I'm in Central Ohio and have two varieties of provoskia. The tall variety is in my front bed with day lillies, a couple of varieties of coreopsis, liatris, rhododendron, iris (German, Siberian and soon Japanese), an several others. I do an English cottage style garden. (Did you guess?) That means that I like lots of different things together. The sage has a long bloom time so the other plants provide colors that compliment the sage and it is a beautiful back drop for them in their respective seasons. The tall stuff tends to flop but that works where I have it. Oriental Lillies, Lily of the Valley and heuchera bloom before the sage is very big and then it grows over and around them. Currently pink asters are complimenting it.

I also chose to plant it directly behind a bench that is angled with it's back to the street. It provodes a modicum of privacy when seated and they are so fragrant that it makes for a lovely experience.

I've also seen sage planted along one side of a house as a summertime hedge, with low growing shrub roses, juxtaposed with holly and lots of other ways. It's such a lovely plant I'm sure that you'll find something beautiful to do with it!

~~Mimi~~

Ya know, it's a good compantion with oriental poppies. The poppies pop and bloom early here. By the time I have cut them back, the russian sage is up and them blooms over the area the poppies were. The poppies come back with some nice low foliage, but that's it. I also like russian sage with autumn joy sedum - yes it's common, but the two just look nice together providing the sedum don't flop.

I think it competes a bit with nepeta, perhaps rudbeckia goldstrum - nice early bloomer that blooms before the perennial version and continues into the fall with little rattiness long after the others are done and mower mulched. Very nice. I'm in love.

anything in a darker or contrasting color and that has a different texture or type of foliage...

Knockout roses and moombeam coreopsis are nice ones too. Common, but nice.

I have a planting of 5 very large "Red Meidland" rose bushes, and have planted Russian Sage in between them. Every garden visitor loved this combination. I severely cut back the roses every 3 years or so, and cut back and take out a lot of the sage then too.... did it this past spring...so this last summer it was not it's normal showy self... but this combination is really something. With the scarlet red of the roses (which bloom from May to frost for me without ANY work on my part) and the color of the russian sage blooms.... and the contrast of the gray feathery foliage and the smooth dark green glossy foliage on the roses... It's just stunning! Takes up a huge area, but worth it!

But, I hate the smell of the sage! Yuck!