Red Salvia

Hi all! I have Red Salvia that keeps popping up in my driveway, and the only color I have is purple. I was wondering since it seems to self-seed so easily if it would be considered an annual or perennial for Zone 6? I dug one up and potted it and put it in my mini greenhouse, but wanted to leave the others to see if they will return next year. If it is an annual, how do I get the seeds, and would they even germinate if I did? Thanks for all your help! Misty

In certain conditions it seems to be perennial mine ease up a bit in winter and with a trim they romp back.....they also self seed all over the place.I deadhead mine and really they never stop flowering but I have them in a warm but sheltered from hot sun position.

Sorry I don't know what zone 6 is....guess it means coldish.....sorry I am in a pretty warm place with only a handful of frosts during winter.You will find little dark coloured seeds right up inside the flower when it has turned papery ....I would collect them and plant out in Spring.

Thanks so much! Your garden is beautiful! A neighbor of mine has those yellow trumpet flowers, but never have found out what they are. I think I will have to get some of those next year, they are so lovely! Thanks again, Misty

Do you mean the chinese lanterns (the orange and the yellow) or the Angels Trumpets ?.....all very easy to grow....and easy to strike from cuttings ....the best thing to do is look around the place near you and see what works for others .....pick the things you like and then plant them.....;) good luck misty
chrissy

Hi Chrissy, I forgot to tell you that my Zone 6 is St. James, Missouri. These seem to be solid red, and I have not seen them anywhere around me. I am quite sure that it is the birds doing the propagating! But that's ok, any free flower is good! Well, that is unless it is a multiflora rose! Just pulled one of those up last week and trashed it. I have some salvia's that are perennials for here, but this is just like my purple one that is considered an annual, just the difference in color. I am already learning that some of the plants I put in my mini greenhouse does NOT like the cooler weather, so I am unsure of what will survive in it. I was thinking of trying to get some seeds from the red and the purple and mixing them to see what I come up with. I think I am going to try the winter sowing method I was told about from a member here. I am HATING the cold so much that I took one of my strawberry pots that I had different succulents in and transplanted them in different pots! I was even able to make many more in doing so, which is GREAT! Thanks for all your help, Misty

chrissy100
This may help explain the zone question:
http://www.backyardgardener.com/zone/index.html

I believe I am in the same zone as you. Salvia of all kinds have been coming back for me in the last few years. (Never used to). You can collect the seed by shaking the dried seedheads into an evelope. If you are going to start them indoors, plant them in early January. It will take that much time to have a decent size plant to put out in spring. You can also plant them outside in early March. It's ok if they experience frosts...just no hard freezes. If you do not see seeds anymore (it's alittle late to collect them), you can look around the base of the plant. They are tiny and black - the size of fresh ground pepper. I too love free plants.

Beautiful garden Chrissy - I envy your warm climate.

There are some salvias that are annuals pretty much no matter what zone you live in. This is the common annual one http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/243/ It comes in red and purple colors, so I think it's probably the one that mistygardener has. Most of the other types of salvia will be perennials if you're in a warm enough zone, but this one's an annual for everyone.

Well, I think the link ecrane posted is what I have, so I won't hold my breath that any of this species will survive. Ditto to growgirl on chrissy's garden and warm climate! I do believe it is too late to get the seeds, they are looking pretty puny now since we have had this cold spell. I have been lucky enough to get LOTS of free plants, so I won't complain! I even got lucky enough that my free variegated stone crop cuttings made roots! WOO HOO Thanks to all for your help! I love this forum! Misty

Misty, a lot of salvias reseed themselves pretty nicely, so there's a good chance you might get some babies coming up next year from seeds that dropped off before you could collect them.

Well I sure hope so! I just think it is cool that they showed up in the first place. All Lowe's had was the purple, never seen the red. Been so busy today with all the plants I acquired I haven't even had time to think about it! I will be posting them soon to get ID's from all you wonderful people here! Misty

Misty, I have planted red salvia for the past two years. They do not reseed in my garden. This spring, I started them from seed. They seemed to take forever to germinate, and grow into decent size seedlings, but once they are in the ground, they take off quickly. I bought my seed from Burpee

This is a picture from late July.

The salvia grew to be huge. For some strange reason, I didn't take any later pictures of them. This is a different bed that had some salvia in front. This picture is also late July.

WOW pennefeather- those are absolutely gorgeous! I think I will for sure have to get some next year! I love most all flowers that had red blooms, especially for the hummingbirds. I just love it when people post pics of their gardens! Can't wait til Spring, already! Misty