvia x Jamensis cv. ‘La luna’ or will it be too yellow?
Depending on just how much I can resist I may be coming home with the following too. Must decide tonight as I will need to order in the next couple of days.
Salvia x Jamensis cv. ‘La luna’ , Salvia semiatrata, Salvia pinnata, Salvia nana, Salvia ‘Phyllis' Fancy’ and Salvia Dorii
-
David I am sure the complements were earned. I like all your choices but my favourite and most suitable for Cyprus would be Salvia dorrii. Salvias do not do well here in pots. We found they have to be watered twice a day and they still suffer. We have managed to transfer ours into the ground except 3. I will put them in the ground once I get cuttings and I have seeds for insurance. I am posting the photo below because you send me some seeds last year. One lot was Salvia namaensis which is growing and flowering even now and the other it was Salvia semiatrata. Am i correct or have I mixed up the label?
-
David I have been reading the info about Salvias on the robinssalvias and i think I must have mixed up the labels as it shows it to be Salvia argentea. Do you agree? Any one else ?
-
Hi Charithea
Certainly neither S namaensis nor semiatrata. Could well be S argentea. S namaensis has the tiniest little, crinkly, green leaves. I got a few seeds of S semiatrata to germinate but the last of them died a few weeks ago. But the rosette you show doesn't look like the photos I have seen of S semiatrata. I am contemplating buying an established plant of S semiatrata this weekend because I was only partially successful with the seeds.
I wrote earlier on this thread about killing off my S clevelandii by watering it in summer. This year I have a second plant and I have left it in a pot . I moved it out of the torrential rains we had just recently so it has had zero water since the late spring. Still looks okay. Now I am panic stricken about starting to re-water it. I will let the weather cool a little more first I think. But it could be a plant for you to consider for your long dry summers. The scent from the leaves is amazing. They say that the native Americans say of the plant "First you smell it, then you see it". It is absolutely true. The plant I had last year, a mere cutting that had grown a little over the winter, filled my small garden with perfume. Light and fresh, though. I don't think I will ever be without one again. Don't judge the plant on the photo of my cutting. Have a look at the real thing on the internet.
-
Thank you David for the reply. I would like to apologise for my badly constructed sentence which led to the confusion. I do have Salvia namaensis see photos below but I was trying to find out the name of the other one which obviously had the wrong label. It had been in a small plastic container for at least 6 months, labelled wrongly, before I put it in the ground and then it started to grow. It seems a tough plant. I did germinate Salvia clevelandii but did the same as you . I over watered it and killed all the seedling in the spring. I will start again this autumn. The Salvia nam... and the seedling are the same age but I think the soil is better in that patch hence the growth. I shall transfer them when the cool weather comes along to a more suitable position.
-
Our photographer friend Michalis has just send me two photos of our Salvia mexicana Limelight and I thought of sharing them with you. I grew the salvia from seed the end of march. I was not hopeful because the seeds arrived late for 'our salvia growing season'. There were few and very small compared to all the others and yet this was the only ONE to survive the hot conditions from 18 different packets of seeds.
-
After seeing John's post featuring Salvias this morning I decided to re photograph
" Love and Wishes". Although needing winter protection it really is well worth caring for.
This year my original plant, given to me by a visiting friend from the UK two years ago, has more than trebled in size and been in constant flower since May. It does appreciate some shade and so I keep it in a large pot close to the door where I can admire its flowers both from inside and outside the house.
-
There is much talk of generosity on the forum at the moment and the whole forum is really made up of it in so many different forms. Those who share their knowledge of beautiful plants and their success/failures rates. Others who inspire us to try new plants by share their photos with us. The moderators who not only contribute directly but are working away behind the scenes keeping it all running smoothly. The plant identifiers. There are those who share their plants where possible through seeds and cuttings and Chantal does this on an international scale through her tireless work on the seedbank. We all owe a big "thank you" to each other.
Which brings me to my posting of Salvia coccinea 'Brenthurst' raised from seed given to me by John and Charithea. It was hard to get photos in focus until I put a large piece of card behind it. As you can see from the splashes on the card, it started to rain just at that moment. Thanks John and Charithea - a beautiful plant :-)
-
I had promised to post photos of Salvia splendens 'Martinus Borg' and Salvia guaranitica 'Costa Rican Blue' a while ago. John has put up some snap shots before but not named them. The Martinus Borg has not as yet lived up to expectations. The colour is amazing but not many blooms. I am hopeful though and intend to take cuttings and grow them on in the autumn. On the other hand the 'Costa Rican Blue' the first of the guaraniticas to bloom is daily spreading out. My Ipad photo does not do justice to the colour but I wanted to show the difference in the size of blooms compared to the other Salvias.
-
A few salvias from this morning.
-
Salvia elegans providing a welcome late splash of colour as the days shorten and temperatures begin to drop. Always a favourite with its wonderful pineapple smelling leaves.
-
Your Salvia elegans/i] looks lovely. Our is also in flower but it is rather untidy because I planted it first in too much sun and then moved it to too much shade and it has been searching for the light. It is taller than John. After seeing your photo I went and took cuttings to try in a different position.
-
I too misjudged the planting position when including this Salvia in my new garden. A more sheltered garden than our original one in Italy and with much better soil meant it grew at an alarming rate and I had placed it far too close to a path. This year I thinned it considerably when growth started and have been pleased with the result.
-
This is Salvia canariensis f candidissima which we got a couple of years ago from Lambley Nursery.
It was much smaller in the pot and I wa surprised when it suddenly "took off" on being planted (quite inappropriately it seems now) in a rock garden!!!
cheers
fermi
-
It will be a beautiful sight Fermi. You have to take cuttings so you can restart it somewhere more suitable for its size. A few years ago I saw a Salvia madrensis in full bloom in the MGS garden in Sparoza. It was in a sunny spot. I acquired one and put it in the hottest part of the garden. It died. I have bought a new one from Lucca Italy this June and it is in a slightly shaded area. It is ready to flower. There is also lots of space for it to stretch out. We learn from our mistakes.
-
Hi Charithea,
it has very furry stems which might make cuttings a bit risky!
Here is a rather overgrown Salvia 'Hot lips' - most of the plant is plain red, but a few are developing the white parts as well
cheers
fermi
-
My Salvia ' Hot Lips' has grown into a big bush too Fermi in just four years and often has predominantly red flowers - it has such a long sustained flowering period though that I do not mind. It is still going strong as we approach winter and at the moment has quite a few pure white flowering branches. It is grouped with a scarlet red variety the name of which I have lost and Salvia elgans so late in the year I have a very colourful patch. Cannot get out to take a 'photo as we are having some torrential, but welcome, rain at the moment!
-
The first video clip shows the silver lining our clouds presented us with 10 days ago. The second video clip gives an idea as to why gardening wasn't advisable last weekend. Today, being All Saint's Day and thus a holiday, I had hoped to be able to start to put things right. Not so, as we have had torrential rain for most of the day. "What has all this got to do with Salvias?" I hear you asking. Well, most have survived remarkably well. Some leaves stripped from plants but very little damage to the stems. All except Salvia clevelandii, my favourite. I know, I know, plants get jealous and we shouldn't have favourites but it is too late now, I've said it. One photo shows what is left of my plant and the second shows the "silver lining" - lots of cutting material.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jNYR7T0xDvE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j2umA5x_JsM
-
Salvia 'Greek Skies' a selection of S. fruticosa.
We purchased this a few months ago from Lambley Nursery, Ascot, a source of many fine perennials for the "Mediterranean garden" here in southern Australia. Yet to get the bed prepared for it to be planted!
cheers
fermi
-
Culinary Sage, Salvia officinalis, does very well at the edge of the rock garden and is flowering nicely
cheers
fermi
-
Salvia nemorosa is an herbaceous perennial and many forms have been selected.
1) pink
2) blue
3) dark purple 'Caradonna'
Not quite Mediterranean as it needs water to keep it going through the summer,
cheers
fermi
-
Salvia 'Celestial Blue' another acquisition from Lambley Nursery
cheers
fermi
-
They are wonderful specimens Fermi. We have the first but have not flowered yet as the rain has not yet appeared. We have the second but they are a pain. They have not flowered for two seasons. As you said they need water but we give them just enough to survive until we have a good winter. The last we don't have and I would love it but difficult to acquire here.
-
This salvia came from a friend who thought it was Hormineum pyrenaicum.
I think it's a salvia but not sure which one.
