White Sage
Salvia apiana
Color: White to pale lavender
Common name: White Sage
Latin name: Salvia apiana
Family: LAMIACEAE
Height:< 3 feet
Description: The flowers are very attractive to bees, which is described by the specific epithet, apiana. Several flower stalks, sometimes pinkish colored, grow above the foliage in the spring.
Leaf: The whitish evergreen leaves have oils and resins that release a strong aroma when rubbed. They are generally basal, 4–8 cm, widely lanceolate with a tapered base and minute teeth.
Range: w edge Desert, South Coast, Transverse Ranges, Peninsular Ranges
Habitat: Common. Dry slopes, coastal-sage scrub, chaparral, yellow-pine forest
Elevation: generally < 1500 m.
Flowering time: May–Aug
Notes: Salvia apiana, a dicot, is a shrub that is native to California and is found only slightly beyond California borders.
Horticulture: Salvia apiana: Given excellent drainage (modification of compacted or other water-holding soils may be necessary), absence of frequent summer water (distance from water-loving plants), and full or nearly full sun (tolerates summer afternoon sun), grows especially well in zones 7, 14, 15, 16, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, and 24 and also in zones 8, 9, 11, and 17. Especially good for stabilizing or restoring disturbed or degraded areas. May be less suitable for general garden use.
We have an online wildflower field guide that is designed to help you identify desert wildflowers by color, scientific name, region and common name. The pictures are sized to work on the iPod, iPhone, iPad and similar devices. With your iPod or phone you will easily be able to identify wildflowers while in the desert. Links for downloads are on the bottom of the Wildflower Field Guide page.
Photo tips: Most digital point-and-shoot cameras have a macro function - usually symbolized by the icon of a little flower. When you turn on that function, you allow your camera to get closer to the subject, looking into a flower for example. Or getting up close and personal with a bug. More on desert photography.
Mojave Desert Wildflowers - This book is the standard by which all other wildflower books are measured. The author, Jon Mark Stewart, has combined super photography with concise information. This book has an entire color page for each wildflower covered, with a discussion of the wildflower. 210 pages with 200 color photos. More...
What's Blooming Now - Check the Wildflower Reports
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The Desert Environment
The North American Deserts
Desert Geological Terms
