The dumbing down of commercial plant names drives me crazy! Proven Winners are the worst, making up "cute" and "marketable" names for everything they grow. They sell Salvia argenta as "Hobbits Foot", and you really have to look on the label to find a real name.

When I travel I try and visit as many retail nurseries as I can. The sloppy way Salvias are identified always amazes me. I absolutely agree with Robin that specialty nurseries are the way to go for Salvias or any other genus with a bit of complexity to it.

Are hybrids even allowed in Salvia Heaven? I won't even mention S. divinorum (Divine Sage), other than to say ours is in full and lovely bloom.

Richard: What is the best way to post pics here? I don't want to post on my site and post a link!

The dumbing down of commercial plant names drives me crazy! Proven Winners are the worst, making up "cute" and "marketable" names for everything they grow. They sell Salvia argenta as "Hobbits Foot", and you really have to look on the label to find a real name.

When I travel I try and visit as many retail nurseries as I can. The sloppy way Salvias are identified always amazes me. I absolutely agree with Robin that specialty nurseries are the way to go for Salvias or any other genus with a bit of complexity to it.

Are hybrids even allowed in Salvia Heaven? I won't even mention S. divinorum (Divine Sage), other than to say ours is in full and lovely bloom.

Richard: What is the best way to post pics here? I don't want to post on my site and post a link!

The dumbing down of commercial plant names drives me crazy! Proven Winners are the worst, making up "cute" and "marketable" names for everything they grow. They sell Salvia argenta as "Hobbits Foot", and you really have to look on the label to find a real name.

When I travel I try and visit as many retail nurseries as I can. The sloppy way Salvias are identified always amazes me. I absolutely agree with Robin that specialty nurseries are the way to go for Salvias or any other genus with a bit of complexity to it.

Are hybrids even allowed in Salvia Heaven? I won't even mention S. divinorum (Divine Sage), other than to say ours is in full and lovely bloom.

Richard: What is the best way to post pics here? I don't want to post on my site and post a link!

This series could be seen in English garden centres last year. Just a stupid "commercial" name for already available Salvias to try to improve sales. For me, "Sallyfun" is a ridiculous name, as is the "Patio" series of forms of Salvia patens.

Sorry to be so negative, but I disapprove of this practice. Almost as many weird names are lately coming from the Israeli growers as from Holland.

But, heigh-ho, something we have to live with!

Incidentally, yesterday I visited the RHS Wisley nursery, they had a Salvia labelled as Salvia roemeriana something (sorry don't remember the name) blue! The picture on the label showed without doubt a photo of Salvia patens 'Cambridge Blue'. The plant only had foliage, which was without doubt a form of S. nemorosa. (How they called it roemeriana is bewildering.) Not sure, but I think this came from Holland. I mentioned the error to a very pleasant assistant, who said she would investigate........but don't expect to see any correction.

This is very disappointing to see at such a famous outlet such as Wisley, where the gardens are sublime, and most plants correctly labelled.

Happier note.....spring seems to have arrived here, but will have to wait and see what survived the awful December weather here.

Robin.

Robin:
Someone who is married to Sally just could not be more inventive.
I understand your problem w/labeling etc. I check incoming trucks to our nursery. We have the same problem w/plug suppliers here well known cultivar S.microphylla "Hot Lips" listed as S.greggii. The one we all had a good laugh about was a Spiraea x bumalda "Anthony Waterer"(decidous shrub).
Showing up as a Raphiolepis indica (Evergreen Shrub).
Art

Last year I noticed patens being sold as guaranitica at several local nurseries - don't remember the supplier. The larger question for me is why would a supplier ship patens to my climate at all. Regardless of what something is called, a little concern for the gardeners who buy it would be nice. Guaranitica grows fine here but patens is just a ticket to a season of frustration.

Well.............don't know if it is the same in the USA as in the UK, but I seriously recommend that Salvia species should be bought from specialist nurseries/outlets, from where the chance of purchasing the REAL species will be 90% higher.

Garden centres sometimes DO have the real thing, but often not. More often than not, they sell plants...not just Salvias...with commercial names. Suppose we can't blame them, they need to make money, but it saddens me if the correct species name may disappear.

This has occurred so much with the many cultivars of the common sages....splendens, farinacea, horminium/viridis...but I worry if some of the new introductions such as vitifolia, curviflora, oxyphora, stolonifera.....might be sold with commercial, appealing names, in which case the correct name could disappear?

Such is life!

Robin.

Wardda:
Your correct the public is not well served doing something
like this. We are fortunate that our city publishes a bookletfor people new to the area (free of Charge). They have the County Extension office look over it for botanical correctness.All counties in Texas have a agricultural extension office. They have adapted
them to the horticulture community here in the cities.This is done through Texas A&M university system. S.guaranitica,
S.greggii,coccinea and S. roemeriana are all pictured and given complete and accurate information. The other half of this problem (here) is nurseries hiring people who check in
the trucks not knowing the difference.The product should put back on the truck to the grower with the notation of incorrectly labeled. Followed by a phone call notifying the
grower of the error.Something I have to do on a regular basis.
Art

Last night I had a nightmare.

I walked into a new Garden Centre and was impressed with the layout and cleanliness. All the plants were arranged alphabetically and clearly named and there was a full range from A to Z. They were obviously well maintained having been adequately watered and any weeds removed from the pots.

It was only then I realised that all the plants were identical!

There was even a guy sitting at a desk giving advice on which plants were suitable for different situations.

How scary. Is this a premonition of the future?

Jim

Initially thought that you had gone to Salvia-Heaven!

Then realised that it was indeed a nightmare!

R.

Danziger entered four Salvia greggi (SallyG series) and three Salvia farinacea (SallyFun Series) in the 2010 Summer Plant Trials at the J C Raulston Arboretum here in Raleigh (NC). The names were uninspired to say the least (S. greggi Red, Magenta, Groovy Magenta and Fuchsia.)

KermitC, I think we all would love to see an image of S. divinorum in full bloom.

Except to see it used by native Indian shamans and brain research scientists to unravel the mysteries of schizophrenia and other disabilities, that's the main reason we are interested in it.

Both a full shot and a close up of a well-formed spike would be nice.

Robin, Rich or anyone knowledgeable...

I bought three of the SallyG series at the UGA trial gardens sale for the hummingbirds and was curious if anyone knew the original cultivar names. I got SallyG 'Flamingo', 'Vanilla', and 'Fuchsia'. The first two look like greggii but 'Fuchsia' is definitely more microphylla. The hummingbirds don't care if these have silly new marketing names but I'm curious what real cultivars these are.

Thanks for any help,
Danita