Any suggestions?
cheers
-
After the near complete destruction of my Salvia clevelandii :'( by recent bad weather I was pleased to see these recent acquisitions start to flower. Salvia semiatrata and S 'Phyllis'Fancy' respectively. I have been reading about an "improved" version of S 'Phyllis' Fancy' known as S 'Meigan's Magic' but it only seems to be available in Australia. Fermi, do you know anything about it?
-
Hi David,
it isn't one that I grow but I found a reference to it on an Aussie site:http://www.salviaspecialist.com/catalog/salvias-m-p/meigans-magic/ (http://www.salviaspecialist.com/catalog/salvias-m-p/meigans-magic/)
cheers
fermi
-
Thanks Fermi. The contrast of the inky blue and white does seem to be more pronounced in Meigan's Magic than in Phyllis' Fancy. It seems I will have to go on dreaming as it is not available outside Australia as far as I can see. One for the wish list I suppose.
-
Sue Templeton at Salvia Specialist http://www.salviaspecialist.com/catalog/salvias-t/taraxacifolia/ (http://www.salviaspecialist.com/catalog/salvias-t/taraxacifolia/) has suggested that my unnamed Salvia is Salvia taraxacifolia
cheers
fermi
-
Salvia apiana has very strongly scented foliage and spikes of strange white flowers (some describe them as "upside down").
I've yet to propagate this one (seedlings germinated but didn't mature) which is why this plant, still "in" a pot with roots anchoring it to the ground under a Pomegranate!
cheers
fermi
-
Hi Fermi. Your photos remind me how lucky we gardeners are. There is always a 'flower' to cheer us up. Even here, without rain as yet, we are enjoying the beautiful sight of Salvia leucantha, Salvia 'Anthony Parker and Salvia madrensis.They have proved to be great fighters. Even our Salvia martinusborg has finely shown it's beauty. Some are struggling but they are there. New seeds have been sown and expectations are there for more resilient varieties to establish themselves. Thank you once more for the pleasure your photos bring.
-
Beautiful Fermi, looks like a really stout shrubby variety and the Pomegranite provides a good backdrop.
-
This is Salvia canariensis f candidissima which we got a couple of years ago from Lambley Nursery.
6 weeks later it has started to flower
cheers
fermi
-
Lovely Fermi. I hope my seeds of it germinate and grow this year. I have put them direct in the ground. This spring the seeds in the pots did badly so I am experimenting again.
-
Oh dear. Why am I such a sucker for Salvias? I have no more room in my very small garden. But… seeing there were new postings in this thread I opened it. However, being old and stupid, I clicked on the first page instead of the latest and was lead to postings by Richard T, Paul T, Mike and Fleur. Instead of saying to myself "No! Enough is enough, is enough, is enough!! I found myself checking if Salvia Chamaedryoides and S. chionophylla are available at my favourite Salvia website www.leessenzedilea.com And they are :-(
-
Hi David,
the good thing is that Salvia chamaedryoides, though it can become quite wide because of suckering, can be kept within bounds by judicious pruning. Where it has room to spread it can form a cloud of ethereal blue through the early summer
cheers
fermi
-
Your photos are telling me that this will be added to my garden next spring. I have a paler blue Salvia, "African Skies", (attached photo) but I like the colour of Salvia chamaedryoides more and the plant seems to have a nicer shape. I read that it is frost tolerant too so sounds like a plant for me. Thanks Fermi.
-
Our Salvia mexicana 'Limelight' are in flower again. They really do seem to glow in the sun.
-
That's a real beauty John - such lovely contrasting colours.
-
I have a lot of large bins which I use as planters and I am experimenting with plants which will hang over and cover the sides. A recent addition is Salvia chionophylla, a trailing salvia. It now has its first flower. I am hoping it will thicken up over autumn as there are lots of new leaf buds emerging along the stems.
-
Lots of new seedlings sprang up around the garden just before summer. They looked Savia-like but I couldn't imagine which. Looking at the Salvias I had I wondered if they were hybrids. It turns out that they are Salvia coccinea 'Brenthurst'. One of the seedlings is next to the parent plants. You can see that the leaves are 3 times bigger and darker green in the offspring. It is true that the parent plants are in a smaller pot and this is the second year having over-wintered in the same pot but all of the new seedlings are much bigger than their parents. Some new seedlings have come up in tiny plastic cups that I use for germinating seeds and they are still noticeably bigger. The only other salvias I have with large leaves are S, guaranatica types. An unlikely combination for hybridisation and anyway the flowers are pure 'Brenthurst'
First picture shows the 2 plants side by side and the second 2 leaves compared.
-
I've been able to keep chamaedryoides happy only for relatively shot periods of time. It's one of my favorites but I fear our climate here is too extreme to keep it flourishing long term. That electric blue color is really striking.
Coccinea is the only one that seems to find a way to survive long term here. It arrived as a volunteer years ago and has managed to eek out a living where it can access irrignation ever since. The Hummingbirds love it.
-
With me Salvia 'Brenthurst' is a prolific self seeder but never never with bigger leaves as you have described David. It is very useful for transplanting into bare spaces where, within a very short time , it rewards with weeks of flowers. This year I had one red seedling suddenly burst into flower - since I have never bought a red Salvia coccinea I can only assume that somehow it derived from my Brenthurst????
-
What temperatures do you have psroseguy? or is it other conditions that prevent Salvias succeeding with you?
-
Hello. Salvia coccinea and ' S. Brenthurst.have settled down here. In fact they self seed everywhere. I had to pull out some of the coccineas from some pots as they took over. I of course took the precaution of collecting seeds and I am growing them in a pot and also in places where others don't grow. My seasonal Salvias have already started putting out leaves. The first one is Salvia hierosolymitana . My Guaraniticas have suffered badly. We are trying to find more suitable areas to replant them. The Salvia 'Mystic Spires' is a gem. It is in the sun most of the day and yet it thrives. I have a photo but I must minimise it on my computer. I shall post it later.
-
"What temperatures do you have psroseguy?"
We garden in an extreme microclimate. This region of California is described as a, "rain shadow desert". I don't think it would an exaggeration to say it's one of the warmest and driest regions on the planet. We are hotter and drier than Arizona. I'll plagiarize Wikipedia here for expediency.
"Palm Springs has a hot desert climate, with over 300 days of sunshine and around 4.83 inches (122.7 mm) of rain annually.[96] The winter months are warm, with a majority of days reaching 70 °F (21 °C) and in January and February days often see temperatures of 80 °F (27 °C) and on occasion reach over 90 °F (32 °C), while, on average, there are 17 nights annually dipping to or below 40 °F (4 °C);[96] freezing temperatures occur in less than half of years. The lowest temperature recorded is 19 °F (−7 °C), on January 22, 1937.[97] Summer often sees daytime temperatures above 110 °F (43 °C) coupled with warm overnight lows remaining above 80 °F (27 °C). The mean annual temperature is 74.6 °F (23.7 °C). There are 180 days with a high reaching 90 °F (32 °C), and 100 °F (38 °C) can be seen on 116 days.[96] The highest temperature on record in Palm Springs is 123 °F (51 °C), most recently achieved on July 28 and 29, 1995.[98]"
It's not unusual for us to experience days or even weeks of temps between 45 and 51 degrees C. This said, I generally love it here. Summer nights are glorious and the Winters are legendary. We're largely a resort destination. Consequently, Summer shade is important and water conservation is important.
I could no doubt succeed with chamaedryoides were I willing to coddle it a bit more. I confess to largely being a lazy gardener at this point. My emphasis switched to roses years ago. I started as a child sowing seeds of annuals and collecting cactus and succulents. I used to breed birds and dogs but find losing them over time is too heartbreaking.
-
Wow! I shall stop complaining about our long summer days of 40 + deg C . I believe we can all achieve some form of gardening if the desire is there. Obviously you are a born gardner. Welcome to the Forum.
-
Where do you garden Charithea?
These climactic differences are all relative aren't they?
I've had the opportunity to garden in a number of mediterranean style climates here in CA. They all have there advantages and disadvantages.
I find as I age that I don't handle cool weather as well as I used to. This climate is working for me for now.
Thank you for the kind welcome. It's refreshing for me to think about other genera, see and have the opportunity, to get input from such a diverse group of horticulturists.
Robert
-
Late flowering Salvias just coming into bloom with me - S elegans, S 'African Skies', S azurea to name a few. Such a welcome, fresh addition to the autumn garden when many things are beginning to look exhausted!
