Content
Many people know about a medicinal plant called Sage, but about its cultural variety Salvia - Not everyone. Today, there are about eight hundred species of this beautiful flower: Salvia is actively used by landscape designers, serves to decorate balconies and gazebos, and plays an important role in medicine. The most common species are Salvia brilliant (or Brilliant sage) and medicinal Sage. It is not difficult to grow a cultivated Sage, this plant needs the most common care, so everyone can have beautiful, unpretentious flowers in their garden.
In this article, Salvia brilliant will be discussed in detail, a description of the species, photos of flowers, recommendations for sowing and caring for this plant will be given. It will also talk about the most popular varieties of cultivated sage, which are most often used to decorate flower beds, borders, in pot compositions.
Features of the view
Salvia brilliant was brought to Europe from the tropics in the eighteenth century. Since then, this plant has been cultivated in almost all corners of the Old and New Worlds. In nature, sage is a perennial, but in a temperate continental climate, it is grown for only one season (a tropical flower cannot withstand a harsh winter).
Decorative sparkling salvia does not have any medicinal properties, but growers love it for its catchy appearance, unpretentious "character" and many bright juicy colors.
Detailed description of the cultivated variety
If we talk about decorative varieties, then they have the following characteristics:
- the species belongs to the family of essential oil spongy plants from the Lamiaceae family;
- the shape of the bushes is reverse pyramidal, the plants are compact, well leafy;
- each shoot of brilliant sage ends in a large inflorescence;
- the height of the sage can vary from 25 to 80 centimeters, depending on the variety;
- most of the stem of Salvia is occupied by an inflorescence in the form of a spikelet;
- leaves are petiolate, whole, arranged in pairs - opposite each other;
- the stems of Salvia are erect, herbaceous, have a characteristic feature - a tetrahedral section;
- the root system of sage is powerful, well-branched;
- the growing season in Salvia is quite long - 100-120 days, therefore, in Russia, the flower is grown through seedlings;
- sparkling sage begins to bloom in mid-June, and ends with the onset of the first frost;
- inflorescences are spikelet, the flowers themselves have a tubular structure, collected in pyramids, reaching a length of 20 cm;
- in each inflorescence of sparkling Salvia, from 30 to 90 small flowers are formed;
- modern selection allows you to grow Salvia of almost any shade: red, salmon, white, cream, lavender, dark purple, burgundy, orange;
- the fruit of the brilliant Salvia - four nuts with seeds;
- varietal Salvia seeds (non-hybrid species) can be harvested and sown in the next season and are germinated for five years.
Gardeners consider the long period of its flowering to be a big plus of sparkling Salvia - all summer long bright spots of bushes will decorate the ridges, borders and flower beds. The undoubted advantage of the flower is the possibility of growing it in flowerpots, pots and boxes, in order to decorate window sills, balconies and verandas.
Sage varieties
Today, all varieties of Sparkling Salvia are usually divided into two large groups: tall and short.... The first group consists of flowers reaching a height of 70-80 cm; it is customary to decorate gardens and flower beds with them. Low-growing sage is a compact plant, growing up to a maximum of 50 cm. Borders and flower beds are decorated with such flowers, they are planted in pots and flowerpots, Salvia is also used for carpet flower beds and flower beds.
There are many varieties and varieties of brilliant sage, but flower lovers prefer the brightest and most beautiful of them. Photos and descriptions of just such colors will be given below.
Fire ball
This flower grows up to 40-50 cm in height, and the diameter of the bush is usually 35-45 cm.The plant is compact, the inflorescences are slightly disheveled, not too dense, the spikelets are 16-20 cm long.
This variety of Salvia blooms with a brilliant red-coral color.
Vesuvius
This variety of Salvia is very similar to the previous one, but you can distinguish the bushes by the leaves. Vesuvius has large leaf plates, their length can be 7-10 cm, and their width is up to 9 cm.
The inflorescences are painted in a fiery red hue, they are denser, the length of the spikelets is slightly shorter than that of the Fireball. Sparkling Salvia of this variety begins to bloom in early August.
Bonfire
The maximum height of this one-year-old Salvia is 60 cm. The bushes are compact, dense, bright - they are very often decorated with ceremonial flower beds, flower beds, borders or rabatki.
The Bonfire blooms until frost, and the first inflorescences bloom in early July. The variety can be grown on balconies, but remember to regularly water and loosen the soil.
Carabinier
Sage of the classic color is red. Carabinieri is suitable for well-lit places, tolerates drought normally, blooms from mid-summer to late autumn.
The bushes of this brilliant Salvia are very compact - their height reaches a maximum of 30 cm.You can plant seedlings densely - according to the 20x20 cm scheme.
Zurich
Another sparkling Salvia with a deep red bloom. Zurich is taller than the other varieties listed above. The height of its bushes can reach 60-70 cm.
