Getting it to bloom

Why won't my Red-Topped Sage bloom? (and how to make it flower)

Also called Red-Topped Sage, Annual Clary, Painted Sage, Annual Clary Sage (Salvia viridis).

More about red-topped sage

About Red-Topped Sage

Salvia viridis · also called Red-Topped Sage, Annual Clary · flowering

Salvia viridis is a fast-growing annual native to the Mediterranean region, grown primarily for its showy coloured bracts — white, pink, or purple with darker veins — rather than its small flowers. It performs best in full sun and free-draining soil, and the colourful bracts make it an outstanding cut and dried flower. The key care fact is that it is a true annual and must be sown fresh each year, but it self-seeds freely if a few flower heads are left to mature. Salvia is listed as non-toxic to cats and dogs by the ASPCA.

Plant type: flowering

The reasons red-topped sage isn't blooming

Almost every non-blooming red-topped sage traces back to one of these, roughly in order of how common they are:

Too little sun — most of these need full sun (or very bright light) to flower well; shade gives leaves, not blooms.
Too much nitrogen feed, driving lush foliage at the expense of flowers (very common with general or lawn feeds).
The plant has not been deadheaded, so it stops flowering once it sets seed.
Irregular watering — drought or waterlogging at the budding stage makes buds abort.
It is still too young or was checked by a transplant and is rebuilding before flowering.

Feeding red-topped sage a high-nitrogen general feed and growing it in too little sun — you get a big leafy plant and almost no flowers.

The fix — how to get red-topped sage to flower

Maximise sun. Give red-topped sage the sunniest spot you have — for most bedding and fruiting plants, more direct light directly means more flowers.
Switch the feed. Move off high-nitrogen feeds and use a higher-potassium "bloom" or tomato-type feed as it comes into flower.
Deadhead regularly. Remove spent flowers often to keep it producing more rather than stopping to set seed.
Water consistently. Keep moisture even through budding and flowering — drought-then-flood swings make buds drop.

Light and feeding do most of the heavy lifting here. Dial in the spot with the light guide for red-topped sage and get the feeding right with the red-topped sage fertilising schedule — the wrong feed (too much nitrogen) is one of the most common silent reasons a healthy plant makes leaves instead of flowers.

Bloom season and what to expect

Red-Topped Sage flowers across its growing season (mostly summer) and, kept fed and deadheaded, can bloom for many weeks or right up to frost.

Post-bloom care so it flowers again

Deadhead, keep feeding lightly, and many will rebloom; collect seed from the best plants at the end of the season if you want to grow them again.

For everything else this plant needs day to day, see the full red-topped sage care brief and its watering schedule — a stressed, badly watered plant rarely has the energy to flower at all.

Red-Topped Sage blooming — frequently asked questions

Why won't my red-topped sage flower?

Red-Topped Sage blooms on the season's growth given enough sun, warmth and the right feed — there is no cold or photoperiod trick, just good growing conditions and a bloom-leaning feed. The most common reason it is not happening: Too little sun — most of these need full sun (or very bright light) to flower well; shade gives leaves, not blooms.

How do I make red-topped sage bloom?

Give red-topped sage the sunniest spot you have — for most bedding and fruiting plants, more direct light directly means more flowers. Move off high-nitrogen feeds and use a higher-potassium "bloom" or tomato-type feed as it comes into flower.

When does red-topped sage normally bloom?