-
I garden on the Eastern Mediterranean island of Cyprus. My favourite time in the garden is in the autumn and spring when our garden looks inviting. Here is the promised photo of Salvia 'Mystic Spires'. Salvia elegans and a variety of microphyllas are also in bloom.
-
Umbrian, those sound lovely.
I'm guessing your region is spectacular for perennials.
That's a beauty Charithea. I don't think I've seen that one here. I love the intensity of color.
I need to explore incorporating some blues into the mix here. I wish I were more brave in terms of experimentation with new sources.
Thanks, Robert
-
Despite the heavy rain we have been having for the last couple of weeks this salvia is still producing flowers. It is a recent buy so I still have to see how it will be over winter. It is similar in flower colour to S. 'Dyson's Joy' which I tried with but failed. The flowers are larger, though, and the leaves a bit fleshier. Or maybe that is just because it was pampered in a nursey? I hope I will be able to write again next spring with news that it has survived winter.
-
Lovely colour David. You have to give somebody a cutting as an insurence policy. It works quite well for me and my 'neighbouring' gardener. She has more shade in her garden and seems successful with all her cuttings.
-
Is that 'Crazy Dolls' David? - awful name but a pretty colour combination on the flowers! It seems the kind to overwinter OK to me but I only acquired mine this spring so no evidence yet.
It flowered well if not prolifically all summer but of course it is still settling in.
-
Hi Umbrian,
Both Salvias come from the same parentage and breeder apparently (Suncrest) https://www.suncrestnurseries.com/index.php
I found the following information on https://www.fbts.com/salvia-x-jamensis-shell-dancer.html?utm_source=search&utm_medium=site_search&utm_campaign=3217
"Unlike Dancing Dolls, which has dark stems and calyxes, Shell Dancer has mid-green stems and calyxes." They mention the waxy appearance of the flowers on S. 'Shell Dancer' and they are right - it is an attractive feature.
The "Flowers by the Sea" web site looks like it could be a very useful information source re Salvias as well as a good supplier for those living in The United States https://www.fbts.com/
-
Thanks a lot David, for mentioning that Flowers by the Sea site, as you say looks very useful - their "blue tag" section might have some good prospects for our hot unwatered Greek garden which we find difficult for most of the salvias we like!
-
Salvia spathacea is a recent purchase and it is flowering in the pot!
Have to find somewhere suitable to plant it
cheers
fermi
-
What a beauty. My one that I acquired from Lucca Italy, lasted for a few months.
-
I bought S. spathacea last spring and planted it out immediately. I was told it needed no summer watering and, having killed one the year before, I obeyed. It worked and there are now 7 little offshoots. I will have to wait until next spring to see if it has really settled in. It gets morning sun and afternoon shade. It had already flowered when I bought it and there were 7 seeds in the flower head. Lucky me!
-
David I am glad your Salvia spathecea/ is thriving. Quite a few of my imported plants died that year as it was exceptionally hot. However, my Salvia madrensis seemed to survived and is now a big plant ready to flower.
-
I mentioned in another posting on a different thread that my Salvia 'Phyllis' Fancy' appeared to have a mauve flower in with the normal white ones. I double checked and I found a couple more. Looking at Dyson's site https://www.dysonsalvias.com/portfolio-item/salvia-phylliss-fancy/ I read: "The furry white flowers are suffused with a lavender-blue tint which becomes more pronounced as the season progresses.". This would account for the fact that I had never seen these flowers earlier in the year.
-
Interesting and very pretty when you have both kinds of flower together as in your photo. 😊
-
I'd like to introduce another salvia, Salvia hierosolymitana. This is native to the Eastern Mediterranean but in Cyprus it is known from only one location, the Rizokarpaso, in the far north of the island. Looking at a map of Cyprus this is the long, thin peninsular to the north east, sometimes referred to as the 'Panhandle'. They are found growing at an altitude of 100m in dry field margins, usually under Ceratonia siliqua (Carob trees). They were recorded as growing in 6 other locations between 1880 and 1962 but these have not been found despite searching. This could indicate a decline in population size and extent, probably due to agricultural activities, recreational developments and trampling. They are classified as Critically Endangered in the Red Data Book of Cyprus Flora.
They are a tall plant, with erect, square, coarsely hairy stems. Flowers are dark pink with a paler lower lip. Leaves are large, entire with wavy margins.
I'm pleased to say that the ones we have acquired seem to have settled in well and may even be increasing.
-
I have two Salvia indica plants both from David Dickinson planted within 6 feet of one another. One is about 4ft tall and already in bloom whilst the other has only reached about 18in and only just producing side shoots and buds. Amazing how conditions can vary the performance of plants , soil, surrounding competition etc. In this case though I am happy to be able to look forward to flowers over a longer period.
-
Carole aren't Salvia indica gorgeous? I also have two now because my seedlings were growing on top of an ants' hill and this spring the ants destroyed them. I will collect new seeds soon to plant next year along the long wall. I am miffed with our soil. I have been trying to caltivate Salvia leucantha 'Midnight blue' for a few years now. David Dickinson send me rooted cuttings, I bought one from Lucca, Italy, one from Phylodasiki Greece and the last one a rooted cutting from Yiannis Orphanos. In fact I was helping him uproot it so there was not mistake. Only the last two survived. The Greek plant flowered but it is not dark blue and Yiannos' one is showing the same trend. I have a few other leucanthas which are lovely but I crave for that dark blue.
-
I'll get you some more cuttings Charithea but if you are expecting blue, you'll be disappointed. They are violet/purple. :-\
-
Forgot to say thanks, Charithea, for sending me the original seeds of S indica from which both my and Umbrian's plants come from. You have made two people very happy. Mine are coming up now and will be in flower very shortly. Looking forward to that :-)
-
Thank you David for the offer of another cutting. I expected the Midnight blue colour of course but being careless with my description I called it dark blue. We had an unusually bad storm yesterday and an hour of loss of electricity but this morning we have glorious sunshine. I decided to sit in the sunshine and go through Yiannis Grylis' Salvia list. What a selection. We were supposed to be visiting his nursery in May and I had my shopping list ready. I will save it for another day. To all of you who are celebrating Easter tomorrow we send our good wishes. Ours is next Sunday.
-
Interesting posts Charithea and David- lovely to think we can share plants across countries and enjoy successes and failures! Happy Easter from me too😊
-
David, you sent us a rooted cutting of Salvia 'Royal Bumble' and it is doing well in the ground (see first 2 photos). Thea took a cutting from it and that is thriving in a pot (see second 2 photos). So she sends her thanks.
-
What a joy Salvias are - many of my summer flowering ones have grown away strongly during our hotter than than normal spring and are in bud - cannot wait for the first flowers to start opening.
-
I am so grateful to all the people who send seeds to the Med seed bank. The Salvia seeds I received from Chantal approx 3 weeks ago have started sprouting already. I put them direct in the ground except one. I had success last year and hope to be lucky again this year.
-
I want to echo a couple of things that have been written here. First a great big thank you to Chantal who does a wonderful job of running the seed bank. My small garden is getting ever smaller as plants settle in and grow. Even so, I always have a look at what is on offer and this year got a few things including Salvia tingitana. The seeds have sprouted and are coming along nicely. Now, where shall I grow them?
Like you all, I love salvias. S 'Red Bumble' goes on and on flowering for me. And it is so easy to propagate from cuttings. It is flowering for me now. But S 'Melen' was the first to flower. It produced some seed last year and I have a couple of seedlings coming up. I wonder what colour flowers it will produce? Likewise, I have 2 or 3 seedlings coming up from Salvia 'Clotted Cream". S namaensis has both self-sown and given me seedlings from seed I sowed. As I broke a few twigs on my S 'Phyllis' Fancy' last autumn, I pushed the broken pieces into the soil around the parent plant. Several are still green so I think I have some new plants there.
I could go on and on about Salvias but I'll stop there. Attached, photo of the first flower this year on my S 'Melen'
-
Beautiful soft colour David. I think I was too rush to say that the salvia from Yiannos was not coming true to the original. As the flowers develop they are looking like your Salvia leucantha'Midnight'. I shall post photos as soon as it is big enough.
-
I was collecting the seeds from the Salvia indica this morning and was struck how beautiful the Salvia interrupta is. It is always green in the summer and has a good shape The flowers are large and a wonderful bluish......colour so I took a photo which I am posting. I am also posting the row of Salvia hierosolymitana which came from last year's seeds. You can just about see the newly opened flowers.
-
Time for one of my personal favourite salvias to put in an appearance, Salvia africana-lutea.
