Big Red Sage

Description

Salvia pentstemonoides typically grows in limestone rock along seeps or creeks,reaching up to 5 feet tall with square stems, often with long basal leaves in addition to opposite cauline leaves.The leaves are mistletoe-green colored, lancelike in shape, growing in a basal rosette. Numerous flowering stalks grow from the rosette, with inflorescences that are 8-12 inches long, having whorls of loosely packed flowers. The 1 inch flowers are beetroot-purple colored, with a .5 inch calyx that is the color of red wine.he flowers are edible, and the leaves give off a lemon-lime scent when brushed or rubbed. In cultivation, Salvia pentstemonoides likes fast-draining soil with limestone or ground oystershells added. It prefers morning sun with high shade, but grows well in full sun in areas of high humidity. Deep weekly watering is also preferred. The plant is hardy to about 20 -F (-7 -C) and easily propagated by seed; propagation through cuttings is possible and clumps can be divided provided it's done with care. It is very attractive to hummingbirds.