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Salvia mexicana 'Limelight'

Salvia mexicana 'Limelight' Photo/Illustration: Steve Aitken


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Hardiness Zones: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
Botanical Name: Salvia mexicana 'Limelight' SAL-vee-ah meks-ih-KAH-nah Genus: Salvia
This unusual tender perennial displays an electric color combination when its vibrant purple-blue flowers open from bright chartreuse calyces.  Fortunately, glossy, bright green leaves hold their own until the show gets started in August (and continues until frost). It forms a tall bush, 6 feet tall by 6 feet wide, which is great for the back of the border. Salvias are some of the showiest plants for containers, annual borders, and mixed borders. Butterflies and hummingbirds love them. 
 Care: Provide moist but well-drained soil in full sun to partial shade. Cut tips back early in the season for a bushier plant.
 Propagation: Divide in spring. Take cuttings spring through fall.
 Problems: Powdery mildew, rust, stem rot, fungal leaf spots, whiteflies, aphids, mealybugs, spider mites.
Height 3 ft. to 6 ft.
Spread 3 ft. to 6 ft.
Growth Habit Clumps
Growth Pace Fast Grower
Light Full Sun to Part Shade
Moisture Medium Moisture
Maintenance Moderate
Characteristics Attracts Butterflies; Attracts Hummingbirds; Showy Flowers
Bloom Time Early Fall; Fall; Late Summer
Flower Color Blue Flower; Purple/ Lavender Flower; Yellow Flower
Uses Beds and Borders, Container, Cut Flower, Suitable as Annual
Style Cottage Garden
Seasonal Interest Summer Interest, Fall Interest
Type Perennials

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