Salvia guaranitica 'Jammin' Jazz'

Salvia guaranitica 'Jammin' Jazz' – Bodacious Series

'Jammin' Jazz' pairs hot pink tubular flowers with near-black calyces and dark stems. The calyces persist after the flowers drop, so each spike stays coloured for weeks longer than the flowers alone would. It builds to about a metre each way in a season, with a tight, rounded habit that is more compact than most forms of the species, and heavily veined, lightly aromatic leaves. Honeyeaters and bees visit the flowers.

Plant in full sun to part shade with free drainage; where summer sun and heat are intense, some afternoon shade gives the best flower colour. It flowers from late spring right through autumn and needs only a cut back to a low framework at the end of winter. Like most tender salvias it dislikes waterlogged winter soil more than it dislikes cold, so a raised or gravelly position pays off in the Central Highlands. It tolerates heat and suits a mixed perennial border or a large pot.

• Mature height: 1 m
• Mature width: 1 m
• Light needs: Full sun to part shade
• Fragrance: Light