Salvia is an extensive genus including glorious flowering annuals, culinary herbs and hardy perennials.
If it's striking colour you are after then Salvia splendens is just the thing for you. Commonly known as scarlet salvia or rooi-salie, it actually comes in shades of red, purple, pink, cream, white and blue.
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Salvias are easy to grow and with their and showy flowers and deep green leaves, they make a great addition to the summer garden. This eye-catching annual offers glorious, long-flowering heads 30cm tall. If you are looking for something smaller look out for the compact hybrids - ideal for edging and containers. They flourish in full-sun positions and once established, they will withstand high summer temperatures. For best results plant your seedling in well-drained, composted soil which gets regular watering, particularly during dry spells.
The plants are spectacular in mixed herbaceous borders and patio pots, or interspersed with shrubs and perennials. Salvia will bloom year-round in tropical and subtropical climates, but being frost-tender, are grown as summer annuals on the Highveld. Plant your seedlings from spring, and enjoy magnificent displays of enduring colour. If you cut the plants back after each flowering, blossoming will continue into early autumn.
- Information Supplied by the Bedding Plant Growers Association
