Salvia semiatrata
Encyclopedia
Salvia semiatrata is a perennial native to the Sierra Madre del Sur
in the Mexican state of Oaxaca
, growing at elevations of 6500 ft (1,981.2 m) or higher. It prefers the edges of pine forests, and is also found on limestone cliffs and banks and in cactus scrub habitats that are dry and exposed.
Salvia semiatrata reaches 6 ft (1.8 m) high and 3 ft (0.9144 m) wide in the wild and in ideal garden conditions. The 1 in (2.5 cm) deltoid leaves are a bright grassy green-yellow color, growing in small clusters even though they are opposite. The leaf surface is rugose, with the underside covered with short light cream-colored hairs that bring out the veining. The 6 in (15.2 cm) inflorescences have whorls of one to three flowers in each verticil. The flowers are 1 to 2 in (2.5 to 5.1 cm) long and bicolored—the upper lip is a luminous dark violet and covered with hairs, while the lower lip is a dusky lavender. The calyx is 0.5 in (1.3 cm) inches long and covered with hairs, and is a rich violet color with magenta. The specific epithet, semiatra, refers to the corolla tube and its two colors.
Sierra Madre del Sur
The Sierra Madre del Sur is a mountain range in southern Mexico, extending from southern Michoacán east through Guerrero, to the Istmo de Tehuantepec in eastern Oaxaca.-Geography:...
in the Mexican state of Oaxaca
Oaxaca
Oaxaca , , officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Oaxaca is one of the 31 states which, along with the Federal District, comprise the 32 federative entities of Mexico. It is divided into 571 municipalities; of which 418 are governed by the system of customs and traditions...
, growing at elevations of 6500 ft (1,981.2 m) or higher. It prefers the edges of pine forests, and is also found on limestone cliffs and banks and in cactus scrub habitats that are dry and exposed.
Salvia semiatrata reaches 6 ft (1.8 m) high and 3 ft (0.9144 m) wide in the wild and in ideal garden conditions. The 1 in (2.5 cm) deltoid leaves are a bright grassy green-yellow color, growing in small clusters even though they are opposite. The leaf surface is rugose, with the underside covered with short light cream-colored hairs that bring out the veining. The 6 in (15.2 cm) inflorescences have whorls of one to three flowers in each verticil. The flowers are 1 to 2 in (2.5 to 5.1 cm) long and bicolored—the upper lip is a luminous dark violet and covered with hairs, while the lower lip is a dusky lavender. The calyx is 0.5 in (1.3 cm) inches long and covered with hairs, and is a rich violet color with magenta. The specific epithet, semiatra, refers to the corolla tube and its two colors.