“The New Book of Salvias, Sages for every garden” is not a new book, it was first published in 1997. The expanded and updated book that I have was published by Timber press in 2008. Despite the fact that some of the original text is 15 years old, if you are growing Salvias then this is a very practical book to have on your bookshelf.
I am not a “natural collector”. I cannot imagine having a lot of different varieties of the same species of plant in my garden, although Salvias may prove me wrong! When I visited Derry Watkins in October 2010 I was blown away by the salvias that were still going strong in her Autumn garden. I bought Salvia confertiflora and Salvia involucrata. There we go, the start of a love affair with plants that I knew very little about. My mind associated Salvia with either sage to eat, or those dumpy little things that are sold as summer bedding.
I started looking for Salvia seed to buy (Robin at Robins Salvias is a good place to start) I had no idea that there were so many different varieties available for a gardener. Where to start, which to choose?
Timber Press however came to the rescue by sending me “The New book of Salvias, sages for every garden” by Betsy Clebsch to review. Of the 900+ species of Salvia, Clebsch’s book covers approximately 150 which are “gardenworthy species and significant hybrids”
At the back of the book are some very handy pages with 7 lists covering things such as a flowering season guide and a shade tolerance guide, great for helping you to choose the right plant for the right location.
Included in the book are straightforward although small photos of some of the salvias mentioned, together with some botanical and line drawings by Carol D. Barker.
The book documents the Salvias alphabetically, this section covers some 280 of the 344 pages. Each description has information on habitat, growing and flowering characteristics, hardiness and propagation information. Betsy Clebsch’s knowledge shines through all of the plant descriptions. There are also some recommendations for other plants that will work with Salvias in a planting scheme.
The one that caught my eye was a combination of Salvia confertifolia with panicum virgatum. I think this may be a combination that I am going to try for myself at some point, as I have some switch grass that I want to move.
For me this is a useful book with a wealth of information. It will help me to ensure that the plants that I have in my garden will get the location and care that suits them best. I found it fascinating to read about the native habitats. The “New Book of Salvias” is what it is, a reference book of salvias suitable for the garden. If you are interested in Salvias it will be a welcome addition to your bookshelf.
Of the Salvias mentioned in the book – I have about 10 in the garden already, with another dozen in seed packets waiting to be sown. So there are more Salvias in my garden than any other species of plant and that does surprise me. It is also starting to sound like a little collection!
