Today's Salvias of the Day is Hummingbird Sage (Salvia coccinea 'Lady in Red').

This plant can be found in the ATP Plant Database at:
Scarlet Sage (Salvia coccinea 'Lady in Red') .

Please join in, if you own this plant! We would love to know more!



Also, please consider adding a "Local Report" to the ATP Plant Database! Thank you!

Scarlet Sage (Salvia coccinea 'Lady in Red')

I have Lady in Red growing wild in my yard. Salvia coccinea grows like a weed here in my climate. It's seedlings pop up all around my yard. I leave most of them for the birds and butterflies as a nectar plant. I like the red color of the blooms. It is also more compact than some of the other S. coccinea cultivars.

It is prone to powdery mildew if it is exposed to too much rain and humidity. You can cut it back hard and it will grow new branches and leaves. It is an annual plant and freely produces seeds.

@beckygardener

Oops! the pic you posted here is not Salvia coccinea 'Lady in Red'. It looks like a Salvia splendens variety instead.

Lady in Red is one of my favorites and staples of my spring to fall season. I've at least one or more in my garden every year. Love that it reseeds. I love it and the hummers love it. Easy to grow and long blooming. Deadheading the flower stems promotes more flowering and makes the plant bushier.

You are right about the photo. I removed it from my post! I was looking at a thumbnail shot and couldn't tell which red saliva it was.

What red salvia splendens was that, anyway?

Sorry, but I honestly don't know. I don't have that one anymore.

I thought what I had is lady in red but it grows to 5 feet tall. Hmmm.

This is a beautiful Salvia species and a very nice shade of red!! I tried a few S coccinea this year- "Summer Jewel Red" and everything @Marilyn said about this one is true of the one I have. The ones I have have not gotten barely 12 inches tall however. The bloom size is adequate for me but prefer larger blooms and definitely prefer larger/taller salvias overall. I am on the fence about growing it next year because it does bloom a long time and reseeds profusely which I like- seeds can also be collected. Very good pics in this entry, it is well deserving as "Salvia of the day"!

I love Hummingbird Sage (Salvia coccinea 'Lady in Red'). Help! How do you make italics?!
I bought a six pack back in 2004 and their ancestors are still in my garden today because they reseed well. They are great for a cottage garden here in the Southwest. I have them in my flower bed and in a pot on my porch. Hummingbirds are constantly visiting in both spots. They are little fuss plants, just needing some trimming and deadheading now and then. In the tough summer heat here, they prefer dappled shade. They mix with everything and anything, with their deep green leaves and bright red flowers popping out all over the place. Sometimes, in the dappled shade, they get to be almost two feet tall and wide. Stems break off very easily, so I have to be careful when plodding through my garden on a prunning rampage, when I've fallen behind. I will definitely always have these. They see to that. Here they are in my garden this spring.

@droughttolerant

Hi and welcome to the Agastache and Salvias forum! I don't remember seeing you here before and I'm glad you are.

Here's some codes you can use ATP, including italics. http://garden.org/special/page...

Another reason I love Lady in Red a lot, as it is always in bloom and doesn't have a particular bloom season, as some Salvias and the hummers love that it is always blooming.

Thank you for the code page, Marilyn. I'm definitely going to find that handy. There is so much great stuff on this site, I think I'll never get to it all. What a problem to have, eh?
I second that on the hummers. I've been dive-bombed a couple of times when I've disturbed them in 'their' garden. Uh Oh, this code stuff is great. I feel another gardening related addiction coming on!