Rockin'^® Playin' the Blues^® Salvia longispicata x farinacea

I probably have about 6 of these thru PW online and other plant selling locations. All planted in 10 and 15gal fabric pots only because of our underground critters getting to the roots like last years RPtB's and are also placed on top of 1/4" hardware cloth. Lordy, they are huuuuge and loving the pots. Yes I do have to water more often but it's easier in the fabric for me. Plus I can move them on my hand cart easily if I find any plant needing more or less sun. There's bumblebees galore but no butterflies except for an occasional one to fly thru and need a quick pick me up then they're off. I have some RPtB's in about 6-8hrs of sun and 3 others in about 3-4hrs. I'm in zone 7B Mid-Atlantic so the sun is brutal with the humidity. For my area the 3-4hrs are doing better and that's the hottest part of the day of sun exposure. I gave them LOTS of Bio tone and PW Slow Release fertilizer (I mean ALOT. Dirt, BT, slow release, dirt BT, slow release in layers) when planted and it's now August so I started supplementing with Alas ka fish fertilizer until the bees hibernate. If you go the fabric pot route, take my advice, one plant per pot in 10gal ones. But I do have one planted with Bubblegum Super Petunias and I think the RPtB's isn't getting enough room to root out or the sun is too intense so it could be a combo factor going on. It's in full sun in the longest part of the day morning till about 6pm. RPtB's just won't stop producing these amazing stalks of flowers. If you're looking for a stand alone Thriller plant, this is the one for you and the Bee's will thank you so much for it.

It's a favorite in our garden. Easy to grow and butterflies and bees love it!

I bought 2 at my local nursery in NC this year. They grew quickly and became a huge attraction for the bees and butterflies. Question though, I'm on the edge of the hardiness zone so if they're treated as a perinneal, do u cut them back in the winter?

These are one of my top favorites! I planted a few as thrillers in a some of my large containers. My containers were super growers this year for some reason so they started to get so big that I decided to move them to my beds. They really took off. They are in my front garden which gets a lot of full sun especially in the afternoon. I was pretty generous with watering them. They are huge and full of pollinators and beautiful blooms. It’s October and they’re going strong. They make a huge gorgeous impact in my garden.

There are salvias — and then there is this beautiful performer. Non-stop flowering in deep blue until frost here in NC. Pollinator treat. I am delighted to find a perennial that requires no dead-heading and can handle the heat and humidity of our 5 month summer. Yup, I am back to add a few more of these to my gardens. I suggest you add a few smaller perennials in front of these in your garden design.