Mountain Sage Buddleja salviifolia
Other Common Name(s):
- Phonetic Spelling
- BUD-lee-uh sal-vee-eye-FOH-lee-uh
- Description
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Sageleaf Butterfly Bush is a large multi-stemmed shrub or small tree grown for its foliage and its attractive semi-weeping habit. It flowers on previous year's wood so prune right after flowering. Pruning is essential to maintain shape. This South African species needs well-drained soil in full sun with shelter from cold winds. It is very hardy and may remain evergreen through mild winters but should be protected from frost the first year after planting. It can be planted as a windbreak, in a mixed shrub border, in a pollinator or sensory garden, or naturalized area of the landscape. It propagates easily from softwood stem cuttings.
It grows naturally in forest margins, rocky hillsides, and along stream banks in Africa.
- See this plant in the following landscape:
- Cultivars / Varieties:
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- Tags:
- Cultivars / Varieties:
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- Tags:
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Attributes:
- Genus:
- Buddleja
- Species:
- salviifolia
- Family:
- Scrophulariaceae
- Uses (Ethnobotany):
- Fresh and dried leaves make an aromatic herbal tea. A decoction of roots is used for coughing and as a remedy for colic. An infusion of the leaves is applied as an eye lotion. Wood is used for fishing rods, knife handles, and gunstocks.
- Life Cycle:
- Perennial
- Woody
- Recommended Propagation Strategy:
- Seed
- Stem Cutting
- Country Or Region Of Origin:
- South Africa
- Distribution:
- Western Cape through the Eastern Cape to Free State, Lesotho, Kwazulu Natal, Swaziland, Northern Province, Mpumalanga, Mozambique, Zimbabwe to tropical Africa
- Wildlife Value:
- Nectar from flowers attracts butterflies, bees, hummingbirds, and other pollinators.
- Play Value:
- Attractive Flowers
- Attracts Pollinators
- Colorful
- Easy to Grow
- Fragrance
- Wildlife Food Source
- Wind Break
- Dimensions:
- Height: 8 ft. 0 in. - 20 ft. 0 in.
- Width: 8 ft. 0 in. - 15 ft. 0 in.
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Whole Plant Traits:
- Plant Type:
- Shrub
- Tree
- Woody Plant Leaf Characteristics:
- Broadleaf Evergreen
- Deciduous
- Habit/Form:
- Multi-stemmed
- Spreading
- Weeping
- Growth Rate:
- Rapid
- Maintenance:
- Medium
- Texture:
- Coarse
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Cultural Conditions:
- Light:
- Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)
- Soil Texture:
- Clay
- Loam (Silt)
- Sand
- Shallow Rocky
- Soil pH:
- Neutral (6.0-8.0)
- Soil Drainage:
- Good Drainage
- Occasionally Dry
- Available Space To Plant:
- 12-24 feet
- NC Region:
- Coastal
- Piedmont
- USDA Plant Hardiness Zone:
- 7a, 7b, 8a, 8b, 9a, 9b, 10a, 10b
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Fruit:
- Fruit Type:
- Capsule
- Fruit Length:
- < 1 inch
- Fruit Width:
- < 1 inch
- Fruit Description:
- The small, ovoid, hairy capsule has a persistent calyx. The tiny seeds are oblong and compressed. and often removed because they are unattractive.
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Flowers:
- Flower Color:
- Cream/Tan
- Pink
- Purple/Lavender
- White
- Flower Inflorescence:
- Panicle
- Flower Value To Gardener:
- Fragrant
- Showy
- Flower Bloom Time:
- Spring
- Summer
- Flower Shape:
- Tubular
- Flower Petals:
- 4-5 petals/rays
- Flower Size:
- < 1 inch
- Flower Description:
- Pale lavender cone-shaped panicles 5" long and 3" wide with 4 petaled tiny flowers. Not as showy as other Buddleja's. Flowers from late spring through summer.
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Leaves:
- Woody Plant Leaf Characteristics:
- Broadleaf Evergreen
- Deciduous
- Leaf Color:
- Gray/Silver
- Green
- Leaf Feel:
- Soft
- Velvety
- Leaf Value To Gardener:
- Fragrant
- Leaf Type:
- Simple
- Leaf Arrangement:
- Opposite
- Leaf Shape:
- Lanceolate
- Leaf Margin:
- Denticulate
- Entire
- Hairs Present:
- Yes
- Leaf Length:
- 3-6 inches
- Leaf Width:
- 1-3 inches
- Leaf Description:
- The foliage is dark green with a wrinkled appearance above and dense white to grey hair below, reminiscent of the herb sage. The leaves are long and fairly narrow with a pointed tip.
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Bark:
- Bark Color:
- Light Brown
- Light Gray
- Red/Burgundy
- Bark Description:
- Grey-brown and stringy. May also be reddish-brown and rough with thin darker strips running more or less lengthwise.
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Stem:
- Stem Is Aromatic:
- No
- Stem Surface:
- Hairy (pubescent)
- Stem Description:
- Young stems are covered with white fuzz.
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Landscape:
- Landscape Location:
- Naturalized Area
- Woodland
- Landscape Theme:
- Butterfly Garden
- Drought Tolerant Garden
- Garden for the Blind
- Pollinator Garden
- Design Feature:
- Border
- Hedge
- Screen/Privacy
- Specimen
- Attracts:
- Bees
- Butterflies
- Pollinators
- Resistance To Challenges:
- Deer
- Dry Soil
- Salt
- Wind
- Problems:
- Messy
