Salvia officinalis-garden sage, common sage

Propagating salvia or garden sage should be done in the spring before new growth appears, and the new plants will have to be babied to survive by keeping the transplants moderately moist. As many know it is one of the most important culinary herbs and is used for many medicinal remedies and why many people use the plant in containers on balconies and patios besides in the garden bed. Salvia reaches a height of 24" and has many cultivars with blooms ranging from white to purple to pink besides variegated cultivars and needs to be pruned frequently to encourage more foliage, if used for culinary purposes, which keeps it from going to flower and Salvia needs to be replaced after 3-4 years because plants become woody and less productive. Salvia can also be propagated by layering, lay branch on the soil and not mulch, take a section of wire hanger and bend in half and insert above the branch pushing it against the soil, in the spring or fall and prefers full sun in an well drained humus alkaline soil, but it is not drought tolerant and flowers in mid summer and is evergreen.