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Desert Purple Salvia

Salvia dorrii

$17.59
$17.59 $21.99
per Plant - 5" Deep Pot
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ZONES  5-9 | Good to grow! Zone
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• Salvia dorrii (Desert Purple Sage) is a showy late spring blooming native shrublet with silver foliage and blue flowers pushing out from mid-purple bracts
• Highly fragrant foliage delights in the garden and is deer and rabbit resistant
• S. dorrii is a pollinator magnet and plays a crucial role in preserving biodiversity in the western US
• Drought resistant/drought tolerant plant (xeric)

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Description

18" tall x 24-36" wide (seed propagated). Desert Purple Sage is a western native gem that puts on a dazzling display of pale-blue and purple flower spikes in late spring. Little known outside of the circle of native plant enthusiasts, it is a fast growing, heavy bloomer best suited to the hottest, most challenging planting sites. This small growing shrub has highly aromatic, silvery leaves that are both beautiful and resistant to browsing mammals. Plant it where the soil is fast draining and rocky, sandy or loamy in texture. This is an excellent companion plant for late spring blooming Beardtongues.

Planting & Care

Tips For Growing Salvia

Salvia (commonly referred to as ‘Sage’) represent a huge family of ornamental plants that attract a variety of pollinators to their nectar rich flowers. They are resistant to deer and rabbits.

  1. Plant in full sun.
  2. Plant native Western Salvia varieties in soil that is low fertility and well-drained.
  3. Plant Old World Salvia in a wide range of soils (loams, sand) including clay.
  4. Many spring-flowering varieties of sage will re-bloom in fall if deadheaded after the first bloom.
  5. New transplants need regular irrigation their first growing season to establish themselves. Once established they will need regular, deep irrigation during hot, dry weather.
  6. During fall garden clean-up, wait to cut back the plants until spring for improved cold hardiness.
  7. In colder USDA zones (zone 6 and below) it is essential to give Native Southwestern and Southwestern hybrids protection from the extreme cold their first couple winters in the garden. Mound up pine needles or fallen autumn leaves over and around the base of the plant.

Western Native Salvia: : It is from the Western US that we find our most beautiful native salvia species. For attracting hummingbirds, there are no finer flowers than the Western native sages. Typically, this group of Salvia prefer ‘lean’ (not very fertile), well drained soils. They will grow in dry clay conditions in arid climates but will rot out in clay soils where there is more than about 15 to 18” of precipitation annually.

Western Salvia include:

  • Salvia greggii - ‘Furman’s Red’, ‘Cold Hardy Pink’
  • Salvia hybrids - ‘Maraschino’, ‘Raspberry Delight’, ‘Ultra Violet’ and ‘Burgundy Seduction’.
  • Salvia pachyphylla and Salvia dorrii is recommended for arid western gardens.
  • Salvia azurea and Salvia reptans - Early fall bloomers with excellent cold hardiness.

To get established in USDA zones 5 & 6, Western Salvia (noted above) must be planted in spring or early summer, not in the fall. Protect your new plants over their first winter or two in your garden. Cover each plant with a generous pile of clean straw or pine needles. This allows the plant's crown (junction of root and branches) to mature and obtain maximum cold hardiness.

Old Wolrd Salvia: The Old World Salvia include some of the very best, most durable, longest-lived perennials. These salvia are an excellent choice for gardeners across most of the United States. ‘Old World’ Sages bloom primarily in shades of blue, pink and white. They are well adapted to cold climates and a wide range of soils including clay. The European Salvia are incredibly attractive to honey bees, many of our native bees and bumble bees as well as butterflies.

Old World varieties include:

  • Salvia syslvestris'Lyrical Rose', 'May Night', 'Little Night', 'Caradonna' and 'Marcus'.
  • Salvia daghestanica
  • Salvia verticiliata

More in-depth guidance for growing Salvia:Planting Nectar Rich Salvia to Attract Pollinators to the Garden

Shipping

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As soon as your order is placed you will receive a confirmation email. You will receive a second email the day your order ships telling you how it has been sent. Some perennials are shipped as potted plants, some as perennial roots packed in peat.  The ‘Plant Information’ section describes how that item will ship. All perennials and fall-planted bulbs are packaged to withstand shipping and are fully-guaranteed. Please open upon receipt and follow the instructions included.

Perennials and fall-planted bulbs are shipped at the proper planting time for your Growing Zone. Perennial and fall-planted bulb orders will arrive separately from seeds. If your order requires more than one shipment and all items are shipping to the same address, there is no additional shipping charge. See our shipping information page for approximate ship dates and more detailed information. If you have any questions, please call Customer Service at (801) 769-0300 or contact us by email or chat.

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Key Features

Light Requirements

  • Full Sun

Bloom Time

Spring to summer

Advantages

  • Bee Friendly
  • Attracts Butterflies
  • Attracts Hummingbirds
  • Native
  • Evergreen
  • Deer Resistant
  • Rabbit Resistant

Additional information

Mature Height

18" tall

Mature Spread

24-36" wide

Soil Type

  • Average Soil
  • Sandy Soil

Soil Moisture

  • Waterwise

Planting Time

  • Fall

Awards

Utah's Choice

Growing Zones

  • Zone 5
  • Zone 6
  • Zone 7
  • Zone 8
  • Zone 9

Ships As

Potted Plant

Can Send To PO Box

No

Ships to Hawaii & Alaska

No

Overall rating: 4.6666665 / 5 from 12 reviews.

AI Generated Review Summary

Summary topics

Review topics: ["water","flowers","plant","sage","growing","bees","guy"].

Review highlights

Reviews

We ordered three different plants

"We ordered three different plants and all three arrived safe and in great shape. We plant two in the backyard which is fenced and they are both looking great. We planted one in the front yard and the dang deer ate it before it had a chance! We will use High Country Gardens again."

— Chip P. (5/5)

It dropped a lot of

"It dropped a lot of leaves after I unboxed it, from shock I assume. But it has retained half its leaves and seems to be holding steady."

— Mariana G. (5/5)

My Favorite Idaho Native Plant

"I planted three of these magnificent plants when I lived in Boise, and I have three being shipped this week to my new home in Arizona. Their flowers resemble those of the Salvia pachyphylla, their leaves have the same amazing aroma, but they are a bit more temperamental about sun and soil conditions than their cousin. While the pachyphylla tends to get larger and less symmetrical, the Salvia dorrii is a slow grower that eventually grows into a beautiful, dense globe shape. Best thing of all, they attract native bees, especially Orchard Mason bees, as soon as they begin flowering in the spring and continue to attract other native bees throughout the entire summer."

— Native L. (5/5)

Patience yeilds beauty!

"So pretty just need to be patient. This is year 3 and its doing great. Year 2 it flowered some, but this year even more. The leaves are very pretty pale green so it stands out amidst the other plants. Perfect for desert type environments."

— Enthusiastic A. (4/5)

5 years Going Strong

"This is a follow up to the review that I left five years ago. These plants are so robust, never need watering, and give me the most beautiful flowers."

— Crickets (5/5)

Needs another season

"Had had a little difficulty with this one at first. One didnt make it, but the other seems to be doing well. The foliage is very pretty, light sage green and airy. Have yet to see any flowers and may have to wait until next spring as it says its a late spring bloomer and I only planted in late May. The great news is a deer ate all my other plant buds just as they were nearing bloom time, but this little guy was safe. Not a nibble. Will order another in fall as Im confident now that it will grow."

— Enthusiastic A. (5/5)

Loves the heat and very little water

"I have this plant in the hottest driest part of my garden. It's only been in the ground 3 months but has grown several inches already and has a few cute little flowers. One of the two I ordered has died unfortunately, even though it has been given the same care. The roots on the one that died were less developed than the one that is thriving upon arrival and planting."

— Vince (4/5)

Desert Salvia

"This is a great Xeric plant for alkaline soils. It is native to Southern Utah as I have found it on hikes there. It makes a small shrub over a few years with beautiful blue flowers in the spring. I've had it for 15 years. It develops a woody stem and sprawls unless carefully pruned as per High Country's suggestion."

— CB (5/5)

Beautiful! Dramatic show on flowers on a tough site

"Behind a row of yellow day lilies. Great contrast. Mine are 36"" tall."

— Gail (5/5)

Thriving despite abuse and neglect

"I planted 3 in a very high wind, drought stricken area 4 years ago promptly forgot about them. Some rain was available the first year. Since then we have had just a very few inches of precipitation annually and I rediscovered them mid summer last year blooming and started giving them a little water regularly. They stayed ""green"" all winter even to 10 deg for an extended period. They are 6-12 inches tall. I would recommend to anyone in an extremely harsh environment. The rabbits do not seem to touch them. I would never recommend to someone at low altitude or with more than 15"" of rain annually."

— Birdsnbeessf (4/5)

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