North Carolina Botanical Garden

Plant Index

Scientific Name:
Common Name:
Genus:
Family:

Salvia urticifolia

Salvia urticifolia L.

nettle-leaf sage

Image ID: 18694
Image by: Ware, Richard & Teresa
Image Collection: NCBG Digital Library

PLANT INDEX

ID_PLANT: SAUR
SCIENTIFIC NAME: Salvia urticifolia
Include in WOTAS: 1
Publish to Web: 1
Last Modified: 2019-01-23

GENUS INDEX

GENUS CODE: SALVI
GENUS SCIENTIFIC: Salvia
GENUS AUTHORITY: L.
GENUS COMMON: Sage
GENUS SUMMARY: A genus of about 900 species, shrubs and herbs, almost cosmopolitan. Walker et al. (2004) have determined that Salvia as traditionally circumscribed is polyphyletic.
GENUS IDENTIFICATION:
GENUS REFERENCES: Epling (1938)=Z; Stace (2010)=Y; Walker et al. (2004).

FAMILY INDEX

FAMILY CODE: LAMIAC
FAMILY SCIENTIFIC: Lamiaceae
FAMILY AUTHORITY: Lindley 1836 or LABIATAE A.L. de Jussieu 1789
FAMILY COMMON: Mint Family
FAMILY SUMMARY: A family of about 230-250 genera and 6700-7170 species, herbs, shrubs, vines, and trees, cosmopolitan. The placement in the Lamiaceae of several genera traditionally placed in Verbenaceae (e.g. Clerodendrum) is strongly supported by several lines of evidence.
FAMILY REFERENCE: Harley et al. in Kadereit (2004).

NCBG DESCRIPTIVES

INTRO: Erect perennial from a thick rhizome found in woodlands and glades, usually over mafic or calcareous rocks.
STEMS: Stems square, slippery-hairy and sometimes woody at the base.
LEAVES: Leaves numerous, opposite, oval to diamond-shaped, the wedge-shaped base tapering to wings, coarsely toothed toward the tip but entire toward the base.
INFLORESCENCE:
FLOWERS: Flowers in whorls along a spike-like raceme to 8 in. long; violet to blue; bilaterally symmetric; tubular and with 2-lips, the lower lip showy and cleft into 2 lobes and with prominent white markings. The tubular calyx is also 2-lipped and with prominent nerves.
FRUITS:
COMMENTS:
HEIGHT: 6-30 in.

DURATION: Perennial
HABIT: Herb

LEAF ARRANGEMENT: Opposite
LEAF COMPLEXITY: Simple
LEAF RETENTION:

FLORAL CHARACTERISTICS
SYMMETRY: Bilateral (Zygomorphic)
BLOOM TIME: Apr-Jun

Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
		x	x	x	x	x

BLOOM COLOR: Purple and white

White	Red	Pink	Orange	Yellow	Green	Blue	Lavender	Purple	Violet	Brown	Not Applicable
x						x		x

FRUITING PERIOD: May-Jul.

DISTRIBUTION
HABITAT TYPE: Outcrops and glades, Woods margins
NATIVE RANGE: southeastern United States

HORTICULTURAL
Plant Sale Text: Nettleleaf sage is a wonderful native sage that is not usually offered for sale. Nettleleaf Sage is often found growing at dry woods edge, open woods and over outcroppings. It prefers a more basic soil, though is happy in average garden soil, and part-sun to dappled shade. It does not like moist, rich soil. With spikes of purple flowers with white-throats, and its small size, it would be perfect along the edge of a part-shade garden.

Bloom Table Text:

NCBG Location:

Cultural Notes:

SOIL MOISTURE: Dry, Average
LIGHT EXPOSURE: Sun, Part Shade, Shade
MINIMUM HARDINESS ZONE:
MAXIMUM HARDINESS ZONE:
GERMINATION CODE: 2
WILDLIFE VALUE: Bee Friendly, Butterfly Friendly
DEER RESISTANCE:

GRIM COLLECTIONS

Coll_id	Project	Collection date	Collector	Action
96	HORT	2011-05-25	Poythress	View

GRIM ACCESSIONS

acc_id	acc_num	acc_dt	coll_id	Action
95	2012-0067	2012-06-06	96	View
4164	1992-0320			View
9449	2021-0108	2021-07-12	0	View

GRIM PLANTINGS

plt_num	acc_id	loc_num	pers_num	inst_dt	Action
139	95	21	Liloia	2012-05-01	View
6492	4164	200	NCBG staff	1993-03-01	View
12840	9449	21	Liloia	0000-00-00	View

USDA PLANTS DATABASE

USDA Symbol: SAUR
USDA Common Name: Nettleleaf Sage
Native Status: L48 (N)
Distribution: USA (AL, DC, FL, GA, KY, MD, MS, NC, PA, SC, TN, VA)
Duration: Perennial
Growth Habit: Forb/herb

WEAKLEY FLORA

SCIENTIFIC NAME: Salvia urticifolia
COMMON NAME: Nettle-leaf Sage
SYNONYMY: [= K1, S; < S. urticifolia - C, F, G, K2, RAB, Va, W, WH3 (also see S. chapmanii)]
PHENOLOGY: Apr-Jun; May-Jul.
HABITAT: Woodlands and glades, usually over mafic or calcareous rocks.
COMMENTS: N. VA (and allegedly MD and s. PA) west to w. KY (and allegedly a single county in IN), south to SC, c. GA, Panhandle FL, and AL. Quite showy when in flower. {add Z synonymy}
RANGE MAP: Salvia urticifolia.png

Key to Map Symbols

ABOUT FAMILY (Weakley Flora)
Lamiaceae Lindley 1836 or LABIATAE A.L. de Jussieu 1789 (Mint Family)
SUMMARY: A family of about 230-250 genera and 6700-7170 species, herbs, shrubs, vines, and trees, cosmopolitan. The placement in the Lamiaceae of several genera traditionally placed in Verbenaceae (e.g. Clerodendrum) is strongly supported by several lines of evidence.
REFERENCE: Harley et al. in Kadereit (2004).

ABOUT GENUS (Weakley Flora)
Salvia L. (Sage)
SUMMARY: A genus of about 900 species, shrubs and herbs, almost cosmopolitan. Walker et al. (2004) have determined that Salvia as traditionally circumscribed is polyphyletic.
REFERENCE: Epling (1938)=Z; Stace (2010)=Y; Walker et al. (2004).

HERBARIUM RESOURCES

SERNEC: Find Salvia urticifolia in Southeast Regional Network of Experts and Collections (if available)
UNC SERNEC: Find Salvia urticifolia in University of North Carolina Chapel Hill Herbarium - Southeast Regional Network of Experts and Collections (if available)

WEB RESOURCES

USDA: Find Salvia urticifolia in USDA Plants
NPIN: Find Salvia urticifolia in NPIN Database
FNA: Find Salvia urticifolia in the Flora of North America (if available)
Google: Search Google for Salvia urticifolia

IMAGE USE RECORDS

ID IMAGE: 18694 - Primary Image FloraQuest Plant Detail Page (Landscape Preferred)
ID IMAGE1: 18694 - Primary Image WOTAS
ID IMAGE2: 0 - Secondary Image WOTAS
ID IMAGE3: 17055 - Primary Image Plant Sale Sign (Landscape Only)
ID IMAGE4: 0 - Primary Image New Plant Sale Label (Portrait Only)