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Salvia x 'Big Swing'
Salvia x 'Big Swing'

(Big Swing Sage) With its large, cobalt blue flowers displayed on strong, wiry, branched stems, this eye-catching sage wins the FBTS "best of class" designation for being our top Salvia macrophylla.

Salvia x westerae
Salvia x westerae

(Hybrid Bolivian Sage) This naturally occurring hybrid is a Bolivian native related to S. orbignaei and S. haenkei. Prettier than its parents, it has large, profuse, long-blooming flowers that are dark pink.

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Results for swing from the blog

Sage Words About Wildlife
1. Sage Words About Wildlife: Hummingbirds Love Lobelias
Top-10 lists of hummingbird favorites almost always contain Salvia and Lobelia, because each genus is nectar rich and offers many species in bright reds, oranges and pinks. Hummingbirds have a weak sense of smell, but bright colors, such as those of Lobelias, lure them to flowerbeds. They are particularly devoted to the types grown at Flowers by the Sea.
Portraits in Gardening
2. Portraits in Gardening: Michael and Kathi Rock's Hummingbird Journey
A wedding gift led to Kathi Johnson Rock and Michael Rock's passion for hummingbirds. These Wisconsin birders offer tips and plant suggestions for hummingbird gardeners at FBTS. Although now known as Madison's "Hummingbird People," the Rocks aren't ornithologists or biologists. They are home gardeners and customers of Flowers by the Sea. This article includes a list of favorite hummingbird plants found in the Rocks' gardens.
Cultivating Color
3. True Blue Salvias You Can Rely On for Garden Serenity
Forget all the mournful music telling you that blue is the color of sadness. In a Salvia garden filled with hot colors, true blue is a peacemaker -- a reliable harmonizer that commands peace in the garden. This article talks a tiny bit about football, Madonna and the chemistry of true blue flowers. Then it offers a lot of true blue sages for gardens coast to coast from our Flowers by the Sea Online Nursery catalog.
Book Reviews
4. Book Review: Lawn Gone! Low-Maintenance, Sustainable, Attractive Alternatives for Your Yard
Lawn Gone  by Texas landscaper and garden writer Pam Penick concerns replacement or minimization of lawns through xeriscape, the art of planting attractive waterwise landscapes. Penick redefines suburban yards through designs including perennial groundcovers and small shrubs -- such as Autumn Sages ( Salvia greggii spp.) -- as well as ornamental grasses, sedges and hardscape, including water features. Flowers by the Sea specializes in Salvias and other xeriscapic plants.
Getting Started with Salvias
5. Getting Started: How Much Sun Salvias Need
Answering the question of how much sunlight Salvias need is dependent on the lands and conditions in which they originated. Also called true sages, Salvias may range from full sun to full shade species. But many prefer a combination of sun and shade. Flowers by the Sea is an online, mail-order nursery where you can buy hundreds of different sages.
6. Getting Started: Salvias for the Southwest
Ask anyone to describe the American Southwest, and they're likely to sum it up in three letters : "D-R-Y." Yet precipitation can vary a lot here state by state and even within different parts of the individual states. One thing that is consistent about the story of water throughout the Southwest, is that rain and snow can rapidly swing from famine to feast to misfortune.
7. Getting Started: What Is Drought and Xeriscaping
Drought is a shortage of precipitation over a season or more as in California where four years of drastic declines in rainfall and snowpack have created severe watering cutbacks. Drought is also defined by what and whom it affects from agriculture to homeowners. Flowers by the Sea Farm and Online Nursery explains drought and xeriscape, a water-conserving form of landscaping that is effective for gardening during drought and in dry climates. This article is part of the FBTS Getting Started series for gardeners becoming acquainted with Salvias (true sages). It includes a brief list of drought-resistant sages.
Sage Experts
8. Sage Experts: How Dr. Dufresne Became the Sultan of Salvia
December 18, 2018 - With great sadness we have learned that our friend Rich as passed away at his home in Candor, NC. A chance encounter with Pineapple Sage led organic chemist Dr. Richard F. Dufresne to become one of America's leading Salvia researchers. Sage Experts focuses on specialists -- both professionals and amateurs -- who have helped popularize the Salvia genus. Dufresne's life course changed the day he visited Rhode Island's Biodynamic Meadowbrook Herb Farm. Discovering the heady pineapple fragrance of Salvia elegans at Meadowbrook gave him a cause.
Sage Words About Wildlife
9. Sage Words about Wildlife: 4 Seasons of Hummingbird Salvias
Regional differences in seasonal temperature and humidity affect the choice of Salvias to plant in hummingbird gardens. The varying seasons in which particular sages bloom and the part of the world where they originated also determine whether they attract hummingbirds. Flowers by the Sea Online Nursery offers suggestions based on regions and seasons.
10. July in the Salvia Garden
July is a time of lush plant growth and pollinator activity in Salvia gardens. Aside from weeding and taking breaks to watch bees, hummingbirds and other small wildlife, there are many tasks to attend to in the sage garden during July. Flowers by the Sea Farm and Online Nursery offers a list of midsummer tasks to keep your garden buzzing and blooming.
New at FBTS
11. New at FBTS: Salvia x 'Ultra Violet' Defies Heat and Cold
In the Rocky Mountain West, conditions can swing from hellishly hot, dry summers to freezing cold winters. Many Southwestern Salvias are ideal for the sunbaked summers but have trouble surviving chilly Zone 5 winters. So we appreciate the cold hardiness as well as the drought resistance of one of our newest hybrid cultivars, Ultra Violet Hybrid Sage ( Salvia lycioides x   greggii ‘Ultra Violet’).
Hummingbirds in the Garden
12. Hummingbirds in the Garden: Attracting Hummingbirds to Your Garden
Planting a hummingbird garden filled with nectar-rich, long-blooming Salvias aids preservation of hummingbird species that migrate each year throughout North America. It also gives you a front-row seat to a fascinating aerobatics show. Backyard islands of colorful sages are like gas stations for hummingbirds' long-distance journeys. Salvias can keep your garden whirring with the helicopter-like flight of hummingbirds from spring through autumn and -- in warm climates -- into winter.