Clary sage

Clary sage: how do you recognise it?

Habit

Biennial: a low rosette 30–40 cm across in the first year, branched flowering stems up to 1 m tall and 50 cm wide in the second. The plant dies after setting seed.

Leaves

Large, oval to heart-shaped, up to about 20 cm long, wrinkled and densely hairy; grey-green and slightly sticky.

Flowers

Lipped flowers in whorls along long, branched spikes, from June to August; pale lilac to white, with showy pinkish-lilac bracts.

Scent

The whole plant smells strongly, aromatic and musky, especially when touched and in warm weather.

Stems

Square, sturdy and hairy, as in all members of the mint family; sticky towards the top.

Seed

Small brown nutlets in the calyx, ripe from late August. They germinate readily in open, sunny soil.

Flowering: June–August · Harvest and fruit: May–September · Sowing: March–May · Plants: May and September · Pruning: August–September

Why grow it?

• A tall, spectacular flowering plant for a dry, sunny border or gravel garden, from June to August.
• Bees, bumblebees and butterflies constantly visit the lipped flowers.
• Tolerates drought and poor soil once well rooted: watering is rarely needed.
• The coloured bracts stay attractive for weeks, even after the small flowers have faded.
• Self-seeds gently, so you have flowering plants every year without sowing again.
• Even in its first year, the large, felty leaf rosette is an ornament in the border.

Clary sage: where does it grow best?

• Full sun: the warmer and sunnier the spot, the sturdier the plant and the richer the flowering.
• Well-drained soil: sand, loam or clay, neutral to chalky. Improve heavy clay with coarse sand or gravel.
• Dry to moderately moist; wet soil in winter makes the rosette rot.
• Allow 40–50 cm between plants. They look best in groups of three to five.

Light

Sun

Soil type

Sand, loam or clay

Acidity

Neutral or chalky

Moisture

Dry or normal

Size

1 m tall, 0.5 m wide

Hardiness

Hardy (to -20 °C)

Goes well with

• Lavender: The same dry, sunny spot and the same visitors.
• Globe thistle: Steel-blue globes beside the pinkish-lilac spikes.
• Feather grass: Airy plumes that sway with the tall flowering stems.
• Catmint: A low blue foreground that hides the base of the clary sage.
• Purpletop vervain: Airy purple flowers at the same height, which also self-seed freely.

Clary sage: when and how to plant it?

Plant in May and September.

1. Sow indoors in March–April in moist seed compost at 18–20 °C and cover the seeds only very thinly. They germinate in one to two weeks.
2. Prick the seedlings out into small pots once they have two true leaves and harden them off gradually.
3. You can also sow outdoors where they are to flower in April–May, thinly in rows, then thin the seedlings to 40–50 cm.
4. Plant out in May or September, at the same depth as in the pot, 40–50 cm apart. September plantings flower the following summer.
5. Water in well and keep the soil lightly moist for the first few weeks until the plant has rooted.
6. Mulch with gravel rather than compost: it keeps the base of the rosette dry in winter.

Care

Watering

Rarely needed once established; only during long dry spells in the first year.

Feeding

Not needed. On rich soil the stems go soft and the plant flops.

Support

In a windy spot, put in a few canes or a plant support for the tall flowering stems.

Deadheading

Leave a few spikes to self-seed and cut the rest after flowering if you do not want too many seedlings.

Harvesting

The small flowers and young leaves are edible: scatter the flowers over a salad and use the leaves sparingly, as their flavour is strong.

Clearing up

The plant dies after setting seed: pull it out in autumn and leave the young rosettes in place.

Tip: Each plant flowers only once: leave a few seedlings or sow a few more every year, so you have flowering plants every summer.

Clary sage: when to prune it?

Pruning months: August–September.

When: After flowering, in August–September. No real pruning is needed: it is mainly a matter of cutting off spent spikes.

How:

• Cut spent flowering stems back to just above the leaf rosette if you do not want seed.
• If you want seedlings, leave two or three spikes until the seed is ripe and brown.
• After early cutting back, a plant sometimes forms a new rosette and flowers for another year, but do not count on it.
• Remove dead plants, roots and all, in autumn.

Caution: The leaves are sticky and the scent lingers on your hands for a long time: wear gloves if you would rather avoid that.

Pruning: when and how · Pruning calendar and basic rules

Propagation

Seed

Indoors in March–April or outdoors in April–May. Sowing fresh seed outdoors in August–September also works; those plants flower after the following winter.

Self-seeding

Let a few spikes ripen. In spring, seedlings appear around the parent plant; move them while still small, with a good root ball.

Clary sage: how does it get through the winter?

Hardy to −20 °C.

• Hardy to about −20 °C: the rosette survives a normal Belgian winter without protection.
• Wet soil is a greater danger than frost: choose a well-drained spot, if possible slightly raised.
• Do not cover the rosette with wet leaves or straw, as it will rot underneath.
• In a pot: stand it against a wall or under an overhang so the compost does not get too wet.

Diseases and pests

• Slugs: Eat holes in young rosettes and seedlings. Pick them off in the evening and spread gravel around young plants.
• Winter rot: The rosette turns brown and soft. The cause is wet soil; in future sow or plant in a drier, better-drained spot.
• Flopping stems: On rich soil or in too much shade the stems go soft. Do not feed, plant in sun and support if needed.
• Aphids: On young flowering stems in spring. Ladybirds usually deal with them; otherwise hose them off with water.
• Too many seedlings: Weed out surplus seedlings in spring, or cut off most spikes before the seed ripens.

Through the year

• March: Sow indoors. Clear dead leaves from overwintered rosettes.
• April: Sow indoors or outdoors. Prick out seedlings.
• May: Sow outdoors. Plant out young plants. Watch for slugs.
• June: Second-year plants flower. Add support if needed.
• July: Full flower. Water young plants during long dry spells.
• August: End of flowering. Cut off spent spikes or leave a few to self-seed.
• September: Plant out this year’s rosettes. Sow fresh seed outdoors.
• October: Clear dead plants. Leave the seedlings in place.
• December: Rest. Keep the rosettes free of wet leaves.

Edible and useful

Flowers (June–August)

Pick the lilac, pink or white flowers from June to August, in the second year, when the plant is in flower. They taste sweet and aromatic, milder than the leaves: scatter them over a salad or a dessert. Pick them on a dry day and use them straight away.

Leaves (May–September)

Pick the large, wrinkled rosette leaves from May to September, in the first and second year; the young ones are the most tender. They smell strong and musky and taste more powerful and more bitter than common sage: use them sparingly. They have long been dipped in batter and fried, and in the past they were used to give wine a muscat flavour.

Storing

Clary sage is best used fresh. The flowers keep for a day in a closed box in the fridge, the leaves for a few days in a bag.

Caution: Clary sage is edible, but use it as a herb, in small amounts. Not during pregnancy or breastfeeding. Never swallow clary sage essential oil. It is a biennial: in the first year, do not take too many leaves from the rosette, or the plant will weaken.

Eating and using is at your own risk: see the terms of use.

Recipes

• Clary sage fritters (Dish · 4 people as a snack · 30 min)

Good for wildlife

Bees

Nectar and pollen for honeybees and wild bees.

Butterflies

Nectar for butterflies.

Did you know?

• In German it is called Muskatellersalbei: it was once used to give wine a muscat-like flavour.
• The flowering tops are distilled for an essential oil that is widely used in perfumery.
• The colourful part of the spike is mainly the bracts, not the small flowers: that is why it stays attractive for so long.