-
Hi Charithea
Does Salvia leucantha flower for you at this time of year? For me it is always an autumn flowerer. I hope it turns out to be S leucantha 'Midnight' for you :-)
-
Hi David. Our Salvias in general flower twice a year but they are most floriferous in the Spring especially if we had a 'good' winter. The last two winters were good so most plants have grown too much. We have been pruning all this week to reduce their volume. My Salvia is Salvia leucantha Midnight. \It is approximately 6 months old. It was a rooted cutting and it is beginning to spread. I am also happy to report that my Salvia Costa Rican Blue cutting has shot up and it is putting out flower heads. The original had to be cut down to the ground as it suffered some form of infestation. However, it is slowly coming back but I don't expect it to produce flowers this year. I have also taken photos of the Salvia Allen Chickering. they are growing side ways so I pruned one of them like the video said but left the others for the autumn.
-
Lucky you Charithea! I will have to wait until Late October to see even the buds of Savia leucantha (species and 'Midnight'). Happy for you that it did turn out to be 'Midnight' in the end. I will have to content myself with Salvia lyrata, S indica (thanks to you :)), S 'Hot Lips', Melen', 'Clotted Cream', 'Royal Bumble' and what I think is Salvia x jamensis 'Violette de Loire' which are all flowering for me now and be patient with the others. I have attached a photo of 'Clotted Cream' and 'Violette de Loire'. No prizes for guessing which is which!
S guaranatica 'Cost Rican Blue' is just about to come into flower. I say "come into flower" in the sense that these will be the first spring flowers. I have had one or two flowers for most of the winter. I would be surprised if both your original and your cutting don't flower at some point in the year. Cuttings I gave my sisters in the North of England last year flowered in their first year. Must ask if they have survived the winter there.
-
The Salvias you posted are lovely. My Salvia lyrata , thank you for giving it to me, is also flowering. It is a rather delicate salvia and I planted it under the bitter orange tree next to a Salvia blepharophylla. They will have to be moved as the Salvia Anthony Parker is growing rather large and it is overshadowing them. I was given a Salvia taraxacifolia by Fleur last spring and that also has delicate leaves. I will have to make some changes. Decisions...and where will I put my new seedling that Chantal was kind enough to post me the seeds just before the lock down.
-
Re. my last post. Knowing how sensitive plants can be at times, I hope I haven't offend my Salvia discolor and S pinnata by omitting them from the list of currently flowering salvias I gave.
I think Umbrian's comment re S pinnata will win the day. When she saw it in my garden she wasn't too impressed and said it looked "weedy". I like the shape of the foliage and was hoping it would bush up a little this second year. Unfortunately, no. It will be relegated to some distant corner where, perhaps, I can plant some of its own seedlings with it to form an intertwining clump, thus giving a sense of fullness.
-
Salvia 'Hot Lips' has recovered from a hard "trim" a few months ago.
The bush displays a variety of forms from pure red to pure white and some are the "white with red lips" for which it is named
cheers
fermi
-
After a mild winter and very warm early spring many of my woody shrub Salvias started into new growth very early this year and continued to do so after their usual prune down to two strong leaves plus thinning as necessary to keep the plants compact and a pleasing overall shape. With continuing warmer than usual weather they have grown very fast and after some welcome rain last week have gone rather mad producing a lot of quite floppy young growth. I am wondering if I should do some more cutting back at this point but am reluctant because flower buds are already well advanced in some cases. Any advice would be welcome.......
-
Salvia Hot Lips is our young grand daughter 's favourite salvia. All our Salvias have gone mad too. They have spread all over the place but I am leaving them alone until the autumn. Hopefully things will improve and our grand daughter will be able to come and see them.
-
My Salvia Costa Rican Blue cutting has opened up enough for me to photograph it. It is next to the Salvia Royal Bumble. The original plant that came from David Dickinson has now started to grow a bit faster. Thank you David for the original. I have been given three Salvia Amistad cuttings in pots by my gardening neighbour yesterday. Mine died after flowering for a long time last year. I did my usual insurance by giving cuttings of the original plant to friends and now I have been repaid. The Salvia taraxacifolia has also flowered but it is so small and delicate looking that my Ipad photo does not do it justice. Thank you Fleur for bringing it to me from Athens.
-
I bought a S taraxacifolia last year and was very pleased with it. It has bulked up nicely and flowering stems are lengthening every day although none in flower yet. I love the foliage too though so it is a very welcome addition. I collected seed.... but somehow seem to have mislaid it......must have another search through all my little envelopes....
-
Here is my S taraxacifolia just coming into flower. A really lovely compact
, smaller Salvia I think.
-
It is a lovely Salvia Carole. Ours is very small but full of flowers. It was just a tiny plant when it arrived from Athens and I was surprised that it survived.
-
I think this is Salvia ' Dancing Dolls' - another rather fanciful name . It was a new acquisition last year and settled well, coming into flower early after a mild winter and looking good mingling with the nearby Nepeta.
-
It is a tough Salvia. I put some broken bits of it in the ground and they took easily and even flowered. I had a pleasant surprise last week when an unexpected salvia was flowering. I did not expect it to be so beautiful and according to my seed list it should be Salvia przewalskiibut I am still waiting for identification. Another robust Salvia is Salvia somalensis I got it from a Yiannis Grylis and it has grown enormous. Has palest blue flowers almost white. Broken cuttings (cats running through them) took easily. I will post photo after it has been resized.
-
Another Salvia bought last year- Cavaliero Celeste. A rather more soft lavender blue shade than it appears in the photo - very attractive and this year very floriferous.
-
Looks very attractive Carole. I find I can not capture the colour blue easily. They never come true on the photo. I said that i would post some new Salvias that have flowered this year. The white one is Salvia somalensis a very fast growing plant and very tough, the seedlings are this year's surviving plants that are doing well. They are Salvia amplexicaulis and the third is the surprise Salvia. I checked and rechecked and tried to match it with my seed labels and the salvia books. So if anybody knows please correct me. I narrowed it down to Salvia pratensis because of the way the branches divide and the colour of the flowers or Salvia forsskaolei as there is still a label with the name on it near it.
-
The Salvia somalensis certainly looks a tough plant and although I love all the many different colours that Salvias provide, the softening touch of white is always welcome and helps to highlight nearby planting I feel.
-
I took this photo just now of Thea's Salvia 'Alan Chickering' doing its thing.
-
Love the habit and beautiful colour - one to look out for and a name that should stick!
Lovely close up of the flower John.
-
I have to apologise for saying that Salvia somalensis bears white flowers. They Look white in the brilliant sunshine but actually they are 'lavender-blue' according to the book.
-
Hi Umbrian,
If you do get a Salvia 'Alan Chickering' or (one of?) the parent plant/s S clevelandii, do a lot of research on summer watering. I have managed to kill 3 in 3 consecutive years by giving them summer water in pots. This year I dug up my S. 'Anthony Parker', transferred that to a large pot and put S 'Alan Chickering' in its place. I will water it a little while it is still flowering. I have to say, though, it has never looked in need of water. It is next to an established oleander and myrtle so I only hope it gets roots down deep enough to compete with them over the summer.
If you have a choice between S 'Alan Chickering' and true S clevelandii I would go for the later. The perfume from the leaves filled the garden with the mot wonderful scent without needing to be rubbed. I could smell a small plant from several meters distance as I walked into the garden. S 'Alan Chickering' gives the same perfume but I find I have to run my hands over the leaves first.
-
Visit to a local Lavender Viviao yesterday where there is also a good selection of Salvias. Nothing particularly out of the ordinary but usually something to tempt. I bought one new to me that caught my eye but as nearly always is the case here no labels in individual pots and I can't find the hurriedly written note I made so will delay posting photo until I know the name. Meanwhile two general views of the nursery.
-
Carole, I can not go into a Plant Nursery without buying something. I find it annoying too that plants are not labeled. I have labourisly collected this springs ' Salvia seeds but can not send them to the MGS seed bank as I don't know their names. The photographs on most sites don't show the whole plant or the shape of the leaves so it is difficult and inaccurate to settle on a name. David is correct to say that Salvia clevelandii is more aromatic. We have both. The Salvia 'Allen Chickering get a lot more sun then the clevelandii. Two of the clevelandii are in poorer, better draining soil but get a lot of shade and they are sprawling. The autumn arrival one is in sun most of the time. I will wait until next year and see if I need to move the two.
