Today's Salvias of the Day is Grape-Scented Sage (Salvia melissodora).

This plant can be found in the ATP Plant Database at:
Grape-Scented Sage (Salvia melissodora) .

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Grape-Scented Sage (Salvia melissodora)

For the record, this species does not tolerate high humidity at any time and needs a rather dry climate to thrive. When it in the right place it is spectacular.

We have one very large shrub of this and I've included a not so good photo of it but you'll just have to imagine the scent of all these blooms. I can tell you it is uniquely pleasant. It's positioned to have late afternoon shade here and it must like it. The shade is from a River She-Oak (Casuarina cunninghamiana) and its needle-like leaves suppress weed germination allelopathically. This Salvia is still blooming as heavily now as in the photo. I'll trim it down quite a bit when its done. It's a two year old plant. Just behind it is an Australian Mint Bush (Prostanthera rotundifolia) and a variegated one newly planted in the foreground right. The general plant database info says 3 by 3 foot but this plant is more in line with the wikipedipedia post by Marylin that says 6 by 4. To cold for the bees now but they do love it.

I actually grew this one year in a container here in humid Georgia. It bloomed from late summer to late fall from a small, starter plant purchased that spring. It stayed on the small side because it should have been in a bigger container. I still enjoyed the leaves that smelled like lavender leaves and the flowers that smelled so delicious. It performed well enough that I would grow it again.

FBTS said:For the record, this species does not tolerate high humidity at any time and needs a rather dry climate to thrive. When it in the right place it is spectacular.

I grew the plants in a 20 inch container, one year by itself and the other year with another salvia in a 20 inch container.

It grew and bloomed a lot better in a container by itself and I really loved growing it those two years (new plants each time).

Thanks for the info Kermit. Since we get a lot of high humidity during our summers, it would probably be better to grow something else that can tolerate the high humidity.

It smells so good though! Hard not to try!