Date: 6/25/26 1:48 pm From: Paul Conover via groups.io <zoiseaux...> Subject: Re: [labird] For Hummer Gardeners
Bill, Nancy, Paul, Dennis, Labird,
In terms of Salvia, I have the following questions and observations.
What is the nectar content of Amistad? I got Amistad from Nancy a few
years back, and in terms of garden performance, it has no peers--not
even close. The original from Nancy is still brawling despite droughts
and heat waves, 4 degree freezes, flooding rains, changes in sun and
shade ratios, and everything else nature has thrown at it. It blooms
over the entire growing season, shoots backs within days of a freeze,
and even tiny three inch long soft tip cuttings start to make bloom
heads before the cutting even begins rooting. It is a freak. The high
number of blooms probably makes it a wash even if sugar %age is low, but
I'd love to know how sweet it is.
Another Salvia I got from Nancy is Phyllis's Fancy, which Nancy and
David Muth gave high praise to. It grew well in my front yard for
several years without a single bloom until a volunteer crepe myrtle gave
a corner of it a bit of shade from the LED streetlight. When that shady
corner started making making blooms, my opinion of the plant improved
dramatically. I now have copies of it in the dark backyard where it is a
reliable bloomer and hummer attractor.
One that I only know from my yard is S. carnea, which I either got from
Flowers By The Sea, Almost Eden, or a weird guerilla mail order service
I once stumbled onto. It grows well, tall, makes a rounded bush, has
healthy heart-shaped leaves, and blooms in the fall. The blooms tumble
down in grape-cluster like groups, with lavenderish-colored petals. The
flowers are probably about the size of coccinea flowers. In high bloom,
it's pretty stunning. It's easy to root with a little care.
In all, I've tried probably 50 Salvia species or varieties in the yard.
Some fared poorly from the start, some did OK for a while, and some are
so resilient and useful that they hang in year after year. These are the
ones I make copies of. The winners that come to mind in terms of hummer
plants have been the three above, plus mexicana varieties, Forsythia
sage, involucrata, Indigo Spires, and Purple Haze. The only effort I
have to put into them is rooting them to make the garden bigger.
Peace and Love
Paul Conover
On 5/20/26 11:21 AM, Bill Fontenot via groups.io wrote:
> I’ve got the old-school cultivar of anise sage (Salvia guaranitica) for anyone who would like some. Just contact me via email and let me know when you’ll be around. This cultivar (might actually be the straight species) blooms all spring and summer into the fall. It grows 30-36” tall. This one runs via stolons to form sizable colonies (up to 10-12’ if allowed).
>
> Years ago Dennis Demchek did a sugar content study of all LA hummer plants. At 30% sugar content, anise sage blew away all other plants — most of which ranged between 12-20%.!Drought and flood tolerant, blooms nicely in sun or shade, and completely winter-hardy up through zone 6.
>
> Bill Fontenot
> 500 Saint Catherine St.
> Lafayette, LA 70506
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