Last spring I bought a plant called Salvia elegans- pineapple sage. The name sounded luscious and since I wanted to fill my herb garden with interesting new things, this seemed like a good addition. Planted it among some other sages, used its aromatic leaves for all sorts of culinary creations (some of them rather strange) and then, about two weeks ago, I noticed little red tubular flowers popping out everywhere. They were exquisite! Tiny, delicate, adding colorful accents all over an herb garden that was slowly going to sleep.
This week I visited Longwood Gardens, where I'm always astounded by the power of numbers. You and I may have one or two hydrangeas in the garden but Longwood has, what, hundreds?! We've got a licorice plant or two, but Longwood? Stadiums full.
Sure enough, I came upon several outposts of a familiar-looking plant with small red flowers. I checked the label and there it was: pineapple sage. Seas of it. I think I really missed the boat in my herb garden. I bought one measly old Salvia elegans last spring.
So now I'm thinking that instead of buying herbs to use as herbs, why not use them like any other flowering plant?
One summer I did that with Swiss chard. Instead of confining it to the vegetable patch, I grew it among the perennials. It looked...a little bizarre, to tell the truth, even though it was the 'Bright Lights' variety with the yellow, pink and red stems. Very colorful. Unfortunately, visitors would walk by and invariably remark, "How come your spinach is over here?" Kinda ruined the effect.
But I could plant a dozen or so Salvia elegans in the perennial beds. They look more like perennials than chard. Or I could go the traditional route and stick 'em in with the herbs.
Wise - you might say sage - advice, either way.
