Perennial sage: a vibrant garden despite heat and drought

Heat, drought and hardly any time for maintenance – yet a garden full of life?

An understated perennial makes this possible almost effortlessly.

Anyone who has looked helplessly at a scorched lawn during recent summers will recognise the issue: traditional garden plants are coping increasingly poorly with extended dry spells. At the same time, more people want to support bees and other beneficial insects. Many instinctively choose lavender. But landscape designers have long been enthusiastic about another long-flowering perennial that offers more, needs less and attracts insects as if by magic.

A vibrant garden in heat and drought

Why professionals are now choosing perennial sage

It now appears almost everywhere in professional planting schemes created by local authorities, architects and garden landscapers: perennial sage, botanically known as Salvia. It can seem rather unremarkable on the shop shelf, but in a border it becomes a small burst of colour – reliably, year after year.

“Perennial sage is now regarded by planners as one of the most dependable flowering perennials for dry, sunny locations – and as a magnet for wild bees.”

Ornamental Salvia varieties for decorative borders

Unlike culinary herbs such as traditional garden sage, which many people know only from roasting dishes or tea, most ornamental Salvia varieties have been bred specifically for decorative beds. They offer long flower spikes, bold colours and compact growth.

Months of flowering rather than a brief display

As soon as the soil warms up in spring, perennial sage gets going. Slender flower spikes then rise above the foliage, often in:

• deep royal blue