Beth,

I'm two zones warmer than you (central Arkansas) and mine is almost ready to bloom. I noticed flower heads straightening up this morning which means they're about ready to being opening. Mine will bloom pretty much throughout the summer. They get sun from late morning, a bit of dappled shade mid day and then full sun until sundown. I do deadhead as each flower head finishes blooming. They like heat and will tell you if they need watering by wilting a bit but they're very fast to recover if given a good drink.

Mine are very hardy and very easy to start from cuttings; from sprouts that show up out a bit from the mother plant or from tip cuttings taken in the spring/early summer. The clump will gradualy spread but mine are not aggressive and easily kept in check by simply pulling up the new stray babies in the spring. To my knowledge, I've never seen seedlings so don't know if the seeds are sterile or even if they put out seed. I have taken plenty of cuttings or dug up baby sprouts attached to shallow underground runners.

One of the prettiest true blue colors you'll ever see in a flower and of all the flowers I grow for the hummingbirds, this plant is the one they prefer and come back to again and again.

Yellow, red and purple are all lovely in and around the B&B. I think you're going to enjoy this plant but don't know about it overwintering in your area. If you're not going to pot up some over the winter, I'd try covering the in ground plants with a big pile of leaves. That might keep the roots alive. We had some day and night temps into single digits this winter and mine came back. However, we don't experience those temps over a long extended timeframe.

Mary

Good choice! I put Salvia 'Black and Blue' in large pots that I put on my WNW facing patio each summer. They grow quickly and tolerate the mid to late day heat quite well. I usually plant yellow or white near it, but often in another pot since these guys get pretty large for me, the size of small shrubs. They do seem to need a fair amount of water compared to other salvias I have grown. I haven't ever tried planting in the ground, but may this year to see if with mulch in a sheltered spot I can overwinter them.

I love this plant. I've had them in pots and in the ground. They do well either way. They bloom until frost for me.
FYI for anyone interested, I've had one in the ground on the south side of my home for 4 winters. It is late to pop up in spring.
Remy

I planted B&B for the first time last year. My in-ground plants got pretty big(wide) and floppy. I suggest you not plant your two B&B any closer together than 2.5 feet. 3 feet apart is probably better.

I couldn't swear to this - but my impression is that "Black and Blue" might be a bit less hardy than the straight species (S. guaranitica). When I've had plants overwinter here, they're usually the species form.

Eric,
I don't know, but I planted mine in 2006, and I've had it ever since. Here's a close up pic of the blooms.
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Remy

Thanks for the info!
I had discounted the stated size on the tag, assuming that it was relavent only if it overwintered and had more than one season's time in the ground. So I will give it plenty of space! (I doubt that I will be able to overwinter).

I'm always excited when I have a new plant - can't wait to see how it does!
Beth

I live in Alabama,

I started out with a pot of the black and blue salvia about eight years ago and planted it. The hummingbirds loved it, so I bought it again the next year, then realized some leaves in the bed where the salvia had been planted the previous year were up and they looked a lot like leaves of the plant I had bought. Good reason, it was black and blue salvia. (I gave the other pot to a good friend).

It is a true perennial here and has come up every year since the initial purchase.I took this picture this morning. I don't think it grows to this size everywhere, but it will likely be up to 3 to 5 feet tall by summer's end here and will have bloomed until frost or later. It shares this bed with Navajo Salvia and Hot Lips salvia, (Not so tall, but hold their own) but Black and Blue is what the hummers really love. Mine is in full sun. I occasionally pull out some from the edges to keep it from overflowing its place, but it is very easy to pull up...no problem.

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Enjoy your new plant.
kay

I live in zone 6 in southern illinois and have had this plant in the ground for over 10 years. I give hunks of it away each year to hummingbird lovers. It is by far, my favorite plant.

Maybe it goes without saying, but B&B is just one of the numerous Salvia guaranitica cultivars and you can mix & match different purples and blues as you wish. I find B&B doesn't do well in dry, compacted clay soils, so it's lower on my sage list than native CA salvias, but it sure does thrive in fluffy, rich, warm soils.

My B&B has just returned for the third year. I have it in a south-east facing bed. Let me just say I'm really, really surprised to see it coming up again. And pleased too!

Linda

Maybe, I should not have dug my B&B. Do you think guys it will make it here? There are years low temps reach -20+F.

Anyways, here is a B&B I took in Wisconsin September of 2009.

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I love my B&B Salvia. Mine is up but not blooming, as I trimmed it back a little to see if it would make it bushier. Mine's three years old - perennial in this zone (but most often sold as an annual in garden centers). I can also testify that the hummers adore it!

Wow, gorgeous pictures, this plant is seriously on my want list. I have to get some of these this year.

If you put it in a pot and sit the pot near you outside on a patio the hummers will come right up to you to use it. I love it for its beauty and they love it for its nectar!
Joann

My B&B on a 12" pot didn't grow well.