Plant Type

Perennial

 

Height Range

1-3'

 

Flower Color

Pink, Purple, Violet

 

Flower Season

Summer

 

Leaf Color

Dark Green, Grey Green

 

Bark Color

n/a

 

Fruit Color

n/a

 

Fruit Season

n/a

Sun

Full

 

Water

Low

 

Growth Rate

Moderate

 

Soil Type

Clay, Loam, Rocky, Unparticular

 

Soil Condition

Average, Rich, Well-drained, Dry

 

Soil pH

Neutral, Basic

 

Adverse Factors

Attracts Bees

Design Styles

English Cottage, Meadow, Mediterranean, Ranch, Spanish

 

Accenting Features

Showy Flowers

 

Seasonal Interest

Summer

 

Location Uses

Entry, Perennial Border, Parking Strip, Patio, With Rocks

 

Special Uses

Cut Flowers, Small Spaces

 

Attracts Wildlife

Hummingbirds, Butterflies

Plumosa salvia is kind of like a salvia that's been fluffed. It has the same classic salvia foliage (dark green, heavy crinkled, and a little fuzzy underneath), but the flowers are puffy, almost astilbe-like, and the flower stems has a slight, pendulous habit. Color is deep, rosy pink with a touch of violet. Lovely cut flower; also attracts butterflies. Primary bloom time is early summer, but is dead-heated, it may repeat bloom. Grows 12 to 15 inches tall and wide.

Grow in full sun and in well drained soil. When soil is too wet or plant is over-fertilized, it gets floppy rather than bouncily pendulous. You can cut back flower stems after blooming, and then cut back the whole plant late winter to early spring, about the time you see new foliage emerging (see Guide).