-
This plant looks promising. From a cutting about 5cm high I now have a thriving plant just coming up to a meter tall and it is still growing. There was one flower earlier in the season but now there are lots of flower spikes and the first flowers of those are emerging. It is said to be a sister plant to S 'Amistad' but it doesn't seem to need anywhere near as much water. The plant size and proportions are very similar to S 'Amistad'. The flower looks smaller than it actually is in the photograph and it is slghtly redder too.
-
David this Salvia is definitely a beauty. I wonder if Ioannis Gryllis has any of them. Our Salvia amistad are doing well. I have placed the pots in different places to see how they do. They appear to like some shade but they can also take the direct sun as long as they are watered.
-
I have mentioned the nursery "Flowers by the Sea" before as having an excellent collection of salvias. I had never noticed until today that they have a facility to help find the salvias which are suitable for a particular situation. https://www.fbts.com/tools/salvia_finder/salvia-finder.php
Just an update too on my Salvia 'Allen Chickering'. After placing it in the ground in spring, It has had no water at all for at least 2 months and it is still alive. No activity, of course, but alive. Fingers crossed.
-
Thank you David for the link. I have spent a lot of time going through the information on the Salvias I am interested in. I decided that Salvia Clevelandii 'Winnifred' would be a better choice then the 'Allen Chickering' for the boarder. Also that we will have to move our Salvia clevelandii from their place if we want better results. The information and the good photographs helped me identify my 'not so sure' named Salvia. It sounds that it is a Salvia forsskaoli. I will definitely experiment with the many seeds I collected this summer as it is such a 'beautiful' blue. Finely our 'Allen Chickering' are taking the heat. Just like yours they are now resting.
-
I cannot claim this as my success, that goes to the nursery "L'Essenze di Lea" from whom I bought it last month http://leessenzedilea.com/.
It is half-hardy so I am hoping that, with a mild winter, it will still be with me next year. I have taken some cuttings but no sign of roots yet.
As usual, cheap cameras don't catch the beautiful intense blue but the photo is quite close to the real thing.
-
David you are so lucky to be able to choose your Salvias from that nursery. I have looked at the site many times and ordered some of them. The biggest success has been the Salvia 'Martinus burg' . One of them that is in the shade for most of the day is in full flower. The other three are suffering. I have better success from the Greek nurseries. Good luck with this beauty.
-
That's a pretty stunning capture David - intense flower colour and very pretty leaves- hope the cuttings take!
-
I have posted about this plant before. It is a diminutive salvia but it is tough. Considering that it is native to cloud forest in Mexican mountains it does very well in my garden in Rome. It has some summer water but not every day. It has grown, or rather spread, since I bought it. The tub it is in is overgrown. I am inclined to move the other plants and find S thymoides a new companion rather than vice versa. This is because the stems are so brittle. I only have to look at them and they snap (might have more to do with my face than the stems!).
Despite the fact that it has done so well for me, I cannot get cuttings to strike. Even a couple of stems that had rooted where they had touched the ground failed to take. I haven't noticed seeds before but I will look carefully this year.
-
David it is such a beautiful colour. I saw some in Athens but do not have one. Our Salvias are still not in full bloom. Only the supposedly difficult Amistad is looking great and it has done this since the Spring. I have Salvia seedlings come up and also some of the Salvias that aestivated . We just need the arrival of the rain.
-
I bought Salvia lycioides last autumn. It seemed to die over the winter, which it shouldn't have done as I read it is not herbaceous. In spring only one new stem came up but that has just produced its first flowers. I bought it because it is low growing and the branches flop. I wanted to get it to trail over the edges of pots. I have a few cuttings on the go and, if they take, I will experiment with it in different settings next year.
-
They are lovely David. My Salvias which I ordered from Ioannis Gryllis apparently arrived in Cyprus in a container last Wednesday. I am expecting Yiannos to ring me any time. Ioannis apparently has not lebelled them so it will be fun trying to identify them minus their flowers.
-
I am posting the photo of our Salvia 'Amistad' which is still flowering. It was a cutting of a cutting that struggled a bit in the pot in the heat of the summer so we experimented by putting it in the ground last summer. It has thrived and flowered continuously since then.
-
That is beautiful Charithea - lovely colour. I lost mine so must try to get another.
Am keeping my fingers crossed for some of my more vulnerable ones after some sharp frosts recently. Top growth has darkened and shrivelled up but a thick layer of fine gravel around the roots covered with fleece when the forecast is for minus temperatures will hopefully see them through. Also took cuttings of course in the summer but established plants that succumb leave sad gaps.
-
I agree with you Carole. I also get upset when my cared for plants die. Regarding Salvias, I have now learnt to always take cuttings and give some away as a guarantee. I have managed to propagate Salvia madrensis from root cuttings and Salvia Mexicana Lime light, Amistad and Love and Wishes from cuttings. I have not had any luck with Salvia canariensis. My last one died. We have the seasonal ones that are spreading their large leaves all over the place but by the end of spring they will disappear. The Salvia microphylla is impervious to the blaze of the sun. I am now waiting for some of the salvias that came from Ioannis Gryllis to flower.
-
David is my main source of new acquisitions and replacements - when we meet he never fails to give me copious amounts of both Salvias and other interesting plants. Such friendships with fellow MGS members are so appreciated so a public thank you to David and also the MGS🙏
-
Me thinks that Umbrian doth praise too much! Not only do I also end up with new plants but I get wined and dined, taken to some beautiful gardens and introduced to new friends all into the bargain. Equally important is we have a good old natter and put the world to rights too. How different the world is once we've finished. What more could anyone ask for? And just for those who are wondering "what has all this got to do with Salvias?", watch this space for postings of the healthy cutting Umbrian gave me of Salvia azurea. I checked on it a couple of days ago and all looks well with ground level shoots just waiting for spring. Thanks Umbrian and to MGS for introducing us to each other.
-
I am also happy that I became a member of MGS thanks to my husband. We also made friends here and abroad which we treasure. Carole I also benefited from David' s generosity and I am posting a photo of two of the Salvias that are looking good together. Of course I have more Salvias that came from David. Yiannos Orphanos, another MGS member, has been providing me with plants. Due to covid¬ 19 we have not met lately but whenever he acquires something new for the gardens he is creating, he rings me to check if I would be interested. My Salvia clevelandii , Salvia leucophylla' Midnight Blue' and others are some of them. His reward are Lemon or Orange cakes which he shares with his workers. He informs me in advance to give me time to make them. Yesterday packets of seeds arrived from my nephew who lives in Sydney. The Salvia splendens in the photo is from Oct 2019 and it is growing and still flowering. Normally they only last the one season here.
-
Ah! That explains why the seeds are upside down - they're from Australia ;D
-
No, not any more. I am learning more about how to use this computer. I bought it second hand. The keyboard has Scandinavian alphabet and it takes me ages to find the punctuation marks. I have not yet figured it out why the photos come upside down.
-
The forging of new friendships is one of the aspects I most treasure about having a passion for plants and gardening and have found,over the years, that almost without exception gardeners are the most generous of people, always ready to share information and plants whenever possible.
-
Here I am again with my favourite plants Salvias. I have taken some photos of the Salvia eigii. Last year's seedlings reappeared and are growing fast and the two year old Salvia is getting ready to flower. They take a lot of space with their large leaves but have such lovely flowers. Sadly they disappear in the summer and leave gaps in the garden. There is also one of Salvia' Mystic Spires'. The Salvias from Diomede's Garden are also growing. I am waiting for them to flower and have them identified. The other large Salvia with ever green leaves is doing fine. I have forgotten its name. Finally my only surviving Salvia 'Bees Bliss' is getting ready to flower.
-
I am always on the lookout for low-growing salvias to grow at the base of taller plants. Recently I was browsing through "Beth Chatto's Gravel Garden" and I read that she had planted Salvia blancoana in her scree garden. The name was new to me but "scree garden" suggested a low growing plant and, sure enough, the internet confirmed this. It is available from Le Essenze di Lea http://leessenzedilea.com/ and I also found this salvia supplier with a photo of the plant http://www.vivaiociancavare.it/project/salvia-blancoana/. Looks like a little bit of mail order will be going on in the near future. :)
-
Hi David. Your choice of Salvia is really good. I went straight to the Ciancavare vivaio because it is a new name. I liked what I saw. I knew of the other because you purchased plants for me 'thank you lots and lots'. I will wait until we are free to travel and first pay a visit to Ioannis Gryllis. Maybe if we are lucky we will come to Italy again and who knows what plants I can bring back. Anyway good luck. Thank you for the seeds you have send. They are sprouting and growing fast in the warm/hot weather we are having.
