The name Salvia is a derivative of two Latin words: salvare which means to heal or save, and salvus which means uninjured or whole. The famous Roman scientist, Pliny the Elder, included salvias in his book, Natural History because of their value as healing herbs. Salvias are a member of the Mint family and frequently have the scented flowers and foliage common to that family.
According to the author, there are 900 species of salvias worldwide with nearly half occurring in the Americas. This doesn't count the hundreds of garden cultivars. She selected over 100 plants to specifically discuss. For each species, there is an explanation of the meaning of the name, any name changes that have occurred, and a discussion of its native habitat including elevation and temperature tolerances. Each species is described in detail along with any cultivars that have arisen. She also suggests companion plants for each species. The line drawings of the flowers help the gardener distinguish between the species. When necessary, special cultivation instructions are provided. Most species are illustrated in full color in the color plate section of the book.
Although I strongly prefer seeing colored pictures right where the plant is being talked about, today's publishing costs frequently prohibit this. One of the outstanding features of the book was giving temperature range tolerances rather than using the traditional United State's Department of Agriculture hardiness zones. This makes the book useful by gardenrs around the world.
Betsy Clebsch provides several very useful sections in addition to the plant description section. These include a listing of public gardens displaying salvias, a guide to nurseries selling the plants or seeds, and a guide to the season of bloom. Cold and shade tolerance guides are also provided.
I strongly recommend this book for those in the warmer regions of North America. I must admit to being disappointed in discovering how few cold-tolerant salvia species exist. It would be easy, in a warm climate, to have an entire garden of just salvias with all the color, foliage variation, and flower variation a gardener could ask for. Perhaps the publication of this book will lead botanists and /or horticulturists to develop more cold tolerant cultivars from the existing species.
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