i am looking for clary sage but not the ugly kind you see at the nurseries so maybe it isnt call clary sage but is a salvia doen anyone know what i mean i saw it years age in a garden and loved it and the woman told me it was clary sage but it was nt help
clary sage
Our Baa (in the UK) calls a different sage Clary Sage, not the S.sclarea... also the PDB has different varieties/cultivars, some with neat 'painted' bracts that stay on after petals are gone. Yes, here it is: S.viridis, and it is the one with the "painted" bracts. Although there are different varieties/subspecies for the S.sclarea, too.
Also I see that S.verticilatta is called Whorled Clary; I have that one.
Anyway, scroll down the right column to the box [DG Network] and click on Plants Database... enter "clary" (no quotes) in the field next to [Search] and search, then explore the entries that come up, examine the pics, see if something looks like the one you remember!
If it doesn't, and you have plenty of time, you can back up a page and enter "Salvia" [Search] -- you will find LOTS of pics to look at!
Salvias are probably my favorite group (genus) of plants... I have 19 species right now, and have had at least six others previously that either didn't survive my neglect OR did so well & got so big I had to remove them!
~'spin!~ (editted to correct my numbers)
This message was edited Jul 6, 2004 8:42 PM
This message was edited Jul 6, 2004 10:03 PM
Spin, Do you have any of this clary sage for trade? PLMK
Thx, Carol
spin any for trade jor postage thanks
This message was edited Jul 7, 2004 12:00 AM
Be fore warned. The clary sage is a beautiful plant but don't plant it close to your house or a walkway where you will brush against it. It is one of the smelliest plants I have ever found. I didn't know what it was that I was smelling but when I finally discoved where the smell was coming from I accually had to pull the darn thing up and toss it. No tears. I had to wear gloves too as the smell was so intense it lingered on my hands. It is a pretty plant, from a distance, but smells like sweaty arm pits up close. Sorry. Just my opinion.
S.sclarea is -- I think -- the smelly one. Don't know ab. S.viridis which is probably the one blau is looking for; next time I "see" Baa I will send her over here to answer the Q.
I have no clary of either sort, and my 'Purple Rain' aka whorled clary is not happy/vigorous enough to take cuttings at this time. I have both it and the S.argentea (2 of them) planted where they really don't get the sun-hours they would like... that is why I don't have S.patens anymore.
As far as any others, blau, I don't know anything about (1) taking/starting cuttings, or (2) shipping living things across this country in the heat of the summer... e-mail me if you do want to try... I do have some that are vigorous enough to whack at will, I just don't know how to do it right.
~'spin!~
thanks for all your great infor and concern this site is great i love it
Baa
Jul 07, 2004
We use the name Clary for several species of Salvia including S. sclarea and viridis, most European species have been listed with Wild clary as a common name. If it is viridis you're looking for it's an annual and you might find it in the US under Painted Sage, the seeds are usually cheap here in the UK, don't know what is considered cheap in the US though.
Tombstonejan, I grow S. sclarea and would say that the scent depends on the smeller and growing situation :) and most Salvias have some kind of leaf scent, albeit very faint in some. It doesn't have a strong smell for me and I can't say I've heard it remarked upon before, perhaps it requires more heat than GB affords us to bring the leaf oils out. I do know that the essential oil of S. sclarea is used for an uplifting affect on mood!
Sorry I don't have any to trade.
i have been growing white clary sage for the last four years or so. it does well here in the cherokee nation in n.e. oklahoma. it is now going to seed. i enjoy the aroma of various plants very much and this plant is strong and has power and i find it beautiful.