-
I have decided to post the photos of my Salvia candelabrum although the photos are not very clear and also the Salvia interrupta. Their flowers are almost the same size and colour. The difference is that the candelabrum is upright and the interrupta is very shrubby.
-
Love the Salvia candelabrum with its dense blue/green leaves and bright flowers held above - must look out for that! Good foliage and habit are just as important as flowers giving depth to planting schemes.
-
It is definitely an advantage having the flowers encircling the plant like a crown. I think we had it for 2 years or maybe 3 years. My memory is not what it used to be. It looked lost for a while and the foliage was grey green in the winter and some leaves were dried up but then it started to look fresh and new leaves appeared and the long stems looked promising. I would go every morning to check on the progress. I am sure it will, one morning, be full of flowers. I have tried to take cuttings but failed each time. I will have to get another from Ioannis Gryllis. The Salvia interrupta sprawls about but in the spring it takes a new appearance. Full of fresh leaves and many large beautiful flowers. I have been successful with cuttings and have another 4 that are growing. My Salvia eigii have already flowered and seeded and I have removed the dead leaves. They are beautiful but have a short flowering period so I will replace some of them with some other Salvia.
-
I have some seedlings of both S eigii and S interupta growing. Thanks for the seeds Charithea :-)
-
Thank you David for all those seeds. We have transplanted some of them already. Both Salvias mentioned above are wonderful . The Salvia interrupta will be a joy because it survives the heat and the cold. Salvia eigii has a short flowering period but it is lovely. Once it dies down it does not need water and it will return again in the spring.
-
My main Salvia lyrata 'Purple Knockout' are these in a pot but it has also self seeded around the garden. Looking nice at the moment.
-
My Salvia 'Love and Wishes' has grown from a small cutting at Christmas 2019 to a medium sized plant. I was reading earlier posts that suggest afternoon shade and winter protection. Mine was in full sun all year and flowered for most of the winter. But I will be sure to watch it carefully over the summer because the leaves are quite fleshy for a salvia and don't suggest drought tolerance. The parent plant, in Leeds UK, did not survive its first winter.
-
I have managed to keep a Salvia 'Love and Wishes' going for several years. It was a present from a friend in England and I moved into a protected, but not heated, area for its first winters - also taking cuttings as a safeguard. This year one plant remained outside all winter and came through unscathed even unaffected by the damaging late frosts we had. Plants are funny things and never cease to amaze me at times.......alongside the disappointment of course.🙄
-
Nothing as beautiful in my garden as your carpet of white Jorun. But I did notice that I have the first flower spike this year on my Salvia 'Amante'. There are several more developing so it should put on a good display for me soon. Won't be too long before travel to the Mediterranean is allowed - or at least I hope not.
-
David that would be wonderful to be able to travel around the Med. So many plants and flowers to see and friends to visit.
-
I am responding to some of the above posts. In fact I typed and spell checked my previous post and it came back with ' a problem has occurred ' and everything disappeared. David,my cutting of Salvia 'Amante' couldn't take the sudden arrival of the hot weather and died . Your Salvia lyrata 'Purple knockout' looks good in the pot. My much travelled 'lyrata' has not come back this year. I think the ants took away the seeds. Also my Salvia 'Caradonna' is gone. However, my seedlings of Salvia taraxacifolia thank you Umbrian, germinated quickly and are looking good. I shall grow them in the pot to make sure they stay alive. Some of this Spring's seeds of Salvia viridis have already started to flower. One is only 12 centimeters tall with tiny insignificant blue flowers. I am waiting for its blue tufts to appear so I can photographed it. There are some more promising ones so I will be patient.
-
Internet activity can be so frustrating at times I have to say but I suppose without it it would be harder to keep in touch with old gardening friends with all the frustrations of life at the moment - for instance it was lovely to hear from Jorun the other day via this Forum. I wouldn't be too protective of the S. taraxacifolia - it is a pretty tough character - for me anyway😊
-
I grew this plant from seed several years back and was very disappointed with the size of the flowers. It died and I never bothered to replace it. Last year, I was looking for small plants to fill in little spaces in my large tubs and there were plants for sale on the internet through a company that I was buying other plants from. It came in a parcel via my sister before Brexit kicked in. In its new role I have seen it in a new light. It is adding colour to the trays after the Iris flowers have died back. I will be getting cuttings (hopefully!) on the go to fill in yet more little spaces.
-
David your posting prompted me to post my photo of my Salvia roemariana Red Hot .... It was the only survivor of last Springs seedling. I nurtured and kept it safe from my cats. It started to grow and it finally reached 18cm in height. It has been flowering for the last two weeks but it is such a disappointment. On the other hand the unknown Salvia from Ioannis Gryllis has flowered and it is a joy. It glows in the sun. I believe it is Salvia cinnnabarina. If anybody thinks it is a different Salvia please correct me. I am basing the name on the order list I had send to Ioannis.
-
Here are two photos of my Salvia viridis. They have not grown very tall or look spectacular but I am happy that they survived the seedling stage as our Hot weather arrived earlier than expected. Some of the other seedlings grew just a bit, flowered and dried up. By the way the Salvia cinnabarina is still flowering. I think I will get some more if I can, as they have proven to be tough, long lasting an attractive.
-
I am not sure which proverb is more suitable for this posting. 'All good things come to those that wait' or 'Strike while the iron is hot'. I am referring of course to the long time I have waited to acquire a Salvia sclarea var. turkestanica and to get it to flower. I apologize for the photo. I took it early in the morning with the sun shining around everything. About 3 weeks ago we took some Salvia cuttings ,which I grew on, for one of John's gardening friends. She had in her garden a large specimen and a few smaller ones of the above said Salvia. I admired them and mentioned my failure to get mine to flower. She offered me one of hers. She dug it up for me and on my return I planted it among my drought tolerant plants and as you see it has now flowered. The other photo is of my Salvia 'Indigo Spires' which is now coming to its glory.
-
My effort of a photo of the above-mentioned salvia.
-
Salvia sclarea is a welcome self seeder with me so hopefully you will not be without it now. It makes a lovely statement plant to enhance lower subjects but need space at it's base to avoid smothering plants close by. Love the Indigo Spires and must look out for that - blues are always welcome.
-
Just looking back through some old salvia postings. Interesting that your mystery arrow-head leaf shape salvia turned out to be Salvia cinnnabarina. Well worth the wait and the suspense. I wrote last year that I had taken cuttings of S lycioides. They obviously didn't take as I can't find them anywhere. But the parent plant is doing well. Must try again with cuttings in autumn.
-
Hi David. Your Salvia lyciodes is a beautiful colour. I need to clear up this misunderstanding. I am at times in a hurry and don't make sure that there might be ambiguity in my sentences. The arrow -head leaf Salvia that you believe is a sagittata has not flowered yet. The Cinnabarina which I identified by going through the order list I had send to Ioannis Gryllis, does not have arrow- headed shaped leaves. Salvia cinnabarina is worth having because it seems to flower continuously and does not wilt in the sun. I will have to move it in the autumn, in the ' red' area as it clashes with the purple and blue salvias near it.
-
Umbrian was kind enough to give me some seeds from her Salvia taraxacifolia. They germinated and within a few weeks one has decided to flower. I didn't catch it at its best but the photo should give an idea of the subtle off-white colour. My photo doesn't catch the pink hue too well.
Thanks Umbrian :-)
-
Always difficult to catch colour well I think if not an expert. Glad the seeds came good - when the plant bulks up, which it does quickly, it makes more of an impact with the attractive leaves and multiple flowering stems that are also good when in seed.
-
Here are my three seedlings of the Salvia taraxacifolia. Thank you Umbrian. I am keeping them in the pot until they get a bit bigger before they get transferred into the ground
-
I have read articles on how to grow Salvias in magazines, read books, looked them up on the internet and advice from friends. I selected Mainly ones recommended suitable for the Mediterranean climate. I have managed to acquire the aromatic leaved Salvia clevelandii, Allen Chickering and Bee's Bliss. I have planted them in well draining soil etc. They have produced beautiful flowers but for a Very short time. On the other hand Salvia greggi and all the Microphyllas are looking healthy and are flowering. I think the biggest problem is that the length of the dry season in the Eastern Mediterranean is underestimated by the writers who give advice. I have taken the photos this morning as examples. You can see the difference in the colour of the leaves.
