SALVIA. Sage. The perennial sages of California are dominated by the shrubs, described above. However, the two more or less herbaceous species (even these have some woody tissue near the bases of the shoots) are both beautiful and useful. Both have textured, aromatic foliage, as described below, but otherwise resemble each other only in the irregular, two-lipped form of the flowers. Their culture is also distinct..

sonomensis. Sonoma sage. This is a prostrate, semi-shrubby perennial, often seen making broad carpets in the California chaparral. The stems are closely lined by rather narrow, pleasantly to bitterly aromatic leaves, about 2" long. They are covered by short hairs, especially on the lower surface, and can be almost ashy grey in color (some forms have tired-looking yellowish green leaves, but one would hardly consider these for the garden). Rising straight up off the mats in spring are slender stems carrying interrupted clusters of deep purple to white--unfortunately, usually "dirty white"--blossoms. My recent selections are from the nearby Gabilan Range and combine bright grey leaves with violet flowers. This is an ideal ground cover for steep, dry banks, needing full exposure and excellent soil drainage to reliably persist. 10^oF. or less.

spathacea 'Kawatre'. An unusual native perennial, in this case from the Santa Lucia Mountains. It forms broad, dense clumps with arrow shaped, interestingly textured 6-8" leaves clustered at the base. Leafy 2' stems appear in spring and fall, carrying large interrupted ball shaped clusters of 2" blossoms which are deep magenta on opening, changing to orange-red. A recent addition from the wild, even more robust and with generally darker flowers, is 'King Crimson'. All parts of the plant are strongly and pleasantly aromatic. Tolerates some shade. Moderate to very occasional watering. Probably 5-10^oF.