I've been growing Salvia for a long time and there are a couple things that I've found that really help.
I keep my plants outside most of the year and they do well through extremes of heat and cold (but not freezing). Once established they are actually fairly drought tolerant, but that requires a developed root system in the ground. The 'soil' here is mostly just sand and I do need to add amendments to make them happy. Commercial topsoil works OK, but I always add lots of worm castings and a generous helping of Osmocote to get things kickstarted. Good quality potting soil is fine if using pots, and I find you can never use too many worm castings.
One thing they really like and has been key for me is to use an automated mister system. I use a battery operated $30 water timer set to run for ten minutes four or five times a day, and I use a drip irrigation setup with misters for the spray. Drip irrigation starter kits run about $40 if you want to go that way or you can piece together a system for much less if you're already familiar with drip irrigation stuff.
Not too many years ago I had a 16'x8' shade structure made with lattice that was just filled with Salvia. It was very relaxing just hanging out in there with all that emerald green lushness.
I may see fit to do that again.
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Topic: Salvia stewardship (Read 2224 times)
