Caradonna was the first salvia to bloom for me this year, much earlier than I anticipated (mid spring) and it bloomed again a couple of months later, in the summer. It was in a corner of the garden that was mostly dappled shade, but did get full sun at some point during the day. It sprawled and flopped, but I didn't mind, because it was large enough to fill in the spaces where other plants weren't doing so well.
This was its second year, and it bloomed its first year from winter-sown seed, too, last year. It got plenty of spring rain and I did my best to fertilize it in the first few months of spring, then left it and everything else alone.