Overwintering Black and Blue Salvia
I absolutely loved my Black and Blue Salvia this year. It was one of the many annuals I experimented planting in my yard. We happened to end up having one of the hottest and most intense droughts. Our secondary water was shut off nearly a month and a half early. I was incredibly nervous that many of my newly planted flowers and annuals were going to shrivel up and die.
Black and Blue Salvia is considered an annual in my area. It can’t survive a zone 6 winter. If your zone is 7 or above you can treat it as a perennial. In zone 7 mulch around it for insulation and it should flower again in spring. I put this annual in a spot where there was morning shade and about 5 hours of hot afternoon sun.
Why I love this plant!
This flower got quite large for an annual very quickly. In about two months it was about 3 feet tall by 3 feet wide.
It had endless vibrant blue blossoms that bees and hummingbirds just loved, all the way from mid-summer to mid-November. Hummingbirds are the best!
The bush itself was very attractive. My set of three filled in so nicely and were able to keep the weeds from growing in that area.
I got a million compliments from various people.
It was zero maintenance, easy to grow, and required an average amount of water.
It was a beast at combatting the heat! It handled the temperature with no problem.
Okay, now that I gave a little back story about how awesome this plant is. Can you now see why I want to overwinter this gem? My neighbor, who is a gardening wiz, told me one day that I could bring these inside for winter and when the last frost has passed in spring, I can plant them again outside!
Awesome reasons to overwinter your Salvia and bring it inside.
Your end of season plant is bigger and more mature than when you buy them in the nursery. This way, they have head start in size and a more mature root system. Basically, they get bigger faster.
It saves you money. One little plant cost me 7 dollars.
You can divide the salvia. My three bushes had large root balls. I ended up getting 8 plants from the three original plants. Its pretty amazing.
Why not? Haha. It gives me something to take care of in the winter when my outdoor plants are sleeping.
Easy steps to overwintering my black and blue salvia:
Dig up plants before your first frost. You will know your plants are okay if your stems are still green and the tubers are nice and firm…not mushy. I actually dug up my black and blue salvia after our first frost because I wanted to enjoy them as long as possible. I waited until all the blossoms and stems died. They were just fine.
I bought four (10 inch) flower pots, on sale at Lowes for 5 bucks. I can use these throughout the years for this purpose. At $5 a pot, they are still cheaper than buying a new salvia again next year. Make sure they have a drainage plate underneath since they are going to be inside.
I divided the plant into smaller sections. I have a video on youtube you can refer to. You don’t have to divide them, but I wanted to store the plants in something a little smaller than the large roots would accommodate.
Fill up your pots with soil. I chose miracle grow potting soil. Place your plant in the pot. Finish putting soil into your pot around the base of the plant.
Cut down the stems about 2-3 inches above the soil level.
Water the plants about once a month. Make sure you don’t overwater. If they become soggy they can get root rot.
Store in a location that is a little cooler, but not in a spot that can freeze. I’m storing mine in a room in my basement, that is around 60 degrees with not much sunlight. It also has a few small windows.
That’s it. I really hope you found this helpful. I can’t wait to plant my black and blue salvia next year. I’m going to find some really big pots to plant them in and add a few other annuals. It is going to be gorgeous! Stay tuned.
- The Flower Fanatic
