I think you can safely move it. They do get big. I had my latest one in a pot for a long time and I repotted it several times. The only reason I decided to plant it was I got tired of watering it. it's doing great so move it before it gets too big. Sarah

Sarah,
Too late! They are already huge!!! One plant is probably a good 4 ft. across and 3 to 4 feet high. It should be a trip trying to get it out without breaking it up! I was looking at the main stems, and it looks like they have roots growing up the stems, so if they do break, maybe I can start new BIG babies from them!
Thanks,
glo

Glo
THe stems break very easily as with most sages and the root ball is probably quite massive also. If you do decide to dig it up it may delay the bloom or it may not bloom at all this year.

I have been in the same position with quite a few of my plants which seem to be sitting on top of one another now that they have matured. I have chosen to leave them be for now until the season is over and then move or remove. My pineapple is growing into two of my B&B's and my agastache cana is growing into my penstemon and a few other things are growing into one another too but since their growing time is limited now I have decided to let be until later.

Penny

That's a good point too. Sorry about that mine was only about 4 feet when I planted it. Penny didn't you say you had rooted some of the stems that broke off of your pineapple sage last year? I think it roots fairly easily I know some of the stems broke when I planted it in the flower bed but the main plant recovered. Sarah

When are these things suppposed to bloom, anyway??? I bought a tiny one this spring for the first time, and it has grown very large in a planter, but no blooms. Is it just too early? That's what I've been hoping.

Yes it's too early. Generaly mine bloom around Halloween But when I bought one this past May it was already blooming I think because there was alot of rain and clouds and very little sun as soon as we started get more sun and heat the plant stopped blooming . Sarah

Sara If your pineapple sage doesn't bloom till Oct. does that mean I won't get to see a bloom 'cause I'm in a colder zone (5). Growing great but no flowers. Am going to try to take some cutting to possibly do it next year.

This is just for me Now I think I read that Penny knew of someone that it survived and wintered over in zone 5 or 6 for me I usually don't bring plants in so they die and I buy a new one in the spring mine did bloom on May 29th I have a picture but it's not blooming now it only blooms if we have a fairly mild fall I think it can stand freezing temperatures but not much below freezing sometimes mine doesn't bloom at all Maybe yours will bloom sooner. Sarah

Try tangerine sage. It blooms earlier.

Last year mine that was grown in a container and sat in direct sun all day long (when we had sun and it wasn't raining). It bloomed earlier than Sarah's (September) but it was still too late for my hummers.

I did root cuttings of stems that brok off and they rooted in 3 days in a glass of water. One even bloomed shortly after it rooted but again it was still too late for the hummers.

There have been a couple of reports of people who did successfully overwinter their pineapple sage in ground in Michigan I think. If you have the right protected microclimate and lots of mulch it could survive in zone 5 but I wouldn't depend on it.

This year mine is planted on the southwest side of my house in my salvia/agastache bed as an experiment along with 3 of my Black & Blue salvias. I will see what happens in the spring. I don't plan on replacing my pineapple sage next year if it doesn't come back on its own. There are too many other hummer plants that bloom much earlier and don't take up as much room unless it really puts on a nice display for fall color.

Penny

I think I'll just leave them alone for now, and if they do come back, I'll move them in the spring! I really hope they bloom soon! Don't know as I'd buy new ones next year as I'd rather put B&B's and the Lady In Red in their spot!

glo

Hi Glo,

How about pruning the PS on the side next to the butterfly bush? The bf bush should be very tough & not easily crowded out, but it won't hurt the PS to be trimmed. I really went after my Mexican sage with the pruners when I found my Princess Di cannas were being smothered out! My temporary hummingbird garden has become very crowded, so I'm being a bit ruthless with the pruning where needed.

BTW, the Lady in Red is easy to start under fluorescent lights in the early spring. I've started harvesting seeds from mine.

Patrick

My salvia/agastache bed is looking like a bit of a jungle. Since the agastaches need a 4 month period to get established before the onset of winter, I have decided to just leave everything as is for now and next spring I can see what has survived and do some moving, and pruning if necessary. Patrick you are so right about the Lady in Red. I don't have gro lights so I do mine by the winter sowing method and so the seeds in March in containers that go outside until they germinate. They will sprout earlier than reseeders but not as quickly as growing them under lights.

Penny

Does anyone know why we go to so much trouble with pineapple sage. Sure it smells nice and has a lovely flower, but really. When I think of the storage space it takes on the back porch, and how many all season flowering sages are out there, I'm convinced I've lost my mind. So I'm taking the pledge. "I will not go to any trouble to overwinter pineapple sage from this day forward. I will not encourage anyone north of zone 8 to do so either, nor point out what a groovy plant it is."

Ward,
I totally agree with you on this one and that is why I have my pineapple in the ground this year. If my some miracle it survives then all well and good but if not then so be it. It does perk up the garden in the fall though when everything else is on its way out.

Penny

lol! too funny! This is my first time with it, and I never dreamed it would be so HUGE! If it overwinters in the ground, I will move it next spring but I won't be buying it again until I have a much bigger garden. There are just too many other hummer plants I want and like. I'd rather have more space for B&B's and Lady's than I have now so, if somethings gotta go, it will be the later bloomers instead of the ones that benefit the birds while they are here. Doesn't make sense to take up so much space for something that may not bloom until after migration.
So far I've been able to gather some of the LIR seeds and have successfully rooted some of the b&b's so I'll need the space anyway!
glo

Sorry- Question- I'm in Zone 7, It's November and temps are just now falling off. My pineapple sage plants are 2 years old and are 4ft tall this year. I need to move them. Do I wait until Spring? Or move them when dormant?

Thanks for advice.

Yeah Pineapple sage I wouldn't recommend to places up north. It's good here (I still have a vagrant hummer) but up north stragglers are much less likely. Love their smell though.

For a sage that gets hummers before they migrate in cooler zones I've heard many people praise their Phyllis Fancy salvia, rating it their top plant even which surprised me because it's a purple-tinted white color with dark purple calyx (not orange or red).Like I know hummers use many colors but usually the most preferred plants tend to be red, orange, hot pink, or violet.

@Calletina

I've found salvias pretty forgiving about being moved in general but I'd still wait until spring since you are a region with frost (if you were zone 8 or zone 9 maybe you could get away with it but zone 7 is pushing it). In the meantime you can always prune if it's in the way of anything.

Pineapple sage smells so good. I never noticed hummingbirds on ours, though. They do come around our garden, though, but we don't have Pineapple sage anymore.

I have a beautiful pineapple sage and would hate to see you die over the winter. I live in zone 8B have LED lights in the garage for my citrus trees -should I try to re-pot it or put it in a pot it’s in the ground now and bring it in the garage ? It’s my chickens favorite treat!!!!

I have a beautiful pineapple sage and would hate to see you die over the winter. I live in zone 8B have LED lights in the garage for my citrus trees -should I try to re-pot it or put it in a pot it’s in the ground now and bring it in the garage ? It’s my chickens favorite treat!!!!