Since you're in Pennsylvania and you are going to have some cold yet, I would wait. No sense in uncovering them now from any protective weeds and leaves or exposing their roots to damaging cold. I'd wait until after frosts have past.

Sage is one of my all-time favorite plants and I end up with them in every garden bed I have a some point. I've done my fair share of shuffling them around and I usually end up moving them during the summer. Unlike some plants, the sage hasn't seemed to mind the summer transplants much at all.

FataMorgana

My sage has never survived a single year here in my Z6. I started it from seeds a few years ago, and they were small bushes after the summer was over. The plants were about 5 inches tall when they were transplanted outside. The following year, no trace of any were left. Same with rosemary..

Ken - same with rosemary for me due to the zone but sage has made it 4 years running and is greening up again now. The key is excellent drainage in spring (i.e. rocks or at least chicken grit under it) and then some mulching during the drier summer. At least the S. Offinialis should make it for you ... many of the others are not as hardy.

Well my wintersown Sage (S. offinalis) has survived 3 winters here so far and I moved a some a few years ago while dormant in Mar. By April all the plants are starting new growth. Most all of my perennial moving is down between Mar. and Apr.

Vera

This is the first winter I had a Rosemary survive un-aided. It was a mild winter here. The previous winter I kept my sages alive by putting them in pots, and burying the pots in the compost pile (just up to the plant, not covering the plant).

I surrounded them with leaves to buffer against the wind. That winter they all survived. Otherwise, left un-protected, some will survive the winter, others not. This winter I did not protect any, but I'm certain that, since Rosemary survived, Sage did too.

I'm excited for once to be able to start with a decent-sized Rosemary, hopefully this summer it will reach the blooming stage, which usually it doesn't.

ellen

Hi, Vera!

Why hi there Ellen!! LOL!

I'm just am not understanding why all the trouble keeping Sage alive in zone 6?? It's not just on gardenweb but all over that I hear the same thing! I wonder if it's more a climate and soil condition that is causing the losses? Mine are planted in soil that is quick draining sandy/rocky and alkaline; the same growing conditions I have Lavender and thyme thriving in. I don't mulch around any of those plants all winter. As for summers it's hot, dry and humidity is low. Are you cutting them back to the ground? I treat like the Lavender cutting just above new spring growth in April.
BTW My plants were planted in the ground when no bigger than 2 sets of true leaves in May and I still have all the original 6 that I planted out in 2004. My neighbor has had here's a LOT longer than and I got my seeds from her plants:D

Here's a pic taken on April 14th last year of one Salvia cut back just above new growth. About a moth before avr. last frost date which falls between May 11-15th
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May 27th...
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June 7th..

No flowers on my sage. It was planted in several locations and never returned. In the same place now, grows some thyme. The sage in the photos look a bit diffferent than mine. Mine tend to have a silver overcast in the larger green color leaves, and my plans never grow about about 14 inches tall. When I harvested it during late fall, it was quickly dried in a dehydrator and then I had to 'rub' the leaves to crumble them as they seemed a bit fiberous and formed small clumps of dried fibers. The fibers do break down, but compared to rubbed sage you buy, its exactly the same cottony texture. The sage seed packets say 'annual'. My gard soil is very different in different areas. Blueberry bushes love damp acidc soil, so they are in an oak leaf covered area. Wild onions, and garlic chives are raised and have very good drainage in loose soil. I have sandy soil in an area where the greenhouse is, and black rich soil for the garden, where everything else grows. Additioanlly, I have areas where there is just plain rocky gravel. Because of all the added compost, and differet top soils, as well as amendments, locations of well drained vs. heavy damp, the soil on my property has almost every kind of soil, except heavy clay. Any seeds planted that say annual are usual just that. A few exceptions, if the plants go to seed are cilantro, dill, some flowers like portulaca, and only a few others like an arrant tomato that was cast off and its seeds survived a winter. Beyond that, winters are hard on anything I expect to return the following year. As in the case of rosemary, there may also be different sage types, and some are better suited for colder zones. A recent ad from Harris, states they grow their horseradish in Massachusetts as its hardy down to zone 3. Mine is well behaved, and the photos theyt had were exactly the size I have here (finger diameters). I bought a piece of root in an organic market and it was as big around as my wrist. I thought mine was doing poorly compared to that, but after seeing photos of the stuff that grows here, its not a concern anymore.

There are several cultivars of Common sage, but the seed grown ones vary little in winter hardiness. I think the success that vera_eastern_wa has can be explained with the following exerpt from the posting "As for summers it's hot, dry and humidity is low." The part about dry and low humidity is key. Salvia officinalis, common garden sage, suffers in high heat and humidity. When the plants are unduly stressed due to a cruel summer, they are likely to suffer more during the winter. Although the temperature is the main thing we focus on when determining a plans hardiness-it is the easiest to quantify-it is not the whole story when it comes to plant's survival. The health of the plant going into the winter and other factors, including soil and soil moisture play a key role in these types of herbs. All other factors being equal and ideal, garden sage should be able to easily withstand zone 5 winters. Of course, we can't always control the other factors.

Beautiful pictures, Vera.
Don't you just love Sage? There are so many varieties.
Last summer I found one with round leaves. It actually stayed green all winter.

ellen

Thanks...and I would have to agree with francescod.

ksrodgers,
Actually my Sage does have the silver cast, but when you use a camera phone for pictures...well, ya know lol!
Here's a better picture from this summer and a different camera :D
Sept. 27th...
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Vieria,
BTW, no 'D' in my name. Neither is it found in the singers' name, the fictional characters name, or the cowboy's name.. For me, I use photo editing software and not only adjust color, its saturation, but also gamma and nany other options. It makes all photos look much better than they would without it.