Laura Lovett
bumble bee on buckwheat blossom
If you are establishing a native plant garden and find you lose plants because the conditions are too hot and dry, consider planting the tough-as-nails dynamic duo—buckwheat and sage (Eriogonum and Salvia). They come in multiple varieties and forms that range from ground hugging to 6 feet tall and will be right at home on a rocky slope with poor soil and full sun. They need water to get established, after which they should require little to no water, or an occasional deep watering if temperatures remain high.
Few natives are as excellent a source of nectar for bees and butterflies as buckwheat. Growing in tough, dry conditions throughout Marin, buckwheats thrive in exposed locations on slim soils. These terrific plants are important food sources for pollinators, especially in the late summer months when other flowering plants have retreated to dormancy. Buckwheats reliably attract a range of pollinators including native bees, wasps, flies, butterflies, and birds. They are also important host plants for numerous Metalmark and Blue Butterflies as well as Gray and Coastal Green Hairstreaks.
Our native sages are versatile plants that are essential in any habitat garden. Prized for their adaptability and resilience, there are numerous native varieties that grow well here. The drought tolerance of sage plants stems from a number of unique adaptations, including a deep root system and silvery gray foliage that deer seldom browse.
Cleveland Sage (Salvia clevelandii) late summer
The Sage family of plants is a must when it comes to supporting pollinators. Their long blooming period ensures that there is food for bees and butterflies late into the summer. They are a favorite of hummingbirds, which can often be seen collecting nectar from the long tubular flowers. Seedheads can be left on the plants all winter, providing food for birds. Or sheer the spent blooms in winter to remove the flowerheads and shape it lightly; this pruning will produce a new flush of growth in spring.
Neither buckwheat nor sage should be fertilized regularly, although they can benefit from a very light dressing of mulch or all-green compost (no manure) in spring.
The Marin Chapter offers a wide variety of both buckwheats and sages at our fall native plant sales. Of this collection, there is certainly one or more that will be the perfect addition to your home garden.
Buckwheats
Coast Buckwheat, Eriogonum latifolium
Sub-shrub. Coast Buckwheat has oval, woolly, white-green leaves with pretty pink and white flowers in round clusters at the ends of long stems. Great on rocky slopes, in crevices, or atop sunny rock walls. An essential for a coastal garden as it supports many pollinators and is an important food source for butterflies and moths.
Eriogonum nudum var. nudum
Naked Buckwheat, Eriogonum nudum
Sub-shrub. Produces flower pom-poms ranging in color from white to pink set on slender stems above low mounds of grey-green leaves. Give it full sun to very light shade in soil with decent drainage. It does well in hot dry places, among gravel or in a rock garden.
Eriogonum grande var. rubescens
Red Buckwheat, Eriogonum grande var. rubescens
Sub-shrub. A small, colorful, and highly ornamental buckwheat. Rosy-pink flower clusters rise above low-growing foliage on stems up to a foot tall, blooming from spring to fall. The flowers attract a variety of pollinators, especially butterflies. It can get 2 to 3 feet wide in ideal conditions.
Eriogonum fasciculatum ‘Warriner Lytle’
‘Warriner Lytle’ buckwheat, Eriogonum fasciculatum ‘Warriner Lytle’
Shrub. A spreading form of the native California Buckwheat, Warriner Lytle stays under 2 feet but spreads 4 to 5 feet wide and is topped by white pompoms in summer that age to rusty brown. With its dense foliage coverage and deep roots, this low form is good for erosion control, slope stabilization, suppressing weed germination, and dry hot slopes.
Eriogonum umbellatum ‘Kannah Creek’
Sulphur Buckwheat, Eriogonum umbellatum ‘Kannah Creek’
Perennial. Rosettes of silver-green foliage form a mound 1 foot high and 3 feet wide. Pompom flowers in bright yellow appear above the foliage in summer and age to a rust color. Tolerates a wide variety of soils and is happy growing among rocks. ‘Kannah Creek’ is more robust than the straight species.
Salvias
Black Sage, Salvia mellifera
Shrub. Native to Marin, a mature Black Sage will slowly attain a nice upright shape with a height of about 4 to 5 feet but can reach 6 feet by 8 feet in width, depending on conditions. The small white or pale blue flowers, while not as showy as other salvias, are copious and produce enough nectar to be irresistible to bees. Prefers sun but tolerates light shade. Can get by on no summer water.
‘Pozo Blue’ Cleveland Sage, Salvia clevelandii ‘Pozo Blue’
Shrub. An easy-to-grow compact shrub to 4 to 5 feet. tall and wide with dark green, aromatic foliage. A hybrid between Salvia clevelandi and Salvia leucophylla that does better in garden cultivation than straight Cleveland Sage. Deep violet-blue flowers borne in distinctive whorls on 2-foot-long spikes are hummingbird magnets. Gorgeous in bloom. May be semi-deciduous in drought. Excellent choice for pollinator gardens, bank stabilization and hummingbird gardens.
‘Celestial Blue’ Cleveland Hybrid Sage, Salvia ‘Celestial Blue’
‘Celestial Blue’ Cleveland Hybrid Sage, Salvia ‘Celestial Blue’
Shrub. Thought to be a hybrid between Salvia clevelandii and Salvia pachyphylla, this gorgeous salvia has widely spaced whorls in eye-catching red-violet with striking blue tubular flowers. Flowers are abundant in spring and late fall. It averages 3 to 5 feet in size and mounds as it grows. Plant in full sun with good drainage and occasional water.
Hummingbird Sage, Salvia spathacea
Perennial. An attractive sage notable for its 2-foot red flowering spikes and pleasant fragrance. It spreads by rhizomes and over time can cover a large area, making it a popular groundcover plant. It grows well in shade and part-shade. In its natural environment, it’s often found under trees and large shrubs. Hummingbird Sage can survive without summer irrigation once established, but by mid-summer it may look pretty dead. Some supplemental water or fall rains will green it up again.
‘Mrs. Beard’ Sage, Salvia ‘Mrs. Beard’
‘Mrs. Beard’ Sage, Salvia ‘Mrs. Beard’
Perennial. Durable and disease resistant, the foliage on this Sonoma Sage cultivar stays about a foot high but spreads 4 to 6 feet wide. A profusion of 8-inch periwinkle blue spikes of purple blooms appear in spring through early summer. Great for covering a slope. Prefers sun in coastal sites, but part shade is necessary in hot inland locations.
Rose Sage, Salvia pachyphylla
Rose Sage, Salvia pachyphylla
Shrub. A beautiful silvery shrub of intensely aromatic foliage that grows 18 to 30 inches tall and wide. Spikes of densely packed violet whorls support elongated tubular blue flowers, blooming over a long period in summer. Native to the desert, it is at home in hot and dry conditions. Requires full sun with excellent drainage. A magnet for pollinators. Dry conditions are a must for over wintering.
Sonoma Sage ‘Dara’s Choice’, Salvia sonomensis ‘Dara’s Choice’
Perennial; evergreen. A hybrid of Sonoma Sage and Black Sage, ‘Dara’s Choice’ is a compact spreading groundcover, fast-growing and adaptable to different soils. It will reach 1 to 2 feet in height and 3 to 6 feet in width. Semi-deciduous in summer. It prefers sun in coastal sites, and part sun or light afternoon shade in inland sites.
White Sage, Salvia apiana
Shrub. This aromatic shrub has spectacular white leaves and produces 6-foot-tall flower spikes with large white flowers that bees love. It is very drought tolerant, grows in full sun or part shade, and is not too fussy about soil type. Very easy to care for; extremely low to low water needed. One of our most important native plants and a great food source for many native insects.