Accordingly, Salvia's spikelets with inflorescences are longer. The whole bush is well leafy, covered with many large flowers. On the central shoot, about a hundred fiery spongy inflorescences can bloom at the same time.
Scarlet
Salvia flower sparkling Scarlet is an annual plant intended for flower beds, balconies and borders. The flowering of the variety continues from mid-July until the first frost.
The inflorescences are bright red, the bushes are compact, well leafy.
Rio
Salvia is a brilliant lavender color. The bushes of this sage are compact, reaching a maximum height of 25-30 cm. The spikelets are short, dense, and the leaves are long and sharp.
Not only the inflorescences of Salvia Rio are painted in a purple shade, but also its tetrahedral stem.
Splendis Pink
This sparkling Salvia variety is one of the most common. Inflorescences at Splendis are pinkish-lilac. The bushes are compact, densely leafy, reaching a height of 30 cm.
The flower loves light and moisture. It pleases with its flowering from mid-summer to late autumn.
Charm pink
The shape of the bush at Sharma is reverse-pyramidal, the bushes are compact, densely leafy, reaching a height of 30 cm.
The Salvia Sharm variety belongs to undersized, so its growing season is only 60-65 days. You can plant sage seedlings in the ground in early May, and it will bloom all summer, until the first frost.
Horminum
A feature of this variety of Salvia is considered to be the bracts painted in different colors: they can be blue, white, purple or pink. The bushes are compact, their maximum height is 50 cm.
Salvia Horminum also loves warmth, abundant watering and sun, but, unlike other species, this variety is able to withstand low temperatures. The plant begins to bloom 70 days after germination.
Dwarf
Very compact (up to 25 cm high) bushes are suitable for growing on balconies and in miniature carpet flower beds. The peculiarity of the Dwarf is an unusually variegated and juicy flowering.
Pyramidal inflorescences can be painted in a deep red shade - Dwarf red, or in a combination of red and white - Dwarf mix.
Cultivation of cultivated sage
Salvia brilliant - unpretentious plant. All this flower needs: water, sun, loose soil and warmth. Therefore, the main task of the grower is to provide the plant with all the necessary conditions. Special care is not required for sage, it is able to withstand almost any "whims" of the weather, from drought to high humidity.
Planting flowers
First of all, it is necessary to grow seedlings, since Salvia in the middle lane is grown only in seedlings. Sowing seeds must be carried out already in February, because flowering will begin only 2-3 months after germination.
For planting Salvia, small containers are prepared, on the bottom of which expanded clay or other drainage material is poured. A loose and nutritious soil is placed on top, which is best purchased at a flower shop. The soil is heated at room temperature. The next day, Salvia seeds are sown and the soil is sprayed with a spray bottle.
After sowing, the seeds are simply pressed lightly by hand and the box is covered with foil. At a temperature of 20-25 degrees, sage seeds need to be kept for several days until shoots appear.
They remove the film, put the boxes on the windowsill and wait for the seedlings to grow up. By the way, light-loving sage needs to be illuminated for at least 12 hours a day, so phytolamps will be needed.
In the stage of two true leaves, Salvia sparkling must be dived. The soil is taken the same, but the containers should be a little deeper. Immediately after picking, the boxes are covered with paper, which can be removed after 2-3 days.
Salvia is transferred to the ground when the weather stabilizes and the threat of return frosts has passed. This is usually done in May. The planting pattern is dense - 20x20 or 25x25 cm.The soil is needed loose, good air permeability. The plot for Salvia is selected sunny, protected from drafts.
Flower care
It is very simple to care for the brilliant Salvia, it is quite within the power of even a novice florist:
- Watering during periods of drought. Natural rainfall is usually sufficient for sage, but in very dry summers it is necessary to occasionally water the flower bed to freshen the flowers.
- Weeds are dangerous for young plants, therefore, until the sage seedlings get stronger, the grass is removed regularly. Subsequently, loosening the soil after each rain or watering is sufficient.
- You can mulch the soil, if this does not violate the composition in the flower bed. Mulch will save Salvia from drying out and protect against weeds.
- A couple of times over the summer, flowers need to be fed with complex mineral fertilizer. It is better to dilute the fertilizer in water.
Do not plant sparkling Salvia in shaded areas or under tall plants - it will not bloom under such conditions. The rest of the sage is very unpretentious and can withstand a lot.
Conclusion
Salvia brilliant is a great option for both beginner florists and experienced landscape designers. This flower is unpretentious, but very bright and noticeable. It will be an excellent addition to flower beds, borders and ridges; you can decorate balconies and verandas with cultivated sage, grow it in flowerpots and boxes.
How to grow Salvia, described above, is not difficult at all. It remains only to decide on the type of flower, because there are a lot of varieties of sage.
