Lakeshore Garden Centres Plant Finder

Other Names:  syn. Hemizygia

Description:

This evergreen sub-shrub or tender perennial puts on a great show in the garden with its stunning green and white variegated foliage; lavender pink flowers all season on top of red stems is an added bonus that is sure to please; excellent in containers

Ornamental Features

Candy Kisses Wild Sage features showy panicles of fragrant lavender flowers with pink overtones and purple bracts at the ends of the branches from mid spring to mid fall. Its attractive fragrant round leaves remain dark green in colour with distinctive white edges throughout the year. The brick red stems are very colorful and add to the overall interest of the plant.

Landscape Attributes

Candy Kisses Wild Sage is a multi-stemmed annual 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 is a relatively low maintenance plant, and should be cut back in late fall in preparation for winter. It has no significant negative characteristics.

Candy Kisses Wild Sage is recommended for the following landscape applications;

• Accent
• Mass Planting
• General Garden Use
• Container Planting

Planting & Growing

Candy Kisses Wild Sage will grow to be about 4 feet tall at maturity, with a spread of 4 feet. Although it's not a true annual, this fast-growing plant can be expected to behave as an annual in our climate if left outdoors over the winter, usually needing replacement the following year. As such, gardeners should take into consideration that it will perform differently than it would in its native habitat.

This plant should only be grown in full sunlight. It is very adaptable to both dry and moist growing conditions, but will not tolerate any standing water. It is not particular as to soil type or pH. It is somewhat tolerant of urban pollution. Consider applying a thick mulch around the root zone in winter to protect it in exposed locations or colder microclimates. This particular variety is an interspecific hybrid.

Candy Kisses Wild 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.