Your gardening friends will be blue with envy at your colorful anise sage blossoms.
Photo by L.A. Jackson
Botanically known as Salvia guaranitica, anise sage—so named for its scented leaves—brings a toughness many salvias are known for to just about any garden party, along with the desirable ability to flaunt flowers from spring until the first autumn frosts. An herbaceous perennial that, depending on the cultivar, can reach 3 to 5 feet tall, it will show off impressive stalks of small, conical blooms visually residing in the violet/indigo end of the spectrum, with some cultivars even flirting with true blue.
Like for most perennials, fall is a fine time to plant anise sage. Placed in a well-draining area that receives about six hours of sun a day and, at least for its first year in the garden, watered well when the rains don’t cooperate, this blooming beauty can easily settle into its no-fuss-no-muss mode in almost any landscape setting. And a double bonus: while deer ignore this plant, butterflies, bees and hummingbirds can’t resist it.
As far as particular cultivars, for me, Black and Blue goes to the head of the class. It has been a popular pick for years, and for good reason—each pretty blue bloom emerges from a midnight black calyx, making for a visual pop to remember. The recent hybrid introduction Amistad is a similar sight sensation, except its flowers are dipped deep into a dusky purple. As a softer contrast, Argentine Skies has green calyxes typical of most anise sages, but its flowers blush in a modest light blue.
Many other anise sage cultivars are available to gardeners, meaning the three I mentioned are just the tip of a pretty iceberg. Various selections can probably be found at your local garden centers, but anise sage is also an easy find if you prefer to let your fingers do the walking on the Web.
Regretfully, sticking to truth in journalism, I do have to admit that the leaves of my anise sage plants, when rubbed, at least to me, don’t really smell similar to the anise cookies I devoured by the handful as a kid—so I can’t really cast my vote in favor of the name connection. Maybe it’s just my nose being a notch or two off, but rather than sing the blues, I enjoy the blues (and the indigos and the violets) of these steadfast plants that dependably doll up my landscape with beautiful blooms through the long growing season.
September in the Garden
• It’s peony planting time! Place tubers in a well-prepared planting area that basks in the early morning light but, to prevent the beautiful blooms from fading too quickly, also provides some sun-relieving shade during the afternoon scorch.
• Spring-flowering bulbs will soon be showing up at garden centers, and if you want the best displays next year, pay more to get more. “Bargain” bulbs are usually smaller and won’t put on grand flower shows. The best blooming results will come from larger bulbs, which are normally more expensive, but the results are worth it.
Tip of the month
Before the garden slips into its annual fall fade, grab a digital camera and unleash your inner Ansel Adams. Shoot like a tourist in Rome—in other words, take a ton of closeups and wide-angle shots to record the many aspects of your personal plant world. Such captured moments will give you a visual record of how your garden did this year, which could be an able aid in planning for future growing seasons. As a bonus, studying these “happy snappies” before next spring’s planting frenzy will also help prevent you from accidentally digging up any herbaceous perennials that die back to the ground over the winter.
L.A. Jackson is the former editor of Carolina Gardener magazine. Contact him at lajackson1@gmail.com.