SALVIA MUELLERI

Description

'Royal Purple Autumn Sage' is one of the smaller leaved salvias that are often referred to as "Autumn Sages", blooming from mid summer until frost with thin dividing stems producing an almost endless succession of bright blue flowers, amongst very strongly-perfumed leaves. Although it superficially appears to be one of the tender salvias, this plant seems to be completely hardy, dying down safely underground each winter, and has stood minus 10 C (14 F) here. Most plants in this group have red, orange or yellow flowers which makes the striking purple flowers of S. muelleri a treasure. This plant is completely new to us, and it produces very, very few viable seeds indeed.

Sowing Advice

For best results, sow immediately onto a good soil-based compost. Cover the seeds with fine grit or compost to approximately their own depth. They can be sown at any time, and germination can sometimes be quicker if kept at 15 to 20 degrees C. We sow most seeds in an unheated greenhouse and wait for natural germination, as many seeds have built-in dormancy mechanisms, often waiting for natural spring germination, hence giving them a full season of growth.

Key Facts