texas sage growth rate

Texas mountain laurel does not grow fast in the best conditions, but you can increase the growth rate to about two feet per year if it is growing in good soil and it is fertilized twice per year.

How quickly does Texas sage grow?

The Texas sage is a fairly slow-growing plant, and may take up to 2 years to become fully established and bloom reliably. Once established, the Texas Sage is extremely drought tolerant, requires very little supplemental water, and will bloom after a good rain storm.

How far apart do you plant Texas sage?

Plant spacing

Place these shrubs about 3 feet apart. Come out from the house 3 feet. If you're planting along a drive or walk, come in 3 or 4 feet. This shrub does fine in a large container.

Is Texas sage easy to grow?

Growing Texas sage is quite easy in well-drained soil. It is not a nutrient hog and can survive in soils where other plants will fail, although it prefers alkaline soil. In the wild, it grows on rocky slopes and calcareous soils. The plant is known to be drought and heat tolerant and performs best in full sun.

How tall does a Texas sage tree get?

This trademarked plant, with its silvery foliage and deep purple flowers, provides contrasting color and texture with other shades of green in the landscape. This sage can grow up to 5 feet tall and wide and has a dense form.

Is Texas sage poisonous to dogs?

Texas Sage (Leucophyllum frutescens) - non-toxic to dogs.

What grows well with Texas sage?

For low-water gardens in USDA zones 7b through 11, consider desert willow (Chilopsis linearis) as a companion for Texas sage. This tree grows willowy foliage and reaches an average height of 20 to 30 feet. Because of its white, pink or lavender tube-shaped flowers, the tree is also known as orchid of the desert.

Do butterflies like Texas sage?

Plant in well-drained soil and in a place in your yard where the shrub will get full sun. This purple sage can take pretty cool temperatures, down to around 12 degrees. ... It also is considered to be one of the best plants at attracting butterflies.

Will Texas sage grow in shade?

This sun-loving plant will tolerate part shade (areas with morning shade and afternoon sun), but is more likely to grow lanky and bloom less. A drought-tolerant shrub, once established, water Texas sage only during periods of drought (or when the container garden it's in starts to dry out).

Does Texas sage loose leaves in winter?

ANSWER: Leucophyllum frutescens (Cenizo), or Texas sage, is a dry land plant that responds very strongly to weather conditions. It often loses leaves following a cold winter. Interior leaves tend to drop off if the outer layer of leaves blocks incoming sunlight.

Does Texas sage attract hummingbirds?

There are many salvias, and hummingbirds like them all. A familiar choice is Salvia greggii, but hummingbirds also are drawn to S. farinacea, a Texas native called mealy blue sage.

Will Texas sage freeze?

will Texas sage freeze? Woody plants such as sage survive most winters without damage. Excess growth produced from nitrogen fertilizer may make plants susceptible to frost or freeze damage. Green growth needs to harden off before cold winter temperatures set in.

Is there a dwarf Texas sage?

Texas Rangers are in fact not a true sage although they are often called Texas Sage. ... Leucophyllum frutescens 'Bertstar Dwarf' is a dwarf variety and only grows to be about 4 feet tall. This variety has the same signature silver-gray foliage and purple blooms as other varieties but blooms repeatedly throughout the year.

How do you shape Texas sage?

Try pruning up to a third of a shrub. For a more natural shape, snip branches individually at varying heights. Then in late spring, early summer, prune again, if necessary. You also can prune tips during the growing season to encourage bushy growth.

Will deer eat Texas sage?

Cenizo (Leucophyllum frutescens) – known also as Texas sage or Texas ranger, cenizo is an evergreen shrub with predominately silver-gray leaves. ... Texas mountain-laurel (Sophora secundaflora) – its fragrant flowers in the spring are a delight to people, but its thick tough leaves are not so palatable to deer.

Can you grow Texas sage from cuttings?

Texas sage is so easy to propagate from cuttings that you can start a new plant nearly any time of year. Many experts advise taking 4-inch (10 cm.) softwood cuttings after blooming ends in summer, but you can also take hardwood cuttings while the plant is dormant in late fall or winter.

Does sage need full sun?

Sage does best in medium to full sun. It can also do well in containers or indoors – just be sure it's near a sunny window if you're growing it inside. If you live in zones 5 to 8, your sage will be a hardy perennial.

Is Purple Sage poisonous to dogs?

Unlike some herbs which can cause digestive upset in large doses, sage is recognized by the ASPCA as being non-toxic for dogs. You should still limit your dog's intake to a few leaves a day, but there's no danger of poisoning.

How often does sage bloom?

It tends to be a short-lived perennial and is often best replaced every few years. Common sage blooms in early summer. The camphor-scented, bluish-lavender to pink-lavender flowers are borne in whorls on short, upright flower spikes. Each flower has two lips.

Why is my Texas sage not blooming?

Texas Sage thrives in full sun and well-drained alkaline soil. They will tolerate a bit of shade, but too much shade will result in leggy plants that don't bloom heavily. Supplemental water in summer will help plants grow faster and bloom more, but over-watering or poor drainage will kill Texas sage quickly.

How do you get Texas sage to flower?

Once established the Texas Sage is extremely drought tolerant, requires very little supplemental water, and will bloom after a good rain storm. (Don't try to trick it into blooming by watering heavily, it won't work.) After a week or two, the blooms will fall off, but the silver gray green leaves stay year round.

What does Texas sage look like in winter?

Leucophyllum frutescens (Cenizo), or Texas sage, is a dry land plant that responds very strongly to weather conditions. It often loses leaves following a cold winter. ... It is an evergreen shrub, with grayish-green leaves and purple flowers. Texas sage also goes by the names of Texas Ranger and Silverleaf.