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Salvia leucophylla – Lamiaceae (Mint Family) - ‘Purple Sage ,' ‘San Luis Purple Sage'   A native to the hills of central and southern California , this beautiful shrub has an all-over white appearance, with pale purple stacked whorls of flowers rising atop a medium-sized woody shrub. All plant parts contain the exquisite sage aroma which evokes the sun-baked hills of the Chaparral region of California. A tight shrub with a tidy habit, this Sage is a favorite for the native landscape.

Although its native habitat would not suggest this, it and its other native Salvia brethren have fantastic garden potential, being drought tolerant but also looking better with some supplemental irrigation. On the foggy North Coast , Purple Sage grows well in a sunny, well-drained garden bed, growing lusher foliage, flowering much longer and looking generally better than its drought-stressed wild brothers. It is hardy down to at least 25°F, and will tolerate infrequent brief drops to even lower temperatures.

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