Salvia verbenaca
| Salvia verbenaca | |
| Light: |  |
| Moisture: |   |
| Hardiness: | 6 |
| Soil pH: | 6.6-8.4 |
| Self Pollinated | |
| Height: | 2' |
| Blooms: | Early Summer-Early Fall |
| Meadows | |
| Shelter | |
| Edible Rating: |  |
| Medicinal Rating: |  |
| Tea: | Yes |
 | |
Salvia verbenaca (common name: wild clary)
Propagation: Seed - sow March/April in a greenhouse. Germination usually takes place within 2 weeks. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle and plant them out in early summer. In areas where the plant is towards the limits of its hardiness, it is best to grow the plants on in a greenhouse for their first winter and plant them out in late spring of the following year.
Division in spring.
Cultivation: Requires a very well-drained light sandy soil in a sunny position[1]. Prefers a rich soil[2]. Plants can be killed by excessive winter wet[1].
This species is well suited to the wild garden, growing well in the summer meadow[1]. A good bee plant[1].
Members of this genus are rarely if ever troubled by browsing deer[3].
Range: Mediterranean region to Spain, France and Britain.
Habitat: In Britain it is found wild in only one place on sand dunes at Vazon Bay in Guernsey[4]. In Europe it is found in dry grassland, avoiding acid soils and shade.
Edibility: Leaves - raw or cooked. They are most often used as a flavouring in cooked foods. They are aromatic. The young leaves can be eaten fried or candied[5].
A herb tea is made from the leaves, it is said to improve the digestion.
Flowers - raw. A flavouring in salads[6][5].
Medicinal: The seed forms a thick mucilage when it is soaked for a few minutes in water. This is efficacious in removing small particles of dust from the eyes[7].
Pollinators: Bees, self, cleistogamous
Soil: Can grow in light and medium soils.
Drainage: Prefers well drained soil.
Wind: Tolerates strong winds
Seed Ripens: Mid Summer-Mid Fall
Flower Type: Hermaphrodite
Also Known As: S. clandestina. S. controversa. Willk. non Ten. S. horminoides. Pourret. S. marquandii.
Links
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Huxley, Anthony. The New Royal Horticultural Society Dictionary of Gardening. MacMillan Press, 1992.
- ↑ Chittendon, Fred. RHS Dictionary of Plants. Oxford University Press, 1951.
- ↑ Thomas, Graham. Perennial Garden Plants. J. M. Dent & Sons, 1990.
- ↑ Clapham, Arthur and Tom Tootin, Edmund Warburg. Flora of the British Isles. Cambridge University Press, 1962.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Facciola, Stephen. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications, 1990.
- ↑ Kunkel, Günther. Plants for Human Consumption. Koeltz Scientific Books, 1984.
- ↑ Grieve, Margaret. A Modern Herbal. Penguin, 1984.