Salvia nemorosa Blue Marvel - Woodland Sage

The  Salvia nemorosa 'Blue Marvel' is a selection of bush sage that is interesting for its compact habit, well-adapted for border and container plantings, as well as for its particularly large violet flower spikes. Its vibrant flowering continues throughout the summer if faded flower spikes are regularly removed. Easy to grow, very hardy and not demanding in terms of water, this little sage is also a fantastic perennial for the garden that will not disappoint.

The Salvia nemorosa is a perennial of the lamiaceae or labiate family. It is a species native to central Europe and western Asia. 'Blue Marvel' is one of the many cultivars, and won the gold medal at Plantarium in the Netherlands in 2016, as well as the 'Best in Show' award at the HTA National Plant Show in the UK. Its mature size will not exceed 30 cm (12in) in height by 35 cm (14in) in width. This perennial develops from a prostrate rosette of oval, rough, matte green leaves with toothed edges that are aromatic when crushed. It has a bushy, highly branched and sturdy habit. Flowering begins in June and continues until August. The flowers form stout, wide terminal clusters, composed of numerous intensely blue-violet flowers with white throats, surrounded by purple bracts. These beautiful nectar-rich flower spikes succeed each other throughout the summer and delight butterflies. The base of the stems is often reddish. The deciduous vegetation almost completely disappears in winter except for the persisting basal rosette of leaves.

This 'Blue Marvel' bush sage is a reliable and floriferous perennial that withstands everything, even wind, cold, heat and poor soils. It will look stunning alongside pink-flowered plants, such as the Mirato ground cover rose, white-flowered plants like Chamaemelum nobile 'Plenum', and mauve Penstemon Pocahontas. Also try combining it with the grey foliage of artemisias in dry soil, or with the purple foliage of Physocarpus opulifolius 'Lady in Red' in moister soil. It can also be placed in front of taller, airy pink-flowered plants, such as the hastate verbena 'Rosea', which will dominate it in height, or the shrubby mallow 'Barnsley'.  This little 'Blue Marvel' sage is also perfect for border compositions with carnations, dwarf asters. On the terrace or balcony, this plant will flower all summer without requiring much care, beyond regular watering.

With over 900 species of annuals, perennials, and woody shrubs, spread throughout the globe except for in very cold regions and tropical forests, the Salvia genus is the most diverse in the lamiaceae family. The name Salvia, dating back to Roman times, derives from the Latin salvus 'healthy' in reference to the medicinal properties of common sage.