-
You are so right Charithea, the 'Mediterranean Climate' area is extensive with quite large variations in both temperatures and rainfall. One has to experiment with various plants and discover for oneself those best adapted to prevailing conditions.
Not totally sure those seedling are S taraxacifolia by the way.......will be interested to see how they develop🤔
-
Hi everybody. When my S. taraxacifolia first came through I wasn't sure why they had got that name. Only when there were 3 or 4 true leaves did they begin to take on their characteristic shape. I now have 2 plants in flower so thanks again Umbrian :)
-
A quick reply to two queries. First to Umbria's one. Here is the photo of the piece of paper inside the pot (and a leaf off the Salvia supposedly S jurisici.) Because labels seem to fade I stated recording the names now on the Notes on my iPad so I can identify plants when in need. David I have the above photographed Salvia. I got the seeds in an envelope that said Salvia jurisicii. I put them direct in the ground 2 years ago. They grew, flowered, died down and they re-emerged this year and are flowering again. I looked up the Salvia to identify it on the internet and The plant lover's guide to Salvias. It does not look like yours or mine. Still unable to name it. Now for my complain this morning. I saw the aromatic Salvias in many books, I read the Hype and I went to great lengths to acquire them and nurture them, and I feel cheated for just a few weeks of flowers. It means I have to rearrange them and put some tougher Salvias such as Salvia Anthony Parker in the forefront as they are amazing.
-
Hi Charithea,
The photo you show is the same plant as I have. It was sold to me as Salvia jurisicii but it clearly isn't that. I bought it as seed. Either the seed was mislabelled or it has hybridised with another. But would the seed be viable in that case? And to get 2nd and 3rd generation identical plants would be unusual too?
I wrote to "L'essenze di Lea" over the weekend to order some more salvias. One of which was S jurisicii. I sent her photos of my plant and she confirmed that without a doubt it is not S jurisicli. But what it is she did not know. I don't think she will be able to send me S Jurisicii just yet, as she is growing them from seed and they are probably too young to send through the post. However, I am looking forward to receiving some low growing salvias to fill in a few small spaces I have - Salvia muirii, pisidica e blancoana - though the muirii might grow a bit bigger than I had hoped :-\
-
David, I now have three lots of these unidentified Salvias . They are tough and seem to take the sun ok. but look lost among the other Salvias. . They need to be in an area where their leaves can be appreciated. I am planning to do some re- arranging this autumn. I need to talk to Yiannos to see if he is getting plants from Greece to order some for me too. Good luck with your new orders.
-
I have decide to post some photos ofSalvia 'Anthony Parker' to show that not everything is so dry. David, they are all cuttings of the original cutting you sent me a few years ago. Thank you so much for your generosity.
-
I was just about to post a thanks to you for the seeds of Salvia desoleana, Charithea. Germinated spring 2019 and now sending up their first flowers. It really needs to be against a wall or something to show of its flowers better. Yet another project for autumn!
-
David your are correct. TheSalvia desoleana needs to be paired with a strong colour to show up its flowers. Mine is next to Love and Wishes which helps a bit. I thought of trying it next to a Salvia eiggii but its flowers don't last long. There are so many things to do in the Autumn. I have already earmarked the new spots for transferring the Salvia leucophylla and group the red Salvias together. We shall see.
-
Certainly a busy autumn for me too this year. The June heatwave we experienced showed up the need for some reorganisation as usually stalwart plants succumbed to the high temperatures, drying winds and absence of any substantial rain in the preceding month or so. Just hoping things survive with two hot months still to come.
-
The grandchildren are on holidays and our friends have returned home to their countries so I had more time to look through the book 'Aromatic and Spicy Plants in Cyrus' by Georgios N Hadjikyriakou. It reminded me of my efforts to grow Salvia dominica from seed and from cuttings before the first lock down. They seeds were a failure but the cutting acquired from the Environmental Centre in early spring did well for a few months and then died because it was not established before the hot sun burnt it. Salvia dominica is a rare indigenous plant of Cyprus that has amazingly aromatic leaves. Today we went to the Centre and begged for some seeds. I was also given some cuttings which you see in the photo. I counted 25 seeds. I shall treasure them until is the right time to put them in the ground Next visit will be at the Troodos Botanic Garden to beg some seeds of Salvia lanigera. It has a blue to dark violet corolla.
-
I don't know about anybody else but I have no success with pale coloured Salvia hybrids apart from S. 'Melen'. I have tried with Salvia 'Gletsjer', S. 'Clotted Cream' and S. 'Il Pallio" (The double 'L' is correct, by the way. Nothing to do with that barbaric horse race. It is the colour of a part of Catholic religious clothing, it was explained to me). 'Clotted Cream' died as it moved into its second summer with me but it did leave me some seeds. Two germinated and one survived. That plant is now in its second year and, disappointingly, it has produced a red flower. It is also tall and lanky. I put it in the shade to photograph it. It is normally in full sun, so lack of light is not the cause of its lankiness. Perhaps I should register it as an accepted variety? Salvia 'Disappointissima'?
First 2 photos the parent plant followed by 2 photos of its offspring.
-
David, I don't think I ever had success with Salvia 'Clotted Cream'. It looks lovely. It is probably a cross with another more robust variety and it has reverted. I am thinking of 'Hot Lips' that at times has three colours. Put it somewhere safe and it might produce the desired colour next year. I am waiting for the cooler weather to start replanting the surviving Salvias. So many young plants died this summer.
-
Hi Charithea,
The photo you show is the same plant as I have. It was sold to me as Salvia jurisicii but it clearly isn't that. I bought it as seed. Either the seed was mislabelled or it has hybridised with another. But would the seed be viable in that case? And to get 2nd and 3rd generation identical plants would be unusual too?
I was looking through the seed list of the MGS for inspiration and I came across Salvia stenophylla. The photos on these web pages look identical to the mystery plant that was sold to me as seed of S, jurisicii.
https://les-aromes-du-gres.com/plantes/sauges/salvia-stenophylla
http://salvia.la.coocan.jp/salvias/stenophylla.html
-
Thank you David. I just looked at the Salvia stenophylla and it does look very much like our Salvia. Despite the extreme heat and little shade the Salvia is doing well. Also the seeds from last year 's Salvia grew and flowered and are ok. They will die down in the Autumn and come back next Spring. I am thinking of putting down more of their seeds next year to give them volume. I followed an Instagram 'Salvia specialist' and was enthralled by the beautiful Salvias but I know they will never survive here.
-
This posting could easily have been put with currently active "Shades of Blue". When I went to the UK my Salvia azurea was just coming into bud. Now the flowers are opening. This a cutting kindly given to me by Umbrian. The cutting was taken last year so this is its first full year of growth. A lovely blue and very nice finely-cut foliage as well. It is growing in full sun for me, south facing. Needs a little watering. About once a week in summer in a large pot. Thanks again Umbrian :)
-
Mine is in full bloom now David and a small plant raised from a cutting has also survived the summer heat and about to give me its first flowers. One given to my daughter in the U.K. has not done very well though - insufficient heat probably although she is still hoping.
-
Some recent rain and the lowering of temperatures has seen many of my Salvias burst into renewed life. Royal Bumble and Nachtvlinder persevered during the hottest of weeks but now are really putting in a show.
-
Pleased my last post went well- IPad out of action for some time and also a new app for reducing photos left me uncertain......especially regarding the photo.
-
Must agree that S. 'Royal Bumble' is hard to beat. Strong colour without being in your face. Easy to grow and cultivate. Takes both the full summer heat and low winter temperatures. Has nice shape and good green foliage all year round for me. Could a gardener ask for more?
I have a purple salvia too. I took cuttings from plants growing in a garden set up in one of our railway stations. Mostly herbs and vegetables, the public were encouraged to take and plant what they wanted. For those who read Italian here is a very short article http://www.roma2oggi.it/?p=44603 Passing by recently, I noticed the garden has been ripped out and a smaller urban scheme planting put in its place. But the salvia lives on in my garden.
Seeing Salvia x jamensis 'Violette de Loire' at plant shows lead me to think that is what I have. But how I wish I could find somewhere that has S. jamensis 'Nachvindler' too so that I could make a direct comparison. Seems , in some photos on the www that the latter has a plum colour to it. But then other photos show it having the same colour flower as Salvia x jamensis 'Violette de Loire'.
