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Botanical name: Salvia mexicana ‘Limelight’
Tall stems produce an excellent show of chartreuse and violet-blue flowers from late summer into fall, over dense foliage; very fast growing and vigorous; great for containers and borders.
| Hardiness zone | 8b |
|---|---|
| Flower color | blue |
| Foliage type | evergreen |
| Plant form | upright spreading |
| Mature height | 6 feet |
| Spread | 3 feet |
| Light requirements | full sun to partial shade |
| Moisture requirements | average to moist |
| Plant origin | import |
Limelight Mexican Sage features delicate spikes of blue flowers with violet overtones and chartreuse bracts rising above the foliage from late summer to late fall. The flowers are excellent for cutting. Its fragrant pointy leaves remain grayish green in color throughout the year. The fruit is not ornamentally significant.
Limelight Mexican Sage is a dense herbaceous evergreen perennial with an upright spreading habit of growth. Its medium texture blends into the garden, but can always be balanced by a couple of finer or coarser plants for an effective composition.
This plant will require occasional maintenance and upkeep, and is best cleaned up in early spring before it resumes active growth for the season. It is a good choice for attracting bees, butterflies and hummingbirds to your yard, but is not particularly attractive to deer who tend to leave it alone in favor of tastier treats. It has no significant negative characteristics.
Limelight Mexican Sage is recommended for the following landscape applications;
Mass Planting, General Garden Use, Container Planting
Limelight Mexican Sage will grow to be about 5 feet tall at maturity, with a spread of 3 feet. When grown in masses or used as a bedding plant, individual plants should be spaced approximately 24 inches apart. It has a low canopy with a typical clearance of 1 foot from the ground. It grows at a fast rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for approximately 5 years.
This plant does best in full sun to partial shade. It does best in average to evenly moist conditions, but will not tolerate standing water. It is not particular as to soil type or pH. It is somewhat tolerant of urban pollution, and will benefit from being planted in a relatively sheltered location. Consider applying a thick mulch around the root zone in winter to protect it in exposed locations or colder microclimates. This is a selected variety of a species not originally from North America.
Limelight Mexican Sage is a fine choice for the garden, but it is also a good selection for planting in outdoor pots and containers. With its upright habit of growth, it is best suited for use as a 'thriller' in the 'spiller-thriller-filler' container combination; plant it near the center of the pot, surrounded by smaller plants and those that spill over the edges. It is even sizeable enough that it can be grown alone in a suitable container. Note that when growing plants in outdoor containers and baskets, they may require more frequent waterings than they would in the yard or garden.
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