The sage plant is hardy and straightforward to develop, so for those who aren’t already rising this backyard powerhouse, maybe this season is the time to start. Learn on for the important information to sage, which will provide you with all of the know-how you should develop, harvest, protect, and use sage.

Culinary sage or Salvia officinalis is a perennial herb that’s native to the Mediterranean. A part of the mint household, sage grows right into a bushy plant as much as two ft tall and two ft large.

Sage has been some of the common culinary herbs since historic instances. It provides nice flavour to many alternative dishes, however this herb additionally holds quite a lot of therapeutic properties. Plus, when planted within the backyard, it attracts useful pollinators and prevents dangerous pests.

It has purple, white, or pink flowers and rectangular, gray-green leaves coated with tremendous fuzz. The leaves have a savoury, earthy flavour that’s particularly common with meat and poultry dishes.

Let’s dive extra into the sage plant!

Fresh sage and honey tea — Sage is helpful in soothing a sore throat.

LoriAnn’s Inexperienced Blessings

This text was reviewed by herbalist LoriAnn Chook. This isn’t for use as private medical recommendation; at all times seek the advice of your well being care skilled for particular person considerations.

Listed here are LoriAnn’s notes on sage:

There are lots of advantages to sage; a strong anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, anti-diabetic, antidepressant, anti-tumor, and gastroprotective. I prefer to infuse sage into honey, add to my mashed squash or potatoes, drink contemporary tea, or rub her scent in my fingers whereas taking a break to breathe.

Sage has numerous dietary worth so eat her up and add to contemporary tomato sauce or make sage butter. As with every vegetation or meals verify along with your well being care skilled for any contraindications.

The Herbal Guide to the Sage Plant: An Easy-Growing Healing Herb — Sage is used for its culinary flavour in addition to its therapeutic properties.

The Historical past of Sage

Sage, like most herbs, has an interesting historical past that spans from the Mediterranean to Egypt, to France and China. From boosting fertility to staving off infections, sage has confirmed its advantages by means of the ages. Be taught extra concerning the historical past of sage (and some different herbs) right here.

Well being Advantages of Sage

The title Salvia comes from the Latin phrase which means “to save lots of,” or “to heal,” referring to sage’s skill to heal the physique. It has been used medicinally for 1000’s of years and remains to be thought of a helpful therapeutic plant in the present day.

Sage is a strong anti-inflammatory—when taken internally, it helps to scale back irritation of the digestive tract, which in flip helps to alleviate abdomen pains. It is usually usually used to deal with a sore throat, as on this recipe for sage throat lozenges.

Sage additionally has highly effective anti-fungal and antibacterial properties. Historical Greeks and Romans used sage as a preservative for meat due to its skill to assist cut back micro organism.

In aromatherapy, the scent of sage is purported to extend focus and sharpen reminiscence. Attempt retaining a pot of sage close to your desk or workspace and, whenever you begin to really feel your focus waning, crush up a leaf and inhale the perfume.

Sage growing in a pot outdoors. — Crush a sage leaf between your fingers for speedy aromatherapy.

Rising a Sage Plant

Sage is a woody-stemmed, perennial herb in Zones 5-8, and in milder climates, it may be harvested year-round. Widespread Backyard Sage (Salvia officinalis) is a silvery inexperienced color and has the perfect flavour for cooking. There are additionally many engaging types of sage which have purple, variegated, or tricoloured leaves.

Sage as a Companion Plant

Sage is a superb addition to any backyard, each for its natural and culinary makes use of and as a backyard helper. Even for those who don’t cook dinner with sage, think about planting it in your veggie patch as a companion plant to draw useful bugs and stop pests.

When in bloom, the aromatic flowers entice honeybees and butterflies, whereas the sturdy aroma of the leaves helps to discourage bean parasites, carrot flies, cabbage maggots, and cabbage flies.

Methods to Begin and Plant Sage

You can begin sage indoors from both seed or cuttings. Many individuals favor to start out it from cuttings as a result of sage is very easy to propagate, and taking cuttings will yield massive, absolutely mature vegetation a lot faster than rising from seed.

When planting within the backyard, select a sunny space and provides sage vegetation 25-30 inches of area between every plant in order that they’ve sufficient room to develop. Plant sage in nitrogen-rich, well-draining soil and water usually in order that it by no means dries out fully.

Methods to Take care of a Sage Plant

Prune the plant after its flowering interval. Take away any useless wooden and in the reduction of the plant to about half its dimension. This may encourage new development and your sage plant will keep bushy and neat.

Sage is hardy and overwinters simply. Merely give it some additional mulch within the colder months for defense when the temperatures drop.

Harvesting and Preserving Sage

To reap sage for contemporary cooking, take away leaves or stems as wanted for recipes. If you should harvest numerous leaves, strategy it like pruning. Reduce stems again to half their dimension to encourage extra bushy development, or take away full branches from the bottom to skinny out the plant. This may will let you harvest a considerable amount of sage whereas sustaining the form and well being of the plant.

When you’ve got a big harvest or need to dry sage for later use, tie sage stems into bundles and dangle the wrong way up in a clear, dry place with good air flow. When the leaves are absolutely dried, take away the leaves from the stems (they may crumble into flakes) and retailer them in an hermetic jar. Discard the stems within the compost pile.

Sage drying on outdoor herb rack — Hold sage in bundles the wrong way up to dry leaves and retailer them for later.

What’s the Sage Plant Used For?

Use contemporary or dried sage leaves in cooking, plant-based magnificence recipes, or use them to brew a medicinal tea (you’ll most likely need to add a bit of honey). You possibly can even use it to appease uncomfortable bug bites—merely crush up a contemporary leaf and gently rub the juices onto the affected space.

Plus, attempt a few of these recipe concepts utilizing this herb:

You can too use sage as a mosquito deterrent by burning bundles in your campfire, or use it as a useful device in preventing towards the frequent chilly. As you’ll be able to see, this plant is flexible and straightforward to develop, making it a must have for any dwelling backyard.

Sage Plant FAQ

Do dried sage leaves nonetheless maintain medicinal worth?

Each contemporary and dried herbs could have nutritional vitamins, minerals, and polyphenols. Sage will nonetheless maintain lots of its medicinal properties whenever you use dried leaves harvested correctly from wholesome elements of the plant.

Does burning sage make you sleepy?

Many indigenous individuals from North America burn sage as a ritualistic follow. In aromatherapy, sage is understood for serving to to enhance focus and reminiscence, in addition to cut back emotions of hysteria and stress. This calming impact might assist promote sleep. Smoke on the whole also can trigger fatigue, so be sure you have an open window when burning sage indoors.