Salvia nemorosa ‘Kate Glenn’: A herbaceous perennial 60cmH with spires of violet blue flowers and colourful bracts, flowering in early spring.
Salvia nemorosa ‘Kate Glenn’ is a cross between ssp ‘Tesquicola and S. ‘Wesuwe’
Flowers: are a falcate type where there is a large space between the hood and the bottom lobes, this is to open the throat area to allow bees and other pollinating insects to explore further into the flower.
The flowers are, a dark violet blue rather than a purple colour, small, with a straight hood and a pale stigma exerted from the tip. The bottom middle lobe is slightly cupped to hold a drop of moisture and to act as a landing place for insects. The 2 side lobes seem to jut out from the side rather than being neatly tucked in. Pale markings are found on the bottom lobe around the throat to guide the bees into the flower.
Flowers are held in whorls of 4-6 flowers in alternate positions around the stems, showing a very intricate pattern when in bud. This positioning is thought to maximise access by the insects to each flower. Each whorl has 2 small bracts at the base, which are green but become a more crimson colour towards the tip. These remain even after the flower has finished and fallen off.
The whorls of flowers are positioned at regular intervals along the very long flowers head, some reaching 20-25cmL. As the flowers are small and the flower heads long, it gives the impression of slender purple spires.
As the flowering season is short, when the leaves appear in early spring, flower stems are produced, these quickly grow tall, producing flower heads in early spring, flowering through out summer, well in to autumn. If cut down after the first flush of flowers have finished, around Christmas time, more flower stems will emerge with another crop of flowers extending until May – one of the earliest to flower and one of the latest to finish.
Flowers are held well above the foliage to attract passing bees and pollinating insects.
Calyces: are primarily green, but have crimson coloured hairs along the ribs, giving the impression of a coloured calyx. All lobes are pointed
Small pinkish bracts are found beneath each whorl of flowers. These are found along the whole flower head to the tip. These remain for the whole season, becoming paler as the flower stem ages.
Stems: are tall and straight, green with a mottling of colour which adds another colour dimension, contrasting with the colour of the leaves. Stems can be single or branched, depending on the age of the clump. Each branched stem will produce a head of flowers. All stems are clothed with leaves.
Leaves: are lanceolate, mid green, slightly rugose with either a rounded or a slightly pointed tip. Small crenulations are found along the edges. Basal leaves will have a small petiole, but leaves become sessile as they progress up the stems. Leaves are positioned alternately along the stem to maximise the amount of sun they receive.
Salvia ‘Kate Glenn’ was found at Lambley Nursery and named after his daughter.
Grow in full sun, in groups of 3-5 plants with other similar coloured herbaceous and evergreen perennials and small shrubs. When grown en mass they make a wonderful display with the dark violet colouring being a good contrast to other, pale pink, crimson, blue, mauve or white flowers.
After the initial flower of flowers, they can be cut down low in around Christmas time , which will then give you another flush of flowers to continue into autumn.
Not fussy with soil, but should be well drained. If the soil is too heavy without enough compost/ plant matter incorporated, then there is a chance that the crown will rot and not appear again in spring.
Once established, these plants can be tough and hardy during summer with the occasional extra watering during the dry periods.
Maintenance: During the growing season, mulch well to keep the root area cool during the hot dry summer. During Autumn when the plant is preparing to go down for winter, collect any seed that may have formed, cut down all flower stems and clean up the leaf base. Feed now to strengthen the roots and crown, mulch the crown to keep the root area warm during the cold months of winter.
When the leaves begin to appear, then feed well and top up the mulch.
Propagation: usually by seed sown in warmer weather, but any large clumps can be divided or small new growths can be taken off either as cuttings or potted up as rooted slips. For more tips, visit the propagation page.
Not readily available