An Evaluation Study Of Tender Salvias Salvia Spp.)

Salvia ‘Amistad’S. ‘Balsalmisp’ MYSTIC SPIRES BLUE Salvia coccinea ‘Brenthurst’Salvia ‘Amistad’ embodied the best qualities of the tender salvias. From mid-June tofrost, a bounty of dark purple blossomsnestled in nearly black calyces were looselyborne on erect inflorescences to 11 incheslong. The large swarthy flowers were a constant draw for hummingbirds, bees, andbutterflies throughout the season. The robust floral show and vigorous habit wereimpressive each summer despite plantsnever being fertilized—it was one of thebiggest salvias at 46 inches tall and 64inches wide. ‘Amistad’—meaning friendship in Spanish—originated in Argentinaand is thought to be a hybrid between theshowy subtropical species S. guaranitica and S. gesneriiflora.MYSTIC SPIRES BLUE (Salvia ‘Balsalmisp’) featured tall spires of purple-blue flowersin violet calyces from late spring to frost.While the individual flowers were small (¾inch long), the floral show was significant because the verticillasters were densely clustered on long inflorescences—the prolific floral stems made up about half of the plantheight. MYSTIC SPIRES BLUE is a compact,well-branched selection of ‘Indigo Spires’and reached 37 inches tall and 51 incheswide. Planted side by side in the trial, observations in September and October noted thatMYSTIC SPIRES BLUE was busy with butterflies and bees while pollinators largely ignored ‘Indigo Spires’. Pollinator visitationduring the earlier season was comparable onboth cultivars.The scarlet sage, Salvia coccinea ‘Brenthurst’, was a consistently strong performerwith a full robust habit and heavy floriferousnature. Its coral-pink flowers, held in purple-blushed calyces, featured light pinktubes and broad, darker pink lower lips.The bushy mounded habit, to 38 inches talland wide, was one of the very best in thetrial for uniformity. ‘Brenthurst’ was one of afew salvias that reseeded each year; theseedlings were moderately produced andflowered early and true-to-name. Althoughperennial in Mexico and South America, S.coccinea is recognizable as a widelycultivated and usually red-flowered gardenannual.Salvia elegans ‘Golden Delicious’The sweetly pineapple-scented goldenyellow leaves and fiery red flowers of Salviaelegans ‘Golden Delicious’ were a boldcombination. The vibrant leaves held theircolor all summer, although minor sunscaldwas noted at times during the hottest periods. The robust habit was consistentlybushy and broadly mounding to 44 inchestall and 57 inches wide. Plants beganblooming in early October, and while flowerproduction was heavy, the full floral displaywas not observed in any year of the trial.Mid-November frost dates in 2016 and 2017resulted in an admirable display; however,plants never reached peak bloom. The colorful foliage on its own was significantly ornamental to recommend ‘Golden Delicious’as a foliage plant for seasonal displays.Plant Evaluation Notes chicagobotanic.org 6

Salvia greggii MIRAGETM CHERRY REDSalvia ARCTIC BLAZE FUCHSIASalvia reptans West Texas formSalvia greggii, autumn sage, was well-represented in the trial by 27 selections invibrant shades of red, pink, violet, purple,and creamy white. Five cultivars receivedthe highest ratings for consistently superiorhabits and exceptionally strong flower production, including ‘Viva’ and four cultivarsin the MIRAGE series—CHERRY RED,HOT PINK, VIOLET, and WHITE. Nestled inburgundy calyces, the dark magenta flowers of ‘Viva’ were the smallest of the autumn sages at ¾-inch long and opened acouple of weeks later in June than otherselections; plants were densely moundedto 26 inches tall and 40 inches wide. CHERRY RED featured dark cherry red flowersand a dense compact habit to 20 inches talland 30 inches wide. The bright pink flowersof HOT PINK were cupped in green calyceswith a purple-red cast; it was slightly largerat 25 inches tall and 36 inches wide. VIOLET featured dark purple calyces and violetflowers on low mounded plants to 19 inches tall and 28 inches wide. The creamywhite flowers of WHITE had pale green calyces, and