Hey, I'm an amateur herbalist in Southern California. I do my homework, though, and can reassure that, while it is imperative to identify a species before using it, that many salvias are, indeed, medicinal plants. Officinalis is usually used to refer to a number of old-world plants, commonly used at the time of naming for medicinal purposes (and often evolving into modern-day cooking spices). However, species denoted as Officinalis are often related to a few, or a wide variety, of edible and medicinal plants. Some common sages that you'll find along with Spathacea that are noted for their medicinal use (NOT always equal to "edible," but in this case all are acceptable tea fodder) include Salvia Mellifera (I've read that you can brew it, but it's very, very strongly aromatic), Salvia Leucophylla, and Salvia Apiana (the famous "Sacred White Sage" looks most like Hummingbird Sage, but with much paler and fuzzier leaves). I primarily use them in incense and salves, but I do not believe any are particularly toxic. Some salvias, even common-name sages, can potentially be toxic. Always make sure to positively identify your herbs before play time.

I would like to make my own smudge sticks instead of buying them to save money. I heard these attract butterflies as well. thanks for looking, Tim wanted: Salvia apiana (white sage) Salvia divinorum haves to trade: Oriental Poppy Parsley (Moss Curled) Zanahoria corta (Short and Sweet Carrot) Venidium fastuosum (Zulu Prince Daisy) Squash (Yellow Summer Crookneck) Zinnia (mixed) Sunflower (Autumn Beauty) Radish (Sparkler) Portulaca (Moss Rose mixed) Aster (violet/blue mixed) Pepper (California Wonder) Morning Glory (Scarlett O'Hara)

I am also looking for Salvia apiana - 'White sage' plants. I have never shipped plants (but I have shipped reptiles). I'm willing to ship if I have anything on my list interesting, I may just need a few packing pointers. Thanks!!

Salvia apiana is native to my area of so. Calif. From my observation, it grows naturally up to about 5000 ft. elev. (Palomar Mtn.), maybe a bit higher in places. Snow is OK, but prolonged freezing is probably fatal. Where I live (Anza, CA), at about 4000 ft., winter nights frequently drop below freezing, but days are always above freezing, usually in the 50s. When I lived lower (about 1100 ft), in Temecula, I propagated a large batch of S. apiana from seed, most of which I ended up selling at a native plant fair. For my first batch, I used cold stratifcation, but later on I decided it was a waste of time. There's an old thread in GW from (I think) 2007, with my photos and details of what I did. I also grew one cutting, but it was several weeks before I saw roots. Later on, I got better at growing from cuttings (mostly S. clevelandii and S. "Dara's Choice," no success with S. pachyphylla). In nature, the primary growing season for S. apiana is late fall through spring. They are adapted to the Mediterranean climate of much of Calif., with wet winters and dry summers. They need good drainage. Also, they like lots of sun. They can't get too much sun. This post was edited by ccroulet on Sun, Jan 25, 15 at 14:13