Salvia surprise

5/5/2011 Sierra San Antonio Salvia found at Frisco LowesI went plant hunting at the Frisco Lowes and made an exciting find from my salvia wishlist: Sierra San Antonio! This was the salvia I hunted at NHG for…what amazing colors. The first bloom showed off a dark purple throat behind a pale gold tongue. The habit is strangely-tropical looking: the lanceate leaves are glossy and have veining similar to a microphylla. It’s actually a cross between greggii and microphylla, and the taxonomical name given is Salvia x jamensis. This specimen has a short woody trunk, but all the new stem growth is shiny like the leaves. I hope that it will endure the summer heat.