Growing sage

Patricia101

I have previously grown sage successfully - lovely flowers, big bushes. However since moving house- from south of England to the midlands I have not managed to keep a sage plant going successfully. Tried in the ground it grew for a couple of years but failed to flower despite good sun. In a pot it just keeled over at the end of the season, leaves turned a soggy brown and it wilted. Help!! Any ideas would be helpful as use both leaves and flowers. This has happened to both the green and purple sage.

Any suggestions gratefully received!

 

 

Hostafan1

The leaves often look grubby over the winter, but usually pop back again nicely in Spring.

Fairygirl

I can't grow it here Patricia. Doesn't survive the wet and cold.

You may need to keep it undercover in winter, or treat as an annual. That's what I did, but I don't bother with it at all now.  We just have 'onion and onion' stuffing 

Patricia101

wondered if it was the change in temperature Fairygirl-?(Colder up here) although I hadn't noticed it! Might be the wet , will try again in a pot and overwinter in a cold frame. Like the flowers though so will keep trying. Leaves didn't just look grubby hostafan, they had distinctive brown patches- I would say they had some kind of disease but --what? again might be excessive wet.

Would wet prevent flowering??

Fairygirl

Mine never got that far Patricia - they gave up the ghost! 

They do like drier conditions, so perhaps they've been wet/cold and just didn't get as far as flowering. Worth trying them undercover and seeing if it helps though 

Dave Morgan

Well I grow both in my Mid Wales garden. Excellent drainage is key. It'll grow in a mix of sharp sand and grit in a pot. In the garden it needs loads of grit in the planting hole prior to planting. It's rarely cold that kills herbs, it's the drainage.

Fairygirl

Mine was always in pots and in a gritty medium, but it still didn't survive Dave! I think one lot lasted one winter but that was the exception.

I've given up on it, although I like it in the garden  

Patricia101

Will try both. When I think about it I had mine planted in a slightly raised bed as well as it having better weather (down south??)  Bought a new small plant today so will add gravel to the pot and put under cover if a wet  season in the autumn. Will also try a different sage in the garden and add gravel to the planting hole.

Thanks for the suggestions , makes you really think through what is going on.

Dave Morgan

Some do fair better than others the larger leaves varieties grow well in clay in one of my clients garden. 

Invicta2

I live in the rainy north west of England and my garden soil is heavy clay so I chose to grow my Sage in a large pot. It grows in a mix of grit and top soil, no compost, so it drains well. I also keep it in a sheltered spot over winter as plants in pots are more vulnerable to prolonged frosts as their roots can ge frozen. This has worked successfully for a few years now. Do not feed sage as it promotes soft growth vulnerable to cold, treat them lean and mean.

Dovefromabove

And take cuttings every year as a insurance.  I find that heeled cuttings in a gritty compost strike well.