Rating Russian Sage

A look at how Perovskia performed at the Chicago Botanic Garden

By Nina A. Koziol

Clear blue flowers are hard

to come by and that’s where Russian sage really shines. Few plants can compete with this sun-loving perennial that’s drought-tolerant and creates a multi-month show with lavender-blue blossoms and silver-gray leaves. Named Perennial of the Year in 1995, Russian sage is remarkable for its striking foliage and upright floral display.

“It’s a garden standard,” says Richard Hawke, the Chicago Botanic Garden’s Plant Evaluation Manager and Associate Scientist. “I had them in when I first built my garden. The perennial industry has come light years since the 1980s.” Indeed, breeders have created new cultivars that are not only more compact—the straight species Perovskia atriplicifolia (azure sage) tends to get leggy — but are more floriferous and offer a variety of intricate leaf shapes. Hawke evaluated the species and many cultivars from 2013 to 2020.

“It’s a good landscape plant — the flowers are colorful, but it’s the calyx, the two-tone color that goes on and on with the silvery gray-green foliage. It has good color, good texture and has good structure.” (The calyx is the outermost whorl of sepals that holds the petals.) Because of its fragrance, deer leave Russian sage alone.

The plant hails from Asia and China to Turkey and Afghanistan where it grows in dry mountainous areas. Russian sage is not Russian and is not a sage, although taxonomists changed the genus to Salvia yangii in 2017. However, for all intents and purposes, the green industry and gardeners continue to recognize the plant as Perovskia. “It’s a great pollinator plant even though it’s not a native,” Hawke said.

Perovskia atriplicifolia ‘Rocketman’ Nurture

For the best performance, place plants in full sun and give them well-drained soil. There’s no need to deadhead because that will not encourage more blooms, but it will remove the colorful spent flowers. Plants in part shade will sprawl and winter wetness typically rings the death knell, rotting the roots. Come spring, cut the plants back to about six inches tall. After that, remove any stems that don’t sprout new growth. Or, you can also simply cut the stems close to the ground and be done with it.

Plant Combos

“Russian sage provides long summer bloom for the border,” Hawke says. “It contrasts well with both pink- and yellow-flowered perennials. There’s a planting on Evening Island of Perovskia and Coreopsis ‘Golden Shower’ that creates a strong vertical and horizontal effect.” He also likes it paired with fountain grass (Pennisetum) or prairie dropseed. “Talk about a great combination — the softness of the grass (continued on page 32)

1. Perovskia atriplicifolia ‘Balperobritz’

2. Perovskia atriplicifolia ‘Blue Jean Baby’ (continued from page 30) and the verticality. Or, pair it with any little bluestem with that bluish lavender purple color in the stems. There are a lot of different ways to use Russian sage, but it also looks great just massed.” Other perennial partners include coneflowers, black-eyed Susans, shrub roses, calamint, daylilies, sedum, phlox and asters.

The Upside

“For me, Perovskia is a versatile perennial, reliable with good drainage, long lived and pest free,” Hawke said. “I think landscape contractors will find that it’s a plant that requires minimal upkeep. You leave the stems up in the winter and it has that silvery, ghostly color—it’s not just brown.” Newer more compact cultivars might interest people who gave up on Russian sage because the species was big and billowy. “I don’t know if this group is having a renaissance, but the newer ones are certainly worth looking at.”

The Ratings

“I’m not always a fan of everything turning into a meatball or little tiny plants — short just to be short,” Hawke said. “But these newer cultivars don’t feel that way to me. None of them are super dwarf. A few are under two feet versus one that’s five feet tall.” And, some are tall and wide, giving you several options. Five stars = excellent. Four stars = good.

1. Perovskia atriplicifolia ‘Balperobritz’ BLUE

SPRITZER(™). Blooms mid-July to early October at 30 inches tall and 32 inches wide. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

2. Perovskia atriplicifolia ‘Blue Jean Baby’. Blooms early

July to early October at 28 inches tall and 32 inches wide. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

3. Perovskia atriplicifolia ‘Blue Steel’. Blooms mid-July to early October at 32 inches tall and 34 inches wide. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

4. Perovskia atriplicifolia ‘Novaperlac’ LITTLE

LACE(™). Blooms early July to early October at 32 inches tall and 38 inches wide. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

5. Perovskia atriplicifolia ‘Denim ’n Lace’. Blooms early

July to early October at 33 inches tall and 48 inches wide. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

6. Perovskia atriplicifolia ‘CrazyBlue’. Blooms early July to mid-October at 35 inches tall and 48 inches wide. ⭐⭐⭐⭐ 8. Perovskia atriplicifolia ‘Superba’

7. Perovskia atriplicifolia ‘Rocketman’. Blooms early July to early October at 22 inches tall and 22 inches wide. ⭐⭐⭐⭐

8. Perovskia atriplicifolia ‘Superba’. Blooms early July to early October at 50 inches tall and 60 inches wide. ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Check it out

If you haven’t seen the Lavin Plant Evaluation Garden, make a trip to the Chicago Botanic Garden this summer. The evaluation garden’s sheer beauty is backed by science — each plant is regularly monitored for its adaptability to the environmental conditions of the trial site, disease and pest problems, and the ornamental value of the flowers, foliage, and habits. https://www.chicagobotanic.org/gardens/planteval

7. Perovskia atriplicifolia ‘Rocketman’