Stats

Lifespan: 2-3 yrs
Size: Large
Diet: Photosynthetic
Biome: Mediterranean shrubland
Range: Mediterranean Basin
Movement: Sessile
Breeding: Seeds
Defense: Toxins
Status: Uncommon

About

Clary sage is a biennial Mediterranean herb whose mucilaginous seeds were historically soaked and placed on the eye to flush out debris — giving rise to its name from the Latin clarus, meaning clear. It produces tall branching spikes of pale lavender flowers backed by showy pink-tinted bracts that persist long after the petals drop.

Life cycle

1.
seed
A dormant seed waits for water and warmth before germinating.
2.
sprout
A first shoot emerges with cotyledon leaves and a tap root reaching down.
3.
sapling
A young plant grows true leaves and a stem or trunk, putting on height each season.
4.
mature
Fully grown, flowering or fruiting at adult size.

Learn more

Taxonomy

Kingdom: Plantae
Phylum: Tracheophyta
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order: Lamiales
Family: Lamiaceae
Genus: Salvia
Species: Salvia sclarea