Promising Plants Profiles

Salvia merjamie 'Mint Sauce'

Genus: Salvia
Specific Epithet: merjamie
Cultivar Name: 'Mint Sauce'
Common Name: mint sauce sage
Family: Lamiaceae

Flower Color: very pale china blue
Form: herbaceous perennial
Hardiness Zone: 6
Height: up to 3'
Soil: well-drained soil
Sun: full sun

Uses: aromatic, ornamental

"This uncommon hardy sage is relatively new to the market and was collected high atop Mount Kilimanjaro in northern Tanzania. I brought this plant in from England several years ago, continue to propagate it by stem cuttings, and it seems to be very happy in the garden.

Salvia merjamie 'Mint Sauce' is a Zone 6 perennial. It over-winters as a basal rosette of dark green leaves. The foliage has a very strong minty aroma, similar to a mint pesto sauce. In summer, masses of small, very pale china blue flowers appear, beautifully arranged in whorls on erect stems to 3 feet tall. When the buds appear, they too have the very strong mint scent of the leaves.

This East African sage needs full to part sun and very well-drained soil, and because of its height, is best planted in the middle to back of the border. It deserves to be more widely grown and tested further for hardiness in the U.S. Further research may also reveal culinary or medicinal potential." – Scott Kresge, Promising Plants Presentation, 2005

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