I love the foliage of Salvia Argentia. That is, I DID before it started doing THIS! What will happen if I just cut it back? Will it get big and fuzzy again? this year? or will it just keep getting all ugly on me? or die? or what?
Should I let my silver sage flower?
Here's another one that's not quite so far along.
Here's what the flowers will look like, I'd take a look at them before you cut all the bloom stalks off http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/showimage/1114/
OK I admit those are pretty flowers. But how long do they last and what happens to the plant AFTER it flowers? I'm still not sure I want it to flower at all. Call me crazy, but I never realized it would. My plants are only in their second year and it's the LEAVES that I love!
I've never grown this one so I don't know how long the flowers last. Most of my other salvias that start blooming early in the season will bloom for most of the summer though, so I expect they'd last for a decent amount of time. After it flowers it will form seeds (if you let it). You can obviously cut the flower stalks off if you want, but it may send up new ones. If you keep cutting them off though it'll eventually give up.
Thanks Ecrane. I do have other salvias starting to flower now, but this is so different. It didn't just put out flower stalks, the whole thing BECAME the flower stalk! The leaves are smaller & rougher and growing up the thick stalk, no longer a big furry rosette. It reminds me of a sempervivum that puts all its energy into making a flower, then it dies. I'm afraid if I cut the stalk off I'll be left with a sort-of stump. I think I'll just have to experiment - cut some / leave some, and see what happens.
Lisa, this reminds me a lot of lambs ear. I love the soft fuzzy leaves. When I first saw it growing vertically into a stalk with smaller leaves, I was really turned off. I've never planted it in my garden because of the way it morphs.
You got it Penne, it MORPHS! The leaves are like "mega" lamb's ear before it does that. I'm going to experiment with cutting some & leaving some.
I wish I had never let mine bloom I agree it's all stalk and it was so beautiful before the flowers came on if it makes it after the blooms I'll never let it bloom again! I started some more seeds incase it doesn't come back after flowering, I just gotta have this beautiful foliage in my garden!
OK if anyone is interested, I went ahead & let 2 of my plants flower but I cut all the flower stalks off the other 3. The flowers were pretty (here's a picture) but short lived.
A close-up.
Of the 2 plants that flowered, I cut the bloomed-out stalks off of one, leaving some ugly & not-so-fuzzy leaves. I cut the other one to the ground. So the experiment is continuing, if I get any more replies on this thread I'll let you know what happens with the 2 that I cut back.
Here's the same plant I posted the pic of 3 weeks ago & what it looks like now. This one was never allowed to send up flower stalks. I cut off the beginnings a couple of times & now it's starting to put out more of the soft, fuzzy leaves :^D.
I let mine flower, never again! and it's coming out at the bottom, the only reason I didn't cut the flowers off for now is I wanted to save some seeds if I can, I'm getting ready to clean it up now I'm like you I just hope it comes back next year now since it flowered but I have four more I started from seed again this year, I just love those fuzzy leaves! The heck with the flowers lol
Oh, this is a good thread! I have this plant, just planted it recently actually and it's not going to flower this year but boy do I know what to do next year. Thankyou Lisa and LeBug :o) I love those fuzzy leaves.
Le Bug, I didn't want mine to go to seed, so I'm glad you are (that's the part of the experiment I didn't try). But what do you mean it's coming out at the bottom? New leaves below the flower stalks? Are they fuzzy?
It's funny, I have always cut the flowers off of my lambs ears to keep them low. This year I let them go & I've decided I really like the flowers, after all they stay fuzzy. (Reminds me - I'll have to get pictures, they look great with my yarrow & gaillardia right now!)
The silver sage will NEVER be allowed to flower again though, it changes the plant too much.
Yep, it started coming out again under the flower stalks so I just cut eveything around it and it is beautiful again :) I won't allow mine to flower again either, it's too ugly with the flowers but beautiful as just the leaves but I wonder, it will still probably be ugly even if we cut the flowers off of it next year, guess we'll just have to wait and see, mine didn't look as good as yours when it was in flower the stalks fell over and had to stake them, I'm not much on white anyway the foliage was white enough for me lol
I never cut the blooms off of my lambs ears, I like the little pink blooms, I've never tried to collect the seeds off of them but they sure reseed a lot, I'm always pulling babies up around the plant.
Well I hope I get some new leaves on my plants that I cut back after flowering! The ones I DIDN'T let flower look fine now :0).
It will come back, anytime now, mine was a little ahead of yours I think cause when you started this thread my seeds were already starting to turn brown, it'll come back in a bit 8) That's good to know that the foliage is alright, not letting them bloom, I'm not going to let mine bloom next year then :) I love this foliage it's awsome!!!