-
While I was searching the www for photos of S. x jamensis 'Nachtvindler" I came across this little video. Its main focus is on roses but it proposes using salvias undergrowing roses for a particular reason. https://www.sarahraven.com/products/salvia-x-jamensis-nachtvlinder?gclid=8a28a12c684613a63ed4c07875706ab1&gclsrc=3p.ds&msclkid=8a28a12c684613a63ed4c07875706ab1&utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=DSA%20All%20Products%20-%20Non-Brand&utm_term=sarahraven&utm_content=All%20Products
Sarah Raven gives a different translation of 'Nachtvindler' to that given on the www, which says "night moth"
-
ooopps! More direct link to the video here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uLfzO-_dCBo&t=8s
-
Thank you David for the link. I watched the video twice. The roses are amazing but not suitable for this part of the Med. The Salvias were looking great. Getting water regularly and cooler weather does bring out the best of them. We have seen the difference this year between our Salvia leucantha. The ones that get some shade have grown so much that they have blocked the path. They others are struggling to put out new leaves and flower stalks. Our Salvia 'Blue Note' that came from Marathon, has flowered twice since last October. Hopefully it will grow bigger during the Autumn.
-
I find the naming of many Salvia an absolute mine field- trying by photographs is useless as the colours vary so much from photograph to photograph
My Nachtvlinder came from The Lavendetta near Assisi which is pretty reliable regarding names. I have another jamensis that is a true blue purple ( name long gone) but Nachtvlinder certainly has plum tones
-
I love your Salvia nachtvlinder. John showed it to me on the Istangram and the same day David put the link to Sarah Raven's Garden. It is the right colour to match my other blue purple range that I have . As I said before, we can get only a limited type of Salvias. I got ours from cuttings or gifts from friends from abroad and orders from Gryllis Marathon. My year old seedlings died this year. Still I am thinking of ordering the seeds of the Nachtvlinder from Sarah Raven and saw them in the autumn. Of course the best idea is to go to Marathon and bring some back.
-
This posting could easily have gone onto "New acquisitions". I bought it about a month ago on a whim in a chain store, knowing nothing about its needs. Inexcusably, I accidently neglected it, with results as shown in the second photo after 2 days without water. My immediate reaction after seeing it in that state after only 2 days was that it was not a salvia for Mediterranean summers! I cut it back and now it is back to as shown in the 4th photo, kept in dappled shade. Let's see what happens next year but so far I haven't had to water it any more than my S. 'Amistad'. I think I will stand it at the base of the 'Amistad' as the pale lilac is perfect with the dark purple of 'Amistad'. The flower is not as pinky as it appears in my photo.
It seems it will survive my winter. There is little information about it on the www but here is something. Even the professional photo here is a little more pinky than in reality.
https://middletonnurseries.co.uk/salvia/salvia-salgoon-lake-ladoga
-
Some Salvias surprise me. I am happy and surprised that my Salvia Amistad despite the dry heat that sucks the moisture out of its leaves has survived in the ground for the second summer with very little shade and the two in their pots. I have to admit that I needed to water it Every day and the ones in the pot in the shade sometimes twice a day. Frustrating at times especially if I had a busy day and forgot to check. They will go in the ground as soon as the temperature drops. They unfortunately get invaded by the ants but still are defiant. The Love n Wishes are also thriving but in the ground in a partly shaded area. The leaves of your new acquisition show that it would be unhappy in direct sunlight but one never knows!!! The colour combination of the two will be good. Good luck David.
-
This Salvia leucantha 'Midnight' is one of my favourites. It was taken early this morning from the outside of the garden in Galata.
-
That Salvia leucantha is stunning Charithea- mine is just coming into bud..... after having to be watered this summer to keep it going.......
-
It is stunning. I know that the Salvia leucantha 'Midnight' came from Italy on a special consignment. I have seen them growing out in the 'wild' where houses have been build for the foreign market. Unfortunately the Nurseries don't bring them to Cyprus only garden designers. David, that wonderful man, had send me twice young plants and Yiannos gave me one. All three did not have time to settle before the hot summer got them. Now I have a small one, that came from the same garden as the above Salvia , sheltering from the hot sun under the big avocado tree. One day I might be able to post a photo.
-
My 'Midnight' came from David last year and I was desperate to keep it going hence the helping hand with the occasional watering - not something I usually do once things are established but this summer was the hottest I have experienced since coming to Italy over twenty years ago. Plenty of rain now- just need a bit of sunshine to help those buds open🙄
-
This is a salvia I bought last year. It survived last winter and needed little water this summer. What I noticed this year is that the leaves are at least 4 or 5 times bigger than last year. Its roots are in shade but the leaves have been in full sun all year. I read that it was a winter flowerer, and I am hoping it will keep on giving me flowers over December/January. Let's see.
-
Photos of the Salvia brought from Marathon. I put them in the containers and left them out at night to recover from being packed among my clothes. We planted them in the bare areas and we put sticks around them to prevent the cats digging them up. Of course if our big fat cat runs through them that is another matter. I have also managed to acquire a Wigandia caracasana. We first saw one in bloom in Morocco and I wanted one. I hope to post photos with flowers on it next year.
-
Obviously a rewarding trip Charithea after so long being unable to travel. Hope all your purchases flourish and bring back happy memories
-
We've never had much luck with Salvia sclarea before but this one has managed to reach the flowering stage - I hope it sets seed!
cheers
fermi
-
I've posted pics of this salvia before as 'Celestial Blue' but it's more likely to be 'Pozo Blue'
cheers
fermi
-
Lovely captures Fermi - they usually self seed well so fingers crossed😊
-
Fermi, Salvia sclarea is a very attractive plant, but like you we had not much luck with it. We had one many years ago which flowered once fullstop. This spring I was given a Salvia sclarea var. Turkestanika which to my surprise put out a few stems. It died down in the summer and after a few drops of water it has regrown. I am hoping it will give me beautiful flowers in the spring. The Salvia Pozo Blue reminded me of our Salvia Allen Chickering and then I remembered that they have the same parents Salvia clevelandii x Salvia leucophylla. Our ' Allen Chickering' is beginning to give signs of life. It has been dormant all through the summer.
-
Carole I check my newly planted Salvias Every day. I worried that the snails will eat them. Have you noticed the one in the blue bucket? It is Salvia canariensis. It was a large specimens and it was cut small enough for me to carry it in my back pack. I hope it will reward my effort and grow. The previous one did not survive its first Cyprus summer.
-
I could not resist posting a photo of our Salvia 'Martinusburg'. I love its colour . It is a cutting from the original plant that David Dickinson got for me, Thank you again David. The mother plant suffered in the summer but this cutting was kept in a cool place and it is now such a joy. I did not realise that the seeds of the Salvia would grow. It produces very few. The mother plant flowered and some of the seeds fell in the pot of my Epiphyllum and two healthy plants grew as the weather cooled down. I have transplanted them and so far they are ok.
-
I bought some insect breeding "cages" for my sister who used to lose nearly all her seedlings to slugs and was almost on the point of giving up. Now, slugs and snails are not a problem. I have never had a slug or snail problem. Blackbirds are the vandals I have to put up with. Pulling up seedlings in their attempts to find worms in their pots. Add to that freak hail storms, one of which wiped out all of my potted seedlings within an hour this year! :( So I bought some for myself too. They have one transparent plastic side which, if facing upwards, might just keep the hail off. The netting will keep the birds off, for sure.
I think I bought mine here:
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/393532140270?hash=item5ba057eaee:g:MVUAAOSw6xZe4FBK
I remember being surprised when mine arrived to find that each pack contained one small and one medium cage for the price. I wouldn't like to inadvertently mislead people, I may have given a link to a different vendor, so shop around. There are lots of alternatives on ebay.
-
It has been a while since I have posted any photos. I have been busy trying to clear the plants from the overgrown weeds etc. Here are three photos of Salvias seen in the Atsas Education Centre near the copper mine. By chance the gentleman in charge is a friend of Ioannis Gryllis so I came back home with 4 new salvias from his Nursery. Salvia lavandulifolia, Salvia canariensis and Salvia Wendy's Wish.
-
In December 21 I mentioned that I was given a Salvia sclarea var. Turkestanica. To my amazement It grew really well and flowered for a long time. I cut down the stalks and it has started growing again. I had bemoaned the fact that Salvia canariensis was difficult to grow and suddenly this Spring my unknow Salvia which we believed to be a sagittata stretched out and put out long stalks with beautiful flowers which were identified as 'canariensis' . We now have 4 of these Salvias. The unknown seeds from Deomode's Garden also grew and flowered. They are Salvia fosskaolei. I am posting a photo of it.