Lakeshore Garden Centres Plant Finder

Group/Class:  So Cool Series

Description:

A robust and adaptable selection, producing pale blue to lavender blooms with dark gray calyces on tall spikes; a beautiful addition to borders or beds with its bright green foliage and upright, bushy form; looks fantastic in containers

Ornamental Features

So Cool™ Pale Blue Sage has masses of beautiful spikes of fragrant powder blue tubular flowers with lavender overtones and dark gray calyces rising above the foliage from late spring to late fall, which emerge from distinctive purple flower buds, and which are most effective when planted in groupings. The flowers are excellent for cutting. Its attractive fragrant oval leaves emerge light green in spring, turning green in colour throughout the season.

Landscape Attributes

So Cool™ Pale Blue Sage is an herbaceous annual with an upright spreading habit of growth. Its relatively fine texture sets it apart from other garden plants with less refined foliage.

This is a relatively low maintenance plant, 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.

So Cool™ Pale Blue Sage is recommended for the following landscape applications;

• Mass Planting
• Rock/Alpine Gardens
• General Garden Use
• Naturalizing And Woodland Gardens
• Container Planting

Planting & Growing

So Cool™ Pale Blue Sage will grow to be about 20 inches tall at maturity extending to 30 inches tall with the flowers, with a spread of 30 inches. When grown in masses or used as a bedding plant, individual plants should be spaced approximately 24 inches apart. Although it's not a true annual, this 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 does best in full sun to partial shade. It is very adaptable to both dry and moist growing conditions, but will not tolerate any standing water. It is considered to be drought-tolerant, and thus makes an ideal choice for a low-water garden or xeriscape application. This plant should not require much in the way of fertilizing once established, although it may appreciate a shot of general-purpose fertilizer from time to time early in the growing season. It is not particular as to soil pH, but grows best in sandy soils. It is somewhat tolerant of urban pollution. This particular variety is an interspecific hybrid. It can be propagated by division; however, as a cultivated variety, be aware that it may be subject to certain restrictions or prohibitions on propagation.

So Cool™ Pale Blue 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. Note that when growing plants in outdoor containers and baskets, they may require more frequent waterings than they would in the yard or garden.