Flowering Sage

Flowering Sage 'Tequila' (Salvia 'Tequila') is a shrubby sage that carries red flowers for most of the year in a warm garden. It makes a rounded bush about a metre tall and a metre across, clothed in small aromatic leaves, and it tolerates heat, drought and rough treatment. Honeyeaters and bees find it within weeks of the first flowers opening.

Why you'll love it

• Red flowers almost continuously. In a warm climate it flowers from spring through to late autumn, pausing only in the coldest weeks.
• Birds work it daily. Tubular red flowers are built for nectar feeding birds, so one plant becomes a regular stop for honeyeaters.
• Drought and heat tolerant. Once established it holds up through hot dry summers, including in arid and semi arid gardens.
• Easy to keep tidy. One hard cut in late winter resets the whole plant. No staking, no spraying.

Where it works best

Borders and mixed beds. Plant 70cm apart for a massed display along a fence or a driveway edge. At that spacing the bushes touch and read as one band of colour without shading each other out.

Mass planting on dry ground. The same 70cm spacing works across a slope or a nature strip where irrigation is limited.

Pots and small gardens. A 400mm pot holds one plant comfortably, and the compact metre habit means it will not swallow a courtyard within a season.

Growing flowering sage in Australia

Position and climate. Full sun, six hours minimum. Shade gives leggy growth and few flowers. It suits warm temperate, subtropical, Mediterranean and arid gardens. Light frost is its limit, so in cold inland and tableland districts grow it in a pot that can be moved.

Soil. Free draining above everything else, with sandy and gravelly ground ideal. On clay, plant on a raised mound with compost and coarse sand worked through, because wet winter soil kills more shrubby salvias than cold does.

Water and feed. Water twice weekly for the first two months, then taper to deep soakings only in dry spells. It flowers better on lean rations, so one light feed of complete fertiliser in early spring is enough.

Pruning. Cut the plant back by a third to a half in late winter, before new growth starts. Through the season, shear off spent flowering stems to bring on the next flush. Skipping the winter cut leaves you with a woody, hollow centred bush after three years.

What to expect when it arrives

Flowering sage is grown here in tubes: young rooted plants around 100mm to 200mm tall. With a shrub that reaches a metre within a season or two there is little reason to buy larger, and the first flowers come a few months after a spring planting.

Tubes are light, hold their root plug and travel well. Plant within a few days of arrival into full sun and well drained soil, water in, and pinch the tips once to encourage branching from the base. Plants are delivered Australia wide, with delivery from $29.95. Every plant is covered by our 30 day healthy plant guarantee.

Plant care guides and related reading

• A waterwise guide to low water planting
• Browse bee and butterfly plants
• Bird attracting plants for the garden
• Compare drought tolerant plants

Common questions

How far apart should I plant it?

70cm apart for a massed display. Each plant fills about a metre, so 70cm lets the bushes knit together with air movement between them.

Will it survive frost?

Light frost only. It takes the occasional cold morning once established, but a hard frosting winter cuts it to the ground or kills it outright. In those districts grow it in a pot you can shift under cover.

Why has my plant gone woody in the middle?

Shrubby salvias open out at the base when they are never cut back. Take a third to a half off in late winter every year and the plant stays dense. A very old plant is often better replaced than renovated.