''Salvia'' 'Celestial Blue' (also known as celestial blue sage or Las Pilitas sage), is a

hybrid Hybrid may refer to: Science * Hybrid (biology), an offspring resulting from cross-breeding ** Hybrid grape, grape varieties produced by cross-breeding two ''Vitis'' species ** Hybridity, the property of a hybrid plant which is a union of two dif ...

cross between ''

Salvia clevelandii ''Salvia clevelandii'', the fragrant sage, blue sage, Jim sage and Cleveland sage, is a perennial plant that is native to Southern California and northern Baja California, growing below elevation in California coastal sage and chaparral habitat ...

'' (Cleveland sage or chaparral sage) and '' S. pachyphylla'' (Rose's sage or mountain desert sage), and possibly involving ''Salvia'' 'Pozo Blue' — which is itself a cross between ''S. clevelandii'' and ''S. leucophylla'' (purple sage). The hybrid parents are native to California. The plant is a perennial evergreen, with a rounded growth habit and a moderate growth rate. It can tolerate full sun and is adaptable to numerous soil conditions, and is cold hardy down to 15°F. The foliage smells of musk, and the large, pale violet to periwinkle blue flowers are attractive to bees,

hummingbird Hummingbirds are birds native to the Americas and comprise the biological family Trochilidae. With about 361 species and 113 genera, they occur from Alaska to Tierra del Fuego, but the vast majority of the species are found in the tropics aro ...

s, and

butterflies Butterflies are insects in the macrolepidopteran clade Rhopalocera from the Order (biology), order Lepidoptera, which also includes moths. Adult butterflies have large, often brightly coloured wings, and conspicuous, fluttering flight. The ...

. An extremely drought- and heat-tolerant plant, introduced by Las Pilitas, a California native plant nursery, in 1999. It is cultivated in gardens and public landscapes.

References

External links

Las Pilitas website

celestial Blue Celestial may refer to: Science * Objects or events seen in the sky and the following astronomical terms: ** Astronomical object, a naturally occurring physical entity, association, or structure that exists in the observable universe ** Celest ...

Hybrid plants Ornamental plant cultivars Garden plants of North America Drought-tolerant plants {{Salvia-stub