I hate to admit but I am not bleaching my containers :) I rinsed them out some and calling that good. Probably not the best to do but I am lazy, lol

I think bleach is just fine. I used to use it to sanitize and clean pots.

I will check out the sites you mentioned. I want more Ruds and maybe I can find a deal.

Karen

Yeah, Karen, I wondered just how fussy I have to be about cleanliness, will for expensive seeds. I was even thinking about reusing soil and not sterilizing it. I'll try on something I have plenty of.

I had a disaster by spring sowing with tops taped shut, got mold. Sprayed with H2O2 solution which worked but a lot didn't germinate.

Going thru my seeds, I see I caught my canoe birch seeds in time. Got tons. Now that ought to be fun. I'm going to try WS'ing them as they probably need stratification anyway.

Maybe I'll just skip it and do it like you do. If I lose, I lose. Only my pansies are really special & expensive but those I was going to plant differently anyway.

Thanks! I'm lazy, too. And get tired just thinking about all I want to do. Got my herb pots soaking, am starting those now, little to lose. If I see signs of damping off, will use the H2O2 and try not to overwater, probably grow them indoors anyway so I have some in the winter and year round, could set them out in nice weather.

Salvia Black and Blue from my clearance rack purchase this summer.

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It's marginally hardy here. Take cuttings in the fall, they root easily. Put them under fluorescent lights and let the soil dry out between waterings all winter. If seeds are produced, they tend to be sterile or revert back to one of the parents. I have never seen seed on any of my plants.

If I'm sowing outdoors, I don't bother to sterilize anything. And I reuse soil all the time. Mother nature takes care of the mold, slime, etc.

token, "It's marginally hardy here. Take cuttings in the fall, they root easily."

What a sight for tired eyes! I've got one I saved on my hd. That is sooooo pretty.

I didn't want to risk tramping around places as some say it's hard to find probably moreso in my zone.

I'll try cuttings, have lights. No seeds. Cuttings or buy new the next year like some do.

Where do you cut it, how big a piece, and do you dip it in rooting powder, then put in water or soil? Some things do root easily for me, iresine and geraniums, have to work harder to get roses.

Unlike it may appear, I'm not on the internet all night, am juggling the few threads I'm watching, my friend's photos, cooking a late supper and phone calls. Freezing cold here, wonder what will survive the winter; the good snow cover like we have helps.

It's dark. The internet with all the pretty pictures keeps me occupied at night. :)

I take salvia cuttings in late fall from a stalk that has just bloomed. About 4" long, snip off any flower stalks or new buds, remove the lower leaves, and stick at least one node below the soil. Put it in a baggie in sterile soil. You need sterile for rooting. You can use rooting hormone, but it's not necessary. Salvias have a hollow stem, so keeping that open is key to success. If you've rooted roses, you can easily root salvias. Just open the bag for a few minutes a day to let them breathe. I take cuttings of Mystic Spires every year. It's also marginally hardy for me. I've yet to have one come back.

Mystic Spires in June.

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I planted it in too much shade. By August, it was very floppy. Be sure to plant the Black and Blue in lots of sun.

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Gosh I thot you were talking about 2 Salvia: Black salvia and Blue salvia.
Now that I have seen the pic of Black and Blue salvia I shall have to get it.
I saved the seeds of my Blue Salvia. It was interesting that the Red salvia plants turned brown and crinkly and ugly very quickly, long before summer was over, but the Blue plants remained green (after the blooms were gone) long into the fall.
So I am going to concentrate on Blue, Yvonne's, and some tall reds.

ellen

Hi aliska,
I bought pots of B&B Salvia several years ago. At the first frost I cut them to the ground then put a paving stone on top of the site and poured on a bag of leaves to give them winter protection, just to see if they would survive. I don't like rebuying plants I can save. Out of the three two made it through the winter using this method. Those two have been with me three years now. It is very cold here and will be so for a prolonged period. However we have a 10" snow cover, I am in the Kansas City metro, so we'll see if they make it come spring. Just thought you might like to try this method in 2010 to see if you could get them to winter over in your yard. And if you also start cuttings you'll have that many more. They really are very pretty, I love mine and so do the humming birds:)
Tina

token and trowelgal, thank you so much, saved token's instructions. I'll try to do with the stubble that remains as trowelgal suggested, don't have paving stones but some bricks or glass blocks over cardboard might do along with plenty of leaves I have. I hate to buy new, too, but maintaining plants over the winter is getting to be a chore, still don't want to give it up.

I grew Salvia Sangria from T&M from seeds a few years back, started too early in my sr, got crooked. So I tied them to little stakes. When I set them out, they straightened up, are interesting plants, and that was the only one of my flowers I saw a pair of hummingbirds go for. My neighbor tells me he had scads of them on his hisbiscus on his deck.

The following year I tried a mix Salvia Salsa and added a purple. Those didn't do so well in back. Neither did the Blue Ribbon (looked pretty blue in the photo but more purple) ones I planted where I had had the Sangria the year before. They were disappointing.

All annuals. I don't think I have any perennial ones although there are some for my zone.

Burpee has what looks to be a beautiful Cathedral Mix, but they're pricey and you only get three plants, so I passed on those. Would love to try some of those from seeds though if they ever become available or may splurge next year if I don't have to buy more of the black and white.

Thanks for posting the photos, enjoyed them. They never appealed to me but have grown on me.

Token, Salvia black and blue is reliably hardy in my garden here in NC zone 7a in the Kernersville area. I have had my plants in the ground for over 7 years and never lost them. They can spread quite easily underground via their stolons and can easily be dug up to share with friends. I would think it would be as hardy for you further east in the state.

A trick I was told and passed on to friends in Illinois to saving them in colder zones where they are not hardy is to cut the plants back once the weather turns cold and to dig the plants up. You will find that the plants have tuberlike growths underground. You can just sit the plant, roots, soil ball and all, into a pot and store it in a cold area like an unheated garage. Only add water when the soil is dry or you might rot the tubers. Once danger of frost is past, plant the clump back outside where you want it. The friends in Illinois that have used this technique for several years to successfully overwinter Salvia Black and Blue.