Have you been to the Paul Ciener Botanical Garden in Kernersville? They will have a fairly good Salvia display in a few years. They are already having spring and autumn plant sales

Here is a link that might be useful: Paul J. Ciener Botanical Garden

Hey Rich. Miguel here. I am a contributing member of the Paul Ciener Botanical Garden here in K'ville. In fact, this past spring I purchased three salvias from them during a fundraiser that you supplied them with!

My hot lips on the East side , but it had it's feet in Caliche died on me this summer in Central Texas. My hotlips on the north side of the trees but still in a bit of sun stopped blooming red and white and bloomed solid red and solid white on two different bushes.. Now that it has cooled down, they are back blooming red and white in each blossom. What is with that? They are still blooming away at Thanks giving.

My hot lips in the bed in the middle of the yard lasted less than a year! It was healthy when I planted it, but it just didn't make it. I can grow some of the salivas without any problems, and then others just don't make it.

It is my understanding that during the summer, it can and does turn a solid red or solid white. Check out this website http://www.magnoliagardensnursery.com/productdescrip/Salvia_Hotlips.html for more information.

Itcollins 1949:
If you are in a more arid part of Zone 9 you need to
water more frequently. I have a friend in La Grange
she has no problem growing "Hot Lips". I put Hot Lips
in my greggii and microphylla beds it did poorly
as I dont water them. I put it in my hemerocallis beds
where there has to be irrigation it has done well.
Art

I love Hot Lips just because it's always doing the unexpected. I took this last Spring. I think the blossoms look like fancy birds.

Hot Lips has proved to be rather hardy here in South Jersey. Three years of experience isn't a lot to go on and none of our recent winters have been particularly hard, but none of the 20 or so cuttings planted so far have been winter killed. And like others have said it does respond positively to extra water, growing nearly twice as large - a 2nd year plant in rich sandy soil grew five feet across. The summer drought of 2008 did lead to a few losses of newly planted rooted cuttings. Fortunately this one roots very easily so the losses made little difference.

Hot Lips is perfectly hardy here, in a mildish part of the UK, and it doesn't mind our winter wet.

My understanding of the colour change thing is that when conditions are perfect for it it produces bicoloured flowers, but when it is too cool or insufficiently bright the flowers are all white, and when too hot or extra bright they are all red - but this doesn't seem to fit with two bushes flowering one red and one white at the same time!

I've seen it happen although not perfectly - in fact no two plants are ever in quite the same stage. Here it is only in late summer, after the worst of the heat is past that they are truly Hot Lips and this usually stays with them to hard frost. Often in the high summer if seen from a distance they appear to be white flowered - a very nice white too. I was resolved not to like this cultivar when I first heard of it, but it has won me over.

Art, no I'm on the Texas Coastal Bend with my back yard being Copano Bay, so it is very humid all the time.

I gave it moderate watering along with it being in my bed with the hibiscus nearby which do fine. I don't landscape, but rather do specimen planting to see what does best down here. Some of the salvias do great and others not so great, especially the blues, which I love and keep trying. I have tried growing them in different gardens, and even in our MG demonstration gardens in town to no avail. I really believe it has to do with the combined high heat and high humidity, and I mean high, 90's+ heat and 90%+ humidity in the summer. But I'll keep trying. Maybe one day!

Have you had any success with some of the other microphylla? Maybe someone could suggest some other cultivars for your weather. My weather can also be quite hot and humid during the summer, kind of the little brother to what you get, and the species does fine here. If you contact me in late summer I could send you a "fun pack" of various cultivars to try. Maybe if the get established in the fall they will be better prepared for the perils of your summer. I'm always willing to support other hummingbird gardeners.

I'll try to remember to contact you for a "fun pack" and see what happens. Thanks! I was working in the yard yesterday until it turned cold again. Bummer! I can't wait until the spring. I'll take heat over cold any day!

You certainly have a nice display of them and I have thought about trying them, but I have also heard they dont do well in all parts of the country.

You could grow them as an annual Steve, and in warmer winters they might come through. I'm zone 7 or 6b but many winters are more like zone 8. It would not be a good idea to say plant an oak several zones north of its hardy rating, but that doesn't apply Salvia microphylla because it is such a quick grower and bloomer. My favorite microphylla to grow as an annual is Orange Door.

Thanks Ward , I will keep that in mind. So whats the thing with orange door. Why is it your fav microphylla??

Orange Door is fast growing, large and heavy flowered, fairly erect, but not terribly hardy.

I like Wild Watermelon, Cherry Chief, La Trinidad, San Carlos Festival, and Hot Lips.

I tried a different planting method with Orange Door last year. In the spring of 2007 it appeared that the row had died, but when I dug the plants out a few shoots were found deep down, about 6 or more inches. So when the row was replanted the new plants were set 6 or more inches deep. It could be done because the sandy soil in the row is very free draining. Who knows if it will work, but it is worth a try. Steven, I like Orange Door for the reasons Richard mentions. Plus for some reason I don't quite understand, women are attracted to it. Whatever color it is, some sort of pink, it has very vivid flowers, they absolutely glow.

I don't know what is the problem with Wild Watermelon. While it is among the oldest microphylla in the garden, it has never thrived for me. For the past 10 years or so it has returned each year but performed poorly. I should move it away from the San Carlos Festival patch with which it can't seem to compete.

It may like a cooler spot. It is from the sub-alpine zone on Cerro Potosi, the tallest mountain in northern Mexico.

I'm thinking air drainage, some shade rocks to cool the root zone (planting on the north side of a rock).

Maybe I'll move it to the northeast side of house where it will receive just a half day sun. I guess it should be no surprise given their huge geographical range that different cultivars would have different requirements. Wild Watermelon has a nice flower that I'd like to see more of.

I couldn't agree more. These little hot lips thrive on neglect and hardship.

I bought a few on a whim, and they have come through hell and high water (literally in both cases) and are still going strong after three full years of heat waves, six foot snowfalls that don't melt for ages, and record rainfall.

Can't wait to see them again this year!

Hot Lips, one of the hardiest microphyllas, is from the mountains of Oaxaca. One of the tenderest is the Huntington BG form, found in the mountains of Belize, which are relatively low. They do resemble one another, except that the Huntington form has much more succulent, thick stems. Hot Lips has wiry ones.

Hotlips is no doubt my favorite as well. Westelle, the individual blooms look like little can-can dancers to me! I've layered low-hanging branches and started numerous new plants. They do very well in my PNW garden. In the spring, I trim them up with hedge clippers and away they go. My Anna's hummers really enjoy them.