Salvias and the freeze
- To: M*@ucdavis.edu
- Subject: Salvias and the freeze
- From: P* H* <p*@nevco.k12.ca.us>
- Date: Wed, 30 Dec 1998 09:16:54 -0800
Nan and other salvia growers:
I would give salvia involucrata at least until March or April to start
showing new growth from the base, or low branches. Mine was pruned to
the ground in November and already has new growth. The new leaves seem
to have been unaffeced by low temperatures here (Zone 7, 2,700 feet) of
23, 24 and degrees on the three worst days recently. I'm hopeful for my
salvia elegans, s. confertiflora and s. gauranitica (sp?) also will
bounce back, but I'm not expecting new growth until March. I'm more
worred about some of the salvias I have that are native to coastal CA,
Baja and Mexican lowlands. My salvia clevelandii "Whorly Blue" is toast,
but it was a young plant newly planted.
Some of you have referred to Betsy Clebsch's excellent "A Book of
Salvias," which has some reliable cold-hardy information. For the most
part, I've found her low temperature tolerance observations to be fairly
accurate. Most perennial salvias avaliable on the market are cold hardy
to at least 20 degrees. Mulching makes a big difference.
Keep the salvia reports coming!
Paul Harrar
Nevada City, CA
Zone 7, 2,700 ft.
