Salvia lavanduloides aka Lavender Leaf Sage

Salvia lavanduloides is part of the mint family. The name for this family is Lamiaceae. The plant’s native range runs from Mexico into Central America. Kew places it in the subtropical biome, a broad climate zone. The records give no further facts about its habitat. They do not say what kind of site it grows in. The stated range and biome are the only habitat details given.

Kew lists the plant as a geophyte. This term means its resting buds lie below ground. The record does not name the structure that stores reserves there. It gives no figure for the plant’s height when full grown. Nor does it say how wide the plant grows. Its rate of growth is also not given. Thus, the record describes where its resting buds lie, but not its size or growth speed.

The RHS accepts Salvia lavanduloides as the correct name. It states that the plant is not native to Britain. The same holds true for Ireland. The RHS page gives some traits of the wider genus. Those traits do not show which ones this species has. They cannot serve as an account of this plant’s leaves. The shape of its leaves remains unstated in these records. The same is true of the form of its flowers.

The sources give no bloom time for this species. They also give no account of its fruit. There is no guide to the light it needs in gardens. The records do not state its soil or water needs. They do not say how much cold it can bear. Nor do they set out uses for it in landscapes. There are no reports here on its pests or diseases.

Neither source shows which, if any, parts people can eat. Neither gives evidence for its use as a medicine. They also do not state whether the plant is toxic. These gaps leave the questions of use and safety open. A lack of facts on harm does not prove safety. Do not read these gaps as proof that eating it is safe. The same warning applies to its use as a medicine.