texas sage

I have a Texas sage compacta but lost the tag. How tall do they get? DO yall need to prune this tree? Mine is blooming .

Pop, I don't think they are actually considered tree's. Mines six years old and has been three maybe four feet tall for the last three years, I don't think it's going to get any taller then that. How tall is yours now?

Actually it is better not to prune them unless they are totally out of control and too large for the area in which they are planted. They typically grow to 3 to 4 feet tall and 4 to 6 feet wide. It does not like fertilizer or compost and will be hesitant to bloom in rich soil. The plants tend to get leggy as they age. So (if you can) keep the soil dry. Tip prune to encourage dense foliage and compact branching after they have bloomed. Deep pruning can cause the plant to decline. It grows slowly so be careful about how much you are lopping off. Do not prune like a regular hedge. Be sure that the top of the plant is less wide than the rest of the plant and prune so that plant gradually becomes wider and wider toward the bottom. This way, all of the plant is receiving proper sunlight. If some branches are wildly growing out of proportion to the rest of the plant, they may be selectively lopped off to match the rest of the plant's growth. However, do not heavily prune back more than1/3 of the plant at a time. One time, I pruned mine to about one third of its size (cut off 2/3 of the plant) and trimmed all of the branches into sort of a box shape. The inside of the plant and the lower portion declined and looked so ugly that I yanked it up and threw it away because only the top part had leaves.

http://www.greenbeam.com/features/plant012698.html
http://www.mswn.com/Plant%20Info%20Sheets/Leucophyllum%20frut%20compacta.pdf


This message was edited May 28, 2007 1:17 PM