like the other cultivars in the series, produced a well-branched bushy habit to 20 inches tall and 42 inches wide.Loose to irregular habits, and in some cases reduced flower production, were themain reasons why S. greggii cultivars received lower ratings.ARCTIC BLAZE FUCHSIA (Salvia ‘Novasalfuc’) and ARCTIC BLAZE RED(S. ‘Novasalred’) were strong-blooming selections featuring exceptional habit uniformity. The deep reddish pink flowers andpurplish calyces of FUCHSIA were plentifulfrom late June to season’s end. Likewise,the orangey red flowers and purple-red calyces of RED were equally long-blooming.Both selections had compact bushy habitswith flexible purplish stems; FUCHSIA wasthe smallest at 21 inches tall and 26 incheswide and RED was slightly larger at 23inches tall and 31 inches wide. The habit ofARCTIC BLAZE PURPLE (S. ‘Novasalpur’) was loose and see-through comparedto the others but was similarly floriferous.The pungent grasslike leaves of Salvia reptans West Texas form set it apart from othersalvias in the trial. The fine-textured foliagesoftened the bushy shrublike plants, whichreached a stocky 39 inches tall and widelong before a flower ever appeared. Thecobalt blue flowers began opening in earlyAugust and bloomed prolifically to frost.At less than ½-inch long, its flowers werethe smallest in the trial but the floral displaywas not diminished by the diminutive size.West Texas form was the only salvia thatwas truly cold-hardy in Chicago; no crowninjury or plant loss occurred in the two winters of the trial.Salvia splendens ‘Dancing Flames’Salvia splendens ‘Dancing Flames’ featured bright yellow-speckled leaves andlarge dark orange flowers held in prominentred-orange calyces. The upright bushyhabit—31 inches tall and wide—was thebest of the splendens-group. ‘DancingFlames’ started flowering in late June butthe overall ornamental display—vibrantflowers, boldly variegated foliage, and redstems—was particularly good in the lateseason. Salvia splendens is native to Braziland is a popular bedding plant that comesin a variety of flower colors.Plant Evaluation Notes chicagobotanic.org 7

Salvia ‘Anthony Parker’Salvia mexicana ‘Limelight’Four additional taxa—Salvia ‘Anthony Parker’, S. confertiflora, S. leucantha ‘SantaBarbara’, and S. mexicana ‘Limelight’—received nearly perfect ratings except thatthey flowered too late in the season to beconsidered substitutes for summer-blooming annuals in northern gardens. Theabridged bloom period aside, their stronghabits, showy foliage, and heavy flowerproduction warrant special mention.ers were crowded together on slender velvety red wands rising 18 inches above thedark green foliage. Flower production washeavy but like other late-blooming selections, the full floral display was not observed due to autumn frosts. The large,textured leaves had rusty undersides andan unpleasant odor when crushed. Redvelvet salvia was fast-growing and quicklyreached 46 inches tall and 33 incheswide—it grows to 10 feet tall where it is native in Brazil.The blue-purple flowers of Salvia ‘AnthonyParker’ were cupped in fuzzy dark purplecalyces and held on arching inflorescencesto 12 inches long. The flowers opened inlate September so were susceptible to frostdamage before peak bloom occurred. Astrong floral display was observed in 2016and 2017 before first frost injured the plantson November 12 and November 22, respectively. However, an early frost on October 13, 2018, resulted in a much truncatedflower show; in fact, the dark purple calyces rather than any open flowers providedall the color prior to frost. ‘Anthony Parker’was a dense bushy plant to 50 inches talland 64 inches wide with attractive foliagesimilar to S. elegans.Red velvet sage, Salvia confertiflora, wasone of the best-looking plants in all years ofthe trial. Lush corrugated leaves, dark redstems, and a vase-shaped habit gave it animpressive architectural presence in summer. The vibrant orange-red flowersclasped in fuzzy dark red-orange calycesopened in late September—the small flow-Salvia confertifloraSalvia leucantha ‘Santa Barbara’Salvia leucantha ‘Santa Barbara’ was a superior selection because its stems were notas brittle as the species, which constantlysuffered snapped branches in strongwinds. While the color contrast was not asstriking as the bright white and fuzzy purpleflowers of the species, ‘Santa Barbara’ produced an exceptionally heavy bloom oflight purple flowers with fuzzy dark purplecalyces from late September to frost. Despite the late start, 80 percent of flowerswere typically open at frost including in2018. The narrow, downy gray-green leaveswere attractive all season, which was animportant ornamental feature given the lateflowering date; the habit was compact bycomparison to the species—nearly 20inches shorter and narrower.At 57 inches tall and nearly as wide, Salviamexicana ‘Limelight’ was one of the largestsalvias in the trial. Its glossy heart-shapedleaves and imposing vase-shaped habitwere lush and bold-textured all summer.Plant Evaluation Notes chicagobotanic.org 8

Generous spikes of long dark purple-blueflowers offset by bright chartreuse calyceswere the crowning touch. Inflorescenceswere borne in profusion, but flowers did notopen until early October, which mattered agreat deal in 2018 when frost came early. Inthe warmer autumns of 2016 and 2017when frost was delayed, the floral displaywas exceptional.The tender salvias displayed a variety offlower colors in shades of blue, lavender,purple, red, magenta, pink, orange, yellow,and creamy white. Selections with distinctive bicolored flowers included Salvia ‘Autumn Moon’, S. ‘Fancy Dancer’, S. greggii‘Stormy Pink’, S. greggii ‘Teresa’, S. microphylla ‘Hot Lips’, and S. jamensis ‘GoldenGirl’. The flower color of ‘Hot Lips’ was notably unstable—both red and white single-colored flowers were commonly present along with the red-and-white bicoloredflowers. The calyx was an important ornamental trait throughout the bloom cycle because it provided color before flowersopened and remained colorful and persistent for a time after the flowers had fallen. Calyx and flower colors were typicallycontrasting, often dramatically so, such asthe white flowers and bright purple calycesof S. leucantha or the purple-black flowersand silvery yellow-green calyces of S. discolor. Conversely, analogously colored calyces and flowers were observed on S.confertiflora (orange-red), S. puberula(pink), and S. regla ‘Royal’ (deep peachyred). Salvia blepharophylla ‘Painted Lady’,S. discolor, S. leucantha, S. leucantha‘Santa Barbara’, S. miniata, and S. oxyphora featured fuzzy flowers and/or calyces.Flowers were borne in spikes held abovethe foliage; the size and character of theflowers and spikes varied by species andcultivar. Salvia patens ‘Guanajuato’, S. regla‘Jame’, and S. regla Queretaro form had thelargest flowers at 2¼ inches long; whereas,the flowers of S. reptans West Texas formwere the smallest at 3/8-inch long. Flowerspikes ranged from 5 inches on S. buchananii to 27 inches long on S. sagittata.Other noteworthy inflorescences includedS. ‘Wendy’s Wish’ (25 inches), S. microphylla sagittata ‘Big Swing’ (19 inches), S.confertiflora and S. mexicana ‘Limelight’Bicolored Salvia microphylla ‘Hot Lips’ with white reversionSalvia patens 'Guanajuato'Plant Evaluation Notes chicagobotanic.org 9

Salvia greggii 'Viva'(18 inches), S. guaranitica ‘Black andBloom’ (16 inches), and S. ‘Amistad’, S. ‘Anthony Parker’, and S. involucrata ‘MulberryJam’ (11 inches). Individual flowers were arranged in few- to many-flowered verticillasters; additionally, verticillasters were either loosely spaced or crowded along theaxis. For example, S. ‘Indigo Spires’ and S.confertiflora displayed crowded verticillasters; whereas, the verticillasters of S.discolor and S. reptans West Texas formwere loosely spaced, which created a moreopen floral display. Inflorescences werevertical or arched, and simple (unbranched)such as S. MYSTIC SPIRES BLUE ormultibranched like S. sagittata.Flowering began as early as mid-June andcontinued up until the first frost date, whichvaried each year. The historical frost date atthe Chicago Botanic Garden is October 15;the frost date