Saturday, December 1, 2012

A Red Salvia



Oh, it's not the Red Salvia you think. This is Salvia splendens  Van Houtii.  Originally from Brasil, this Saliva grows to 4ft and is blooming it's head off now.  When I used to grow it in a pot, it would sit all year and then bloom in Autumn.  Now that it's in the ground, it has grown quite a lot and blooms a lot longer too.  I'm growing this one on an east side.  It gets tons of summer morning sun and is shaded by late afternoon.  It's not getting that much sun now as the sun is low and over our Cedar tree.   Compared to the common Red Salvia that grows to about 2 feet and had red-orangey blooms, this one has burgandy-red blooms.    I love it but it's only fault that I can see is that it's brittle. If you tripped over it, you would break off branches easily.  Not easy to stake after it gets big. It must be staked when little.  It is easy to deadhead by snapping off the spent stems.  Salvias are super easy to propagate and this reminds me that I must do so maybe in Spring.  Enjoy this dark flower this Autumn and Winter.




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