Actually, the stems were breaking before the rains came. I love Autumn Sage! I am hoping to have the same affection for this salvia, lol!

I have salvia farinacea, but I'm not sure if it's Henry Duelberg. It may be cutworms that are gnawing on your stems. I am having the same happen here and have in previous springs as well. As long as all the stems aren't chewed off, it should come back from the base. Once the cutworms have finished, and it is putting on healthy new growth, I usually cut the leftover longer stems back to the base to balance it out. Unfortunately, this salvia is also prone to powdery mildew in the spring.

Now that you've heard the bad news, you need to know that this plant is really great. For me, it blooms from April until hard frost. After it warms up, powdery mildew is no longer a problem. Bumble bees will cover it in summer. It gets three-to-four feet tall. It reseeds, so you will have as many as you want, but thinning the extras is easy.

I really love it. I started with three, and now I'm up to twelve, with more seedlings waiting for me to decide if I want to keep them. Like Lisa said, give it a year to see if they work for you. Hopefully, they will improve soon.

Michelle

Would this do well in zone6 NEOK? Thanks

Sorie, many sites say zones 8-10. It dies back to the ground every winter for me, then comes back from the base. I'm thinking zone 6b might be pushing it, but I have seeds if you want to try it. If nothing else, it could be a nice annual for you, and seedlings might come back every year.

I have salvia farinacea that is just the ordinary native one, not Henry Duelberg, and it is growing in really wet soil and not dying yet. Usually in a wet year it does well up to a point and then the excess moisture finally gets it. My experience is the same as Dragonfly Hollow's in that it dies back in winter but regrows from the base, but I am in zone 7b, Sorie, so it might not come back for you up there in zone 6. On the other hand, it might. You just never know here until you try something to see how it does.

My salvia farinacea is perennial in OKC. However, it clearly does not love sitting in puddles of water. I have two that are not happy at all. I planted replacements in a higher bed!