PlantFiles: Clary Sage, Muscatel Sage
Salvia sclarea

This plant is a class A quarantined noxious weed plant in the state of WA. Quote from website:

* It is illegal to transport, buy, sell, or trade any quarantined species.
* It is also illegal to distribute seed packets, flower seed blends, or 'wildflower mixes' of those plants.
* Persons violating the quarantine restrictions are subject to a civil penalty of up to $5,000 per violation.

This biennial can get very large. I have had one plant grow over 4' tall and 3' around in good garden conditions. When it is crowded or very dry it will stay smaller. Once it is done flowering it will die pretty quickly and can leave a large open spot in the garden. It reseeds pretty heavily if not deadheaded, but the finches like the seeds so I leave it. Best of all, my hummingbirds love this plant. It is a very substantial and structural plant; great for a place you are not sure if you need a shrub; it will be gone in two years anyway, so you can test out how big a plant you need with clary sage.

What beautiful pictures! I am trying to find a clary sage plant to be used in a photo shoot at the end of January. It can be potted or cut, but needs to be flowering. Would anyone have any leads? Thank you very much!

I like the reseeding ability even though it will shatter up to 20'. Very similiar to Salvia argentea but for the green leaves not silver.

This is a very beautiful flowering plant. The flower colors change depending on the lighting conditions, from white through cream, ivory, pink and purple, but it needs to be planted very far from smelling range. In the hot sunlight, the leaves emit overpowering stench at least 10 feet away. If not deadheaded, self-seeds abundantly. Plants do not transplant well, so seed should be planted where desired, rather than allowing it to self-seed.

Clary sage is an erect, hairy,branched biennial or perennial herb with large,aromatic,light green,ovate leaves about 9 inches long.The flowers are whorls of bicolored cream and lilac, to pink or blue, 1-1/4 inch long, with conspicuous lilac bracts that bloom in spring and summer. Can get up to 3 feet high and up to 2 feet wide.