No matter how delicate the shoots of peach sage appear, the plant can accumulate an astonishing ten years of life. The impact that the cold can have on her needs to be looked at in more detail. The peach sage may only be able to survive the winter safely with the intervention of its owner.
How to protect peach sage in winter?
To overwinter peach sage successfully, it should be grown in a pot and brought indoors before frost begins. Choose a bright location with temperatures of 10-15 °C and cut the plant back to a third. Make sure to water them occasionally.
A perennial but not hardy herb
This herb, which comes from Mexico, can delight us with its peach scