Date: 6/25/26 2:38 pm From: Paul Dickson via groups.io <paul...> Subject: Re: [labird] For Hummer Gardeners
Paul, All of the salvias fall in the 24-26% range unevaporated. Amistad is good I agree. I think preference is caused by more than one factor. The taller plants with flowers presented high above the ground and in an airy broad spread as Amistad does is a preferred, perhaps providing a safety benefit. Another is probably nectar volume per bloom. Paul On Jun 25, 2026, at 12:48 PM, Paul Conover via groups.io <zoiseaux...> wrote:
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<http://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 > > > > >