was one month later in 2016and more than a month later in 2017 butclose to target in 2018 (see Table 1). A number of salvias did not began blooming untillate September or after, which presented aproblem given the historic frost date.Among the salvias with foreshortenedbloom periods due to frost in one or moreyears were Salvia ‘Anthony Parker’, S. confertiflora, S. elegans ‘Golden Delicious’, S.glabrescens ‘Momobana’, S. ‘Jean’s PurplePassion’, S. leucantha, S. leucantha ‘SantaBarbara’, S. melissodora, S. mexicana‘Limelight’, and S. regla cultivars ‘Jame’,Queretaro form, and ‘Royal’.Salvia leucanthaWhile the majority of taxa were heavy flowering with exceptional coverage over anextended period, weak flower productiondue to poor health and/or decreased plantvigor was noted on Salvia greggii ‘Balmirnose’ MIRAGE NEON ROSE, S. involucrata ‘Hadspen’, S. involucrata ‘SheltonHerb Farm’, S. microphylla ‘Pink’, S. microphylla ‘San Carlos Festival’, S. microphyllavar. neurepia, S. puberula, S. puberula ‘ElButano’, and S. pulchella involucrata. Inthe case of S. chionophylla, S. greggii‘Black Cherry’, and S. glabrescens ‘Momobana’, plants were healthy but simply produced fewer flowers.Beyond low flower production, an inferiorhabit was usually the reason for lower ratings; where possible, judgment on habitquality was based on comparisons with exceptional plants of related taxa rather thannon-comparable taxa. For example, Salviagreggii cultivars were compared with eachother and not judged against S. guaraniticacultivars. Inferior habit quality was characterized by loose crowns, irregular branching, sprawling stems, and/or brittle branches that broke off or lodged. Loose orsee-through habits were common amongthe cultivars of S. greggii, S. microphylla, S. jamensis, and hybrids such as ‘BrightEyes’, ‘Dancing Dolls’, and ‘Orchid Glow’.While many taxa in these groups had generally well-rounded forms, loose crownswere noticeable compared to the densehabits of superior selections such as S.greggii ‘Viva’ and S. microphylla ‘La Trinidad Pink’. In many instances, a dense habit was the difference between receiving anexcellent rating and a good one. Loosehabits were also common on S. buchananii,S. ‘Jean’s Purple Passion’, S. patens ‘Guanajuato’, S. puberula, and S. ‘Silke’sDream’.The cultivars of Salvia involucrata—‘Hadspen’, ‘Mulberry Jam’, and ‘Shelton HerbFarm’—were consistently weak-stemmed,which resulted in mostly decumbent stemsnot caused by brittleness. The stems of S.blepharophylla ‘Painted Lady’, S. leucantha, S. patens, and S. patens ‘Guanajuato’were easily and regularly damaged in highwinds; in most cases the stems snappedcleanly off, but occasionally, broken stemslodged on the ground but remained attached and alive. The low, spreading habitof S. chionophylla—8 inches tall and 66inches wide—was too sparse and irregularto make a robust display. Some salviassuch as S. blepharophylla ‘Painted Lady’and S. guaranitica have rhizomatous habitsin mild climates, but this trait was not observed during the limited one-year growthperiod of the trial. Salvia reptans is also rhizomatous, but despite living through twowinters and three summers, West Texasform had not exhibited this growth trait asof November 2018.Plant Evaluation Notes chicagobotanic.org 10

er, S. reptans West Texas form was theonly one of the surviving salvias to exhibitexceptional vigor in subsequent summers.Reseeding in the trial plots was noted atinsignificant levels. Salvia coccinea ‘Brenthurst’ reseeded each year in close proximity to the parent plants; the seedlingswere moderately produced and subsequently flowered true-to-name. Salviagreggii seedlings sprouted in the summersof 2017 and 2018, but were culled beforeflowering and therefore not attributed toany specific cultivar.Informal monitoring of insects and birdslanding and/or feeding on salvias occurredthroughout the growing seasons. However,the random and cursory nature of the observations resulted in anecdotal rather thanfactual information related to pollinatorsvisiting each respective salvia. Among thevarious pollinators—categorized broadlyrather than by specific species—werehummingbirds, bees, butterflies, andhawkmoths. Hummingbirds appeared tohave had a slight preference for blue andpurple flowers based on frequent observations made each summer. Conversely,bees and butterflies were more catholic intheir visitation of flower colors.Salvia greggii MIRAGETM VIOLETSummarySalvia greggii MIRAGETM WHITEThe majority of tender salvias were fullyadapted to the in-ground culture of the trialgarden; however, some taxa were affectedby environmental issues such as sunscaldon Salvia elegans ‘Golden Delicious’ andhigh winds as previously noted. MIRAGE NEON ROSE was the only taxon that didnot live to the end of a growing season;plants generally lacked vigor, and dwindledand eventually died by mid- to late summerin each year of the trial. No diseases orpests were observed during the trial period.Depending on how low the temperaturedropped, the tender salvias reacted in several ways to the first frost—killed outright,wilted but retained leaf color, or were unaffected. In some instances, plants continuedto flower despite leaves being lightlyfrost-damaged. Frost injury assessmentsfor October 13 and October 22, 2018, aredetailed in Table 3; comparable damagewas noted following frosts in 2016 and 2017.Winter survival was generally not expectedbecause the species in the trial are native toCentral and South America and the southwestern United States. All plants were leftin the garden over winter to determine thepossibility of cold-hardiness. Three taxahad one or more plants survive the winter of2016-2017—Salvia microphylla ‘La TrinidadPink’, S. roemeriana, and S. reptans WestTexas form. All plants of S. roemeriana andS. reptans West Texas form also survivedthe following winter of 2017-2018 but S. microphylla ‘La Trinidad Pink’ did not. Howev-Upon completion of the three-year study, avariety of tender salvias—representing thediversity within the group—are highly recommended as summer annuals for gardenbeds and containers. The top-rated salviasoffer a myriad of flower colors, attractivefoliage, and small to large plant sizes. Thethirteen salvias that received five-star excellent ratings included Salvia ‘Amistad’, S.‘Balsalmisp’ MYSTIC SPIRES BLUE , S.coccinea ‘Brenthurst’, S. elegans ‘GoldenDelicious’, S. greggii ‘Balmircher’ MIRAGE CHERRY RED, S. greggii ‘Balmirhopi’ MIRAGE HOT PINK, S. greggii‘Balmirvio’ MIRAGE VIOLET, S. greggii‘Balmirwite’ MIRAGE WHITE, S. greggii‘Viva’, S. ‘Novasalfuc’ ARCTIC BLAZE FUCHSIA, S. ‘Novasalred’ ARCTICBLAZE RED, S. reptans West Texas form,and S. splendens ‘Dancing Flames’. Forty-nine other salvias received four-stargood ratings for their strong performances.Plant Evaluation Notes chicagobotanic.org 11

Most tender salvias bloomed freely and foran extended period, often beginning inmid-June and blooming continually untilfrost in October or November. A number ofsalvias that bloomed late in the season—from September onward—experiencedshortened bloom periods because of frostinjury. Although many of the late-floweringsalvias displayed outstanding ornamentaltraits and plant vigor, they are not recommended as summer annuals for averagegardens in colder zones. Among the exceptional late-blooming taxa were Salvia‘Anthony Parker’, S. confertiflora, S. leucantha ‘Santa Barbara’, and S. mexicana‘Limelight’. All of these salvias were attractive and robust during the summer and produced an abundance of flower buds, whichprovided a good, albeit short floral showbefore frost.The majority of the salvias proved to bewell-adapted to the soils and growing conditions of the trial garden, although otherenvironmental challenges of the site suchas full sun and strong winds were noted.The golden yellow leaves of Salvia e

The Chicago Botanic Garden (USDA Hardi-ness Zone 5b, AHS Plant Heat-Zone 5) initi - ated a three-year comparative trial of 109 tender or non-hardy perennial salvias - (Sal via spp. and cultivars) in 2016. The goal of the trial was to discover which tender salvi-as flowered early and were vigorous enough their first year in the garden to make out-