Salvia Species, Blood Sage, Hummingbird Sage, Scarlet Sage, Texas Sage
Salvia coccinea
Family: | Lamiaceae (lay-mee-AY-see-ee) (Info) |
Genus: | Salvia (SAL-vee-uh) (Info) |
Species: | coccinea (kok-SIN-ee-uh) (Info) |
Synonym: | Salvia coccinea f. pseudococcinea |
Synonym: | Salvia coccinea var. pseudococcinea |
Synonym: | Salvia pseudococcinea |

Category:
Annuals
Tropicals and Tender Perennials
Height:
24-36 in. (60-90 cm)
Spacing:
9-12 in. (22-30 cm)
Hardiness:
USDA Zone 7b: to -14.9 °C (5 °F)
USDA Zone 8a: to -12.2 °C (10 °F)
USDA Zone 8b: to -9.4 °C (15 °F)
USDA Zone 9a: to -6.6 °C (20 °F)
USDA Zone 9b: to -3.8 °C (25 °F)
USDA Zone 10a: to -1.1 °C (30 °F)
USDA Zone 10b: to 1.7 °C (35 °F)
Sun Exposure:
Full Sun
Sun to Partial Shade
Danger:
N/A
Bloom Color:
Red
Scarlet (dark red)
Bloom Time:
Mid Summer
Late Summer/Early Fall
Mid Fall
Foliage:
Herbaceous
Other details:
Soil pH requirements:
6.1 to 6.5 (mildly acidic)
6.6 to 7.5 (neutral)
7.6 to 7.8 (mildly alkaline)
Patent Information:
Non-patented
Propagation Methods:
From seed; sow indoors before last frost
Self-sows freely; deadhead if you do not want volunteer seedlings next season
Seed Collecting:
Bag seedheads to capture ripening seed
Foliage Color:
Bloom Characteristics:
This plant is attractive to bees, butterflies and/or birds
Water Requirements:
Average Water Needs; Water regularly; do not overwater
Where to Grow:
Grow outdoors year-round in hardiness zone
Can be grown as an annual
Regional
This plant is said to grow outdoors in the following regions:
Auburn, Alabama
Harvest, Alabama
Saraland, Alabama(2 reports)
Satsuma, Alabama
Chandler, Arizona
Phoenix, Arizona(2 reports)
Arkadelphia, Arkansas
Barling, Arkansas
Bryant, Arkansas
Morrilton, Arkansas
Canoga Park, California
China Lake Acres, California
GARDEN VALLEY, California
JACUMBA, California
Los Angeles, California
Merced, California
Monterey, California
Ridgecrest, California
Sacramento, California
Salinas, California
Santa Barbara, California
Bartow, Florida
Bokeelia, Florida
Daytona Beach, Florida
Deltona, Florida
Fort Myers, Florida
Jacksonville, Florida
Keystone Heights, Florida
Kissimmee, Florida
Land O' Lakes, Florida
Largo, Florida
Miami, Florida(3 reports)
Naples, Florida
New Port Richey, Florida
North Palm Beach, Florida
Pensacola, Florida
Pinellas Park, Florida
Plant City, Florida
Riverview, Florida
Rockledge, Florida
Seffner, Florida
Trenton, Florida
West Palm Beach, Florida
Winter Springs, Florida
Zephyrhills, Florida(2 reports)
Dallas, Georgia
Rockford, Illinois
Springfield, Illinois
Jeffersonville, Indiana
Shawnee Mission, Kansas
Hebron, Kentucky
Prospect, Kentucky
Leesville, Louisiana
New Orleans, Louisiana
Slidell, Louisiana
Gaithersburg, Maryland
Florence, Mississippi
Madison, Mississippi
Mathiston, Mississippi
Saint Louis, Missouri
Princeton Junction, New Jersey
La Luz, New Mexico
New York City, New York
Chapel Hill, North Carolina
Greensboro, North Carolina
Painesville, Ohio
Hugo, Oklahoma
Portland, Oregon
Florence, South Carolina
Okatie, South Carolina
Seabrook, South Carolina
Simpsonville, South Carolina
Cookeville, Tennessee
Arlington, Texas(2 reports)
Austin, Texas(2 reports)
Beaumont, Texas
Belton, Texas
Bulverde, Texas
Dallas, Texas
De Leon, Texas
Edcouch, Texas
Elgin, Texas
Fate, Texas
Flint, Texas
Fort Worth, Texas(3 reports)
Grand Prairie, Texas
Harlingen, Texas
Houston, Texas(3 reports)
Lampasas, Texas
Longview, Texas
Lubbock, Texas
Magnolia, Texas
Mont Belvieu, Texas
Navasota, Texas
Portland, Texas
Richardson, Texas
Rockport, Texas
Round Rock, Texas
San Antonio, Texas(2 reports)
Santa Fe, Texas
Spring, Texas
Ogden, Utah
Roy, Utah
Alexandria, Virginia
Arlington, Virginia
Staunton, Virginia
Kalama, Washington
Vashon, Washington
show allGardeners' Notes:
Rating | Content |
---|---|
Positive | On Feb 20, 2014, Lovehum wrote: These grew extremely slow for me and only flowered in rich, loose, soil putting off their best show as late as November. They did poorly in clay soil areas. The seeds which received more sun flowered a month sooner and developed multiple, taller flower stalks. Hummingbirds visited them but not as much as hot lips salvia and David Cuphea. |
Positive | On Aug 11, 2013, Bazuhi from Downers Grove, IL (Zone 5a) wrote: August 2013(First time growing this plant) |
Positive | On May 10, 2013, TexasDollie from Dewey, AZ (Zone 7a) wrote: It does reseed easily--I find it sprouting in other places around the beds. But the hummingbirds love it, so if the new plant grows in a good place, what's not to love? If it grows in the wrong place, it's easy to pull out and toss. I got my starts from the shady side of our post-oak savannah yard, just south of San Antonio, where it grew to 18" high or so. Moved them to the sunny flower beds along the front of the house where they thrived and brightened for several years. I've since brought seeds to the new place we live in and will plant them in a spot out back under the Arizona Ash. Guess I'll see how they do in this heavy black clay as opposed to the sand where I found them. |
Negative | On Apr 14, 2012, trackinsand from mid central, FL (Zone 9a) wrote: what everyone else said and oh my, it does re-seed! i have them everywhere. mine are growing throughout the garden. some are in full sun and some have come up under other plants and get more shade. it doesn't seem to matter. they just keep going. the original plants did die over the last winter even though it was a very mild one. |
