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Russian Sage - Bare Root Plant

$13.25
$13.25 $24.96
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Size : Bare Root Plant
Re-stocking soon

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Bare root arrives dormant

Expect new growth in about 6 weeks after planting. Until then it can look lifeless, so you won’t be able to tell within 24 hours of arrival whether it will grow.

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About the Product

Russian sage is a tough, woody-based perennial with airy spires of small violet-blue flowers over finely cut, silvery-green, aromatic leaves. It comes into bloom in late summer and keeps its color well into fall.

Growing 3 to 4 feet tall with a loose, open habit, it makes an excellent filler for the back of a border or a mass planting in a hot, dry site. It is very cold hardy, drought tolerant and deer resistant, and it needs little attention once established. It emerges late in spring, so do not give up on it early.

What it looks like

Tall, branching spires are covered in tiny, tubular, two-lipped flowers in violet-blue, held in fuzzy purple-gray calyxes and spaced along wiry, whitish stems. The leaves are small, finely dissected and silvery gray-green, with a pungent sage-like scent. The plant forms a loose, open, upright subshrub about 3 to 4 feet tall and 20 to 30 inches wide. At peak bloom it looks like a hazy, see-through cloud of blue-violet over silvery stems.

Growing it with lavender

Russian sage and lavender want the same hot sun and lean, sharp-draining soil, and its violet-blue spires take over in late summer after the main lavender bloom, carrying the silvery, fragrant look into fall.

Care

Plant in full sun in lean to average, well-drained soil; it thrives in heat and drought and dislikes wet feet. Hardy in zones 4-9. Leave the stems standing over winter, then in spring, once new buds show, cut back to just above the lowest set of new growth; it is slow to leaf out, so be patient.

At a glance

  • Botanical name: Salvia yangii
  • Flower color: Lavender-blue
  • Foliage: Silvery gray-green
  • Growth habit: Loose, open upright subshrub
  • Mature size: 36 in–4 ft tall × 20–30 in wide
  • USDA hardiness zones: 4–9
  • Light: full sun
  • Bloom start: Late-July
  • Peak bloom: Late-August
  • Bloom pattern: Long Blooming
  • Deer resistance: Resistant
  • Pollinator value: Great

Sizes and shipping

Dormant bare-root plant, sold in boxes of 25 per variety (order in multiples of 25). Bare-root plants ship or are picked up March 1–May 31 only. They are soil-free, so they may ship to every state in that window. Dormant plants often show little or no top growth on arrival; plant or heel them in promptly.

View Product Details
Mature height
48.0 in
Mature spread
30.0 in
Bloom
Late-July – peak Late-August
Fragrance
Strong
Deer
Resistant

Lavender companion · grow guide

How to grow Russian Sage

Perennial Salvia / Russian Sage · Salvia yangii

Give full sun and well-drained soil. Perennial salvias (S. nemorosa, S. × sylvestris) rebloom when cut back; Russian sage (S. yangii) is a woody, late-waking subshrub pruned only in spring.

Check my zone & planting dates
Russian Sage
  • Full sunLight
  • Low waterFast drainage
  • pH 6.0–8.0Soil
  • Zones 4a–9bHardiness
  • 48″ tall30″ wide
  • ResistantDeer · rabbits resistant
  • Not known toxicPets
Huckleberry, the farm dog

Huckleberry saysTell me where you grow and I’ll check if Russian Sage will thrive there.

Hardy in zones 4a–9b

Spring is best; early fall works if 6 weeks remain before freeze.

Dormant bare-root Russian sage as it arrives, laid on burlap

When it arrives

Your bare-root plant

Bare-root salvia is a woody crown with fibrous roots and short stem stubs (Russian sage has longer, gray, woody stems). Soak roots 20–30 minutes, plant the crown at soil level, water once, then let it dry slightly between waterings.

Expect new growth in about 6 weeks after planting. Bare root ships March–May while dormant, with little or no top growth, and it can look lifeless until then. That’s normal. Salvia nemorosa types show basal leaves in early spring. Russian sage is late: woody stems look dead until mid- to late spring, when small gray-green buds break. Wait before cutting or removing it.

You won’t be able to tell within 24 hours of arrival whether a dormant plant will grow.

When to plant

Spring is best; early fall works if 6 weeks remain before freeze.

How deep

Set the crown level with the soil, never buried.

Spacing

Perennial salvias 18–24"; Russian sage about 3 ft.

Soil

Sandy, gravelly or loamy · pH 6.0–8.0

Fix-it tip: In heavy clay, raise the bed or add grit. Skip rich compost; lean soil gives sturdier stems. Wet winter soil is the main killer.

Sun

Full sun (tolerates light shade, with fewer flowers).

6+ hours of sun keeps plants compact. Russian sage especially flops in shade.

Dormant
New growth

Don’t give up on it

Is it alive? What spring looks like

Salvia nemorosa types show basal leaves in early spring. Russian sage is late: woody stems look dead until mid- to late spring, when small gray-green buds break. Wait before cutting or removing it.

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