Salvia leucophylla
An aromatic evergreen coastal California shrub with silvery-gray foliage and purple flower spikes, drought-tolerant and often used in xeriscaping, attracting pollinators.
Common Names
Purple Sage, San Luis Purple Sage, Gray Sage, Chaparral Sage
Summary
Purple Sage is an evergreen upright shrub native to coastal California and Baja California, typically reaching 1–1.5 m tall and 1–1.5 m wide, with grey-green, velvety foliage that darkens to silvery-gray with age and is aromatic, featuring loose spikes of purple-pink flowers in summer that attract pollinators such as bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds.
It grows in full sun with well-drained soils and is drought-tolerant, needing little irrigation once established; it is deer and rabbit resistant. Landscape uses include borders, rockeries, dry sunny slopes, and aromatic plant gardens or low hedges, with suitability for Mediterranean coastal gardens and xeriscaping.
Lifecycle
Perennial
Height
3 ft 3 in – 4 ft 11 in
Spread
3-6 feet
Hardiness Zones
Zones 8-9
Sunlight Requirements
Ideally full sun, also partial sun or partial shade.
Soil Type
Well-drained soil, sandy, loam, or sandy loam, pH 6.5–7.5
Soil Drainage
Well-drained soil
Soil pH
Tolerates all pH levels
Bloom Color
Purple
Bloom Time
Spring and Summer
Foliage Color
Gray-green to silvery-gray foliage
Fall Foliage Color
No fall color change
Leaf Lifecycle
Evergreen broadleaf
Growth Rate
Fast
Seasons of Interest
Spring and Summer
Propagation Methods
Seeds, Cuttings, Division, Layering
Attracts Wildlife
Attracts bees, butterflies, hummingbirds, other pollinators, and birds
Taxonomy
- Taxonomic Rank
- Species
- Author
- Greene
- Publication
- Pittonia 2: 236 (1892)
Superior Taxa
- Kingdom
- Plantae
- Subkingdom
- Pteridobiotina
- Phylum
- Angiosperms
- Order
- Lamiales
- Family
- Lamiaceae
- Genus
- Salvia