Salvia/Sage and Artemisia - add some silver & lace to the Garden

I have two different varieties of Artemisia growing in my garden. There are many varieties, from annuals to perennials and even shrubs that comprise this plant family. They bring in some welcome neutral color, and their lacy textures are a good foil for many plants. In Connecticut, I had a large, 4 ft tall variety in one corner of my front garden. Canyon Grey is a voluptuous, cascading greenish-gray shrub that gives an almost eerie look to the garden. Yes, that is a wooden sculpture of a hand coming up out of the plant on the steps. I'm playing upon the spooky look of the curvy branches and spiky silvery needle-like leaves. When rubbed or stepped on, the leaves give off a heady, spicy, woodsy scent. I keep this trimmed back; otherwise, it would spread all over the yard! It is great for a hillside, for that reason. They don't require much water, either.



David's Choice is a mounding type of Artemisia, with lovely small yellowish white flowers in the spring/summer. It keeps its lacy, mounded shape all year round and makes a nice architectural statement at the front of the garden bed.




Salvia spp. comprises a large group of annuals, perennials, and even shrubs. Most of them have delicate green or silver foliage, and many of them have flowers of pink, white, or purple. They add an invaluable focal point to the garden. Autumn Sage is a pretty perennial shrub, about a foot tall, lithe and open in structure, with petite tubular reddish pink blooms that hummingbirds love.


White Sage is a large perennial whose chunky stems can grow to over 6 ft long, with cascades of tiny bell-shaped white flowers that bees and hummingbirds, and even snails, love. The leaf, when dried, is used to make smudge sticks, a tool used by Native Americans and others to purify energy and space. Take the leaves, washed and gently dried, and gather them together in a tight package. Using embroidery floss, or string, leaving about 6 inches at one end, tightly wrap the floss/string up and around the packet of leaves, coming back down to the starting point. Tie off the ends and trim. Hang in a cool, dry place. The sage/smudge stick is ready when the leaves have dried, in a few weeks.

Sage is also a potent herb for cooking and for making sage tea. Simply pour 1 pint of boiling water over 1 oz of the dried herb, and let steep. The tea cools fevers, purifies the blood, stimulates digestion, and soothes inflammations of the mouth, throat, and tonsils. A beautiful plant, a useful herb - a real powerhouse in the garden!