Purple sage (Salvia dorii), also known as gray ball sage, is the plant referred to in Zane’s Grey’s Riders of The Purple Sage:
“Her clear sight intensified the purple sage-slope as it rolled before her.”
Purple sage, a member of the mint family (Lamaceae) is in actuality, a salvia.
This salvia is a shrub that grows up to three feet tall. Its branches are rigid and tipped with spines and covered with leaves that are silver-gray.
Blue-Violet Flowers
The flowers are blue to blue-violet and grow in spikes above the leaves.
Purple sage blooms in late spring and early summer. Native to North America, the plant is common in the southwestern U.S., but grows as far north as Washington and British Columbia and grows as far east as west Texas.
Purple sage grows in scrublands, generally among sagebrush and other desert plants. It likes lots of sun and dry, very well drained soils. The plant does best in a slightly alkaline soil with a pH of 6.4-6.5. It is a fast grower and established itself well in optimum conditions.
It does well in USDA cold hardiness zones 5 through 9, which makes it a candidate for not only southwestern and Midwestern gardens, but also Gulf Coast and southeastern U.S. gardens.
Seed Propagation
Purple sage can be propagated by cuttings from softwood or from seed. The plant is easy to grow from seeds, but the seeds do not store well. Collect seeds when the pods begin to dry out. As the pods completely dry out, they will drop their seeds, so be careful to collect the seeds before they drop.
To check viability of the seeds, spread 10 or so seeds on a damp paper towel, put the towel in a plastic bag and place the package atop your refrigerator. Place the rest of the seeds in a sealed container and put them in the refrigerator. In 10 days, check the seeds on top of the refrigerator. Count the number of seeds that germinate. This will give you the average percentage of germination (number of germinated seeds divided by 10). Plant the remainder of the seeds in good potting soil indoors in early spring and keep at around 70F. Once the seedlings have reached three inches, transplant them in larger pots or in the garden.
Division
Divide established plants by digging them up and separating root systems of individual plants.
Cuttings
In spring, using a razor blade, cut off new softwood twigs from existing plants. Remove two thirds of existing leaves from the twig. Dip the cut end of the cutting in rooting hormone and plant in good potting soil.
Hardy Plant
Purple sage is hardy down to -23F, and can grow in the hottest, least likely spots. The leaves are highly aromatic. It is fairly resistant to deer and other browsing animals.
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References
Zane Gray, Riders of The Purple Sage, Gutenberg Project
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