The beautiful flowers in fall are well worth the difficulty with finding a large sheltered location for this plant. This sage has deep green/reddish leaves that grow to a robust 10 feet tall. Flowers are deep purplish/pink flowers in fall, so many small hairs that the flowering branches appear velvety.,
To bloom, this plant needs a sheltered location with no wind and frost. The roots are hardy to 20 degrees F. but will not bloom at temperatures lower than 40 degrees F. It will become top heavy with blooms, so pinch early in the summer to get a lower growing, full plant. A great late season hummingbird plant.