Positive | On Jan 26, 2011, sunkissed from Winter Springs, FL (Zone 9b) wrote: I bought one plant many years ago and now my yard is full of them, they reseed and are very hardy. They even grow in the cracks of my patio stones, I just pull them up and put them in a pot and they continue to grow. I've given many away to friends. The bright scarlet red flowers are the first to bloom each year, in fact it is the end of January and I have a bloom on one now. They will freeze if out in the open, but if under plant/tree canopy or close the house they over winter very well. Easily can be pulled up where you don't want it or move it to where you do. Blooms all year but does seem to prefer shadier areas than the full sun. I love this plant. |
Positive | On Jul 23, 2010, IvoryBill from Magnolia, TX wrote: I bought this plant at a hummingbird festival last fall and overwintered it in a pot in the garage with minimal care, and this summer it is blooming like crazy and about three feet high and covered with flowers |
Positive | On Nov 7, 2009, jimenez from West Palm Beach, FL (Zone 10a) wrote: I have this plant all over my yard. It reseeds and I just pull the seedlings out of the ground where I find them and I place them where I want. They grow well in pots, in the shade and in full sun. I just pinch them if I want the plant to fill out a bit. This plant is so easy to grow in south Florida so I have started collecting salvias. None of the salvias I have purchased is as easy and carefree as this great plant. |
Positive | On Nov 5, 2009, lehua_mc from Portland, OR (Zone 8b) wrote: In Portland, the Hummingbird Sage still has flowers in early November, a bonus for the birds themselves. I planted it in a very hot southern exposure in composted soil, however I hope it seeds in the dry clay nearby. |
Positive | On Jun 22, 2009, phineas117 from Springfield, IL wrote: had never tried this before...even with a cool, very wet spring. |
Neutral | On Aug 11, 2007, ltcollins1949 from Rockport, TX wrote: This is a great hummer plant, but it is very invasive in south Texas. It comes up everywhere including cracks in the drive way. I pull the stuff up all the time and throw it away. The pink and white Salvia Coccinias are not as invasive. Keep it under control if you live in a hot climate or throw it out in a field and let it go. |
Positive | On Apr 22, 2007, htop from San Antonio, TX (Zone 8b) wrote: This plant needs part shade to shade in my location. Jowever, with too much shade, it does not bloom profusely. It needs spaced from 1 foot to 2 feet apart. It is a native plant that can be found growing in woodlands and hilly slopes in the Edwards Plateau Region of Texas as well as other poarts of east and south Texas. I have found that it perforns better in poorer drier soil; otherwise, it becomes leggy, the leaves become speckled with light green spots and the blooms are fewer. It has a high deer resistance due to the pumgent odor of its leaves. It is a short lived perennial that reeed profusely. To encourage fullness, prune it removing the top half at the end of May. After the first frost has browned its leaves or in mid-winter, cut it to about 3" from the ground. It is one of my ... read more |
Positive | On Apr 14, 2007, subzerox2 from Gaithersburg, MD wrote: Grows quickly and has attractive red blooms. I initially planted a mass of them after reading about their ability to attract hummingbirds. Interestingly enough, while I did notice the resident hummingbirds checking the red blooms out ever so briefly, they seemed to quickly bypass them in favor of dining on the red monarda not far away. |
Positive | On Jun 12, 2006, GeorgiaJo from Dallas, GA (Zone 7b) wrote: Beautiful, easy to grow and aromatic (minty). Self-seeds reliably. Hummers and butterflies love it. Blooms early. |
Positive | On Nov 9, 2003, dogbane from New Orleans, LA (Zone 9a) wrote: Carefree native (Louisiana) often found growing in harsh environments like roadsides, but frequently seen also in woodland and marsh edges. A favorite of hummingbirds. |
Positive | On Nov 8, 2003, TerriFlorida from Plant City, FL wrote: I've grown S. coccinea for more than ten years. The one I have is brilliant red, and proved tougher than the pink form. I just bought the white form, and so far it is doing great, but the jury's still out for it. |
Positive | On Jan 9, 2003, ButterflyGardnr from Orlando, FL (Zone 9b) wrote: This plant is well-suited for xeriscaping being drought-tolerant. The natural form has an intense red blossom which hummingbirds and butterflies love. It is very striking when planted in large groupings. It is considered a short-lived perennial and will reseed itself. Pruning of the spent flowers will promote flowering. |
Positive | On May 20, 2002, bmuller from Albuquerque, NM (Zone 7a) wrote: It is easy to grow, reseeds, and blooms from July until frost. |
Neutral | On May 3, 2002, loisbeth wrote: Approximately 18" X 18". Reseeding tender perennial. May be sheared to keep shorter. Very easy to grow. In Texas, we usually treat it as an annual. |