Austin Garden: 🌿 The Seven Sages 🌿 free trees tomorrow 🌿 2 events with Figbeard

NURSERY NOTES: Free 5 gal. trees will be offered by the good folks at TreeFolks tomorrow morning (March 9) at Sunset Valley's SFC Farmers Market. 9 - 1 p.m. Trees 🌿

Two events with fruit tree expert Figbeard coming up. On March 17: Fruit Tree Grafting: hands-on training at Zilker. Very small group with lots of hands-on experience and feedback. Plus you get to graft a fruit tree to take home with you. $120. Tickets & Details 🌿 On March 23: Fruit Trees in Myth & Mysticism. Join Figbeard on "this transformative journey, where fruit trees become portals to self-discovery & a deeper connection to the world around us." 204 West Mary Street. $10. (All money raised to be shared with TreeFolks.). Herb Bar ❦

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FREE CATALOG, NATIVE AMERICAN SEED: this earth-friendly company has just released its glorious100-page Spring 2024 grass issue. It is chock-full of detailed info about Prairie grass seeds, pollinators, and tips for gardeners. For example, plant Texas cupgrass (Eriochloa sericea) to tempt painted buntings to visit your garden. Free catalog ❦

ATHENA RETURNS: the Wildflower Center's great horned owl Athena has flown back to Austin, and taken up residence in a nest above the entrance to the courtyard. You can watch the comings and goings of the nest via a webcam, thanks to a partnership with the Cornell Lab. YouTube, KXAN ❦

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MR PLANTU: a fun video on how to create a Piet Oudolf-style garden with lively host Paul Plantu from Houston. Narrated in his unique almost hip-hop style, he creates a beautiful border of natives such as coreopsis, milkweed and lantana urticoides. YouTube ❦

THE AUSTIN GARDEN relies entirely on support from its readers. Please consider making a donation of $10 - $15 a year to support this bi-monthly publication. At the moment only 5% of readers are supporting this publication. Many thanks in advance! PayPal link ❦

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CENTRAL TEXAS GARDENER: a touching feature on retired librarian Nancy Hall, who has created her own earthly paradise of native plants, a pretty pond, and lots of artwork. Nancy describes her garden as "a plant museum with art." CTG ❦

When asked about plant choices for a new garden, I used to always steer Austin gardeners towards some of the tough beauties found in the xeriscape section of our nursery.

One of the all-time greats is Texas sage.

I came across this comment on the Floridata website: "Sage can face droughts, freezes, high wind, salt spray, hungry deer and blazing heat, and keep right on performing beautifully." This gives you some idea of the resilient nature of this plant.

They are native to the Trans Pecos region of southwest Texas, from Uvalde to El Paso and on both sides of the Rio Grande, and they blossom with beautiful bell-shaped flowers after a rain shower.

In its desert habitat this evergreen shrub can reach 3 to 5 feet, and can get even larger in a landscape setting with more water. Make sure your sage gets at least 6 hours of sunlight. Anything less and it will start to look straggly.

Texas sage has silvery, pubescent leaves (soft and furry to touch). Flower colors range from blue to purple to pink to white.

When you plant sage, be sure to do some deep soaking to help it get established and then back off on the watering. Texas sage requires good drainage. If your soil is heavy in clay, plant it in a raised bed or mound.

Fertilizers and compost are not needed. In fact the plants will bloom much better if left alone.

With the advent of plant breeding there is a new group of Texas sages that exhibit different leaf and flower colors, as well as shapes. Here are some of the more popular ones to look for: the seven sages.

1. Silverado: a new dwarf silver leaf sage that can grow to 3 to 4 feet high with dense foliage.

2. Lynn’s Legacy or Lynn’s Ever blooming: discovered by famous Texas botanist Lynn Lowery; lavender flowers on rich green foliage. (see photo above)

3. Silver cloud: 4 to 5 feet tall with a dense form. Its silver foliage has a beautifully contrasting deep purple flower.

4. Thunder cloud: a tight, compact growth habit reaching 3 feet. Its silvery-white foliage creates a perfect backdrop to its deep violet flowers.

5. Rio Bravo: 3 to 4 feet tall with a 5 foot spread. Its flower color is blue contrasted with teal, green foliage. A showy plant.

6. Green cloud: green leaves with a violet to purple flower. A vigorous grower that can reach 6 feet in height.

7. White cloud: this white flowering sage is also known as “Alba” and will grow to 6 feet.

On top of all this, wondrous sage can be made into a pleasant tea that’s good for our health. Cenizo leaves, when dried and brewed in a pot for tea, are said to have mildly sedative properties, and can be used to treat headaches, fevers, colds, and flu. Happy Gardening Everyone! ❦