This is the hardiest blue-colored sage of section Flocculosae, which also contains S. greggii, the only member with red flowers.  It grows in cool spots in Big Bend and Guadalupe in western Texas.

Small in stature, it has possibilities as a rock garden plant.  The foliage is green with a grayish cast.  The flowers are a pure sky blue.  It thrives in Mediterranean climates, and can best be grown as a container plant in the northeastern states, since it takes over one year to get to blooming size.  I have grown it in cool, sunny windows for winter periods. 

All other mainland Mexican members of this section, including S. chamaedryoides, S. chionophylla, S. coahuilensis, S. macellaria, S. muelleri, and S. thymoides should have pure blue flowers as well.  The presence of purplish notes is probably evidence of hybridization with forms of S. greggii or S. microphylla.  Obvious hybrids of these origins are commonly found in Mexico, and a number of them are in cultivation.

This sage is part of a complex with many different forms, most adapted for xeric conditions.  Although it is tender, it is a vigorous grower attaining a height of up to six feet in one year.  It blooms during the summer with many spikes of numerous lavender flowers.  The foliage is gray and the stem woody, indicating its tolerance for sunny conditions. 

It appears to be a good honeybee and butterfly plant.  Its cousin, a selection from the Copper Canyon area of southwestern Chihuahua, has grape-scented flowers and is reported as a sacred plant of the Tarahumaras.

Mexican sage is a moderately variable species that has potential for breeding similar to S. splendens, since both tend to have persistent, colored calyxes.  Here the flowers are midnight purple with similarly colored calyxes.  The variety `La Placita’ is very similar, having been collected the next town down Mexican Federal highway 85 (the Pan-American Highway) in the mountains of Hidalgo.  It is hardy for me in Greensboro, and can grow six feet tall in one year. 

Other outstanding forms include `Limelight’ and `Tula’, with blue-purple flowers and chartreuse calyxes.  The first is the smaller plant, and reminds me of S. mexicana minor, which has small flowers.  It is in the California trade.  `Tula’ is a bigger plant, with brighter yellow calyxes and was collected by Yucca-Do. 

`Lollie Jackson’ is like `Puerto de la Zorra”, but with a denser flower spike.  `Ocampo’ (another Yucca-Do introduction), is a taller, larger plant with a flower spike to match.  Compton’s Form is a selection with nicer foliage and a dense spike with somewhat smaller flowers, and may be a hybrid.

This species is one of the most varied of all sages.  There are many worthy forms worth growing, and Wild Watermelon is one of the toughest.  Like most forms, it becomes a robust, large plant within a year.  Unlike most of its kin, it spreads by layering itself.  Besides having extra large rose flowers with a white marking in its throat, the foliage is tidy and the plant relatively cold-resistant.  It blooms best in spring and fall. 

This behavior is not surprising, since it was collected by Don Mahoney near the top (7000 - 8500 feet) of Cerro Potosi, a mountain near Monterrey in northeastern Mexico.  I got this seedling as a gift for a talk I gave at Strybing Arboretum.  Another selection from this seed lot is in the trade in California as `Rosita’.

This is a huge brilliant red sage, getting four feet tall and forming a large bush.  Its flowers are double-sized for either a S. greggii or a S. microphylla.  The first year's growth is open.  In subsequent years, it fills in nicely.  With its rich glossy, green leaves setting off the flowers, it is a reminder of Christmas in summer.

It will do best in Mediterranean climates, but is durable in North Carolina's humidity.  This is a Texan introduction by way of Yucca-Do and Scott Ogden.

This is the blue prince of sages, the one with the largest flowers in that color range.  `Cambridge Blue' is the one form with light blue flowers.  `Oxford Blue’ is a typical form with dark blue flowers.  `Guanajuato’ (collected by Jamie Compton)  is a deep blue form with extra-large flowers.  `Chilcombe’ and `Lavender Lady’ are old mauve and clear lavender in color.  `White Trophy’ is one of two white forms. 

All grow from tubers, and dislike subtropical hot nights.  They are generally grown as annuals in the northeastern United States.  In Mediterranean climates, they may well be perennial, since they are one of a surprising number of sages that grow tubers or rhizomes.  The foliage is scented, reminding me of freshly vulcanized rubber. 

It is supposed to be extinct in the wild.  Hopefully, this is not true, since a good breeding program with a wide variety of genetic material of this species might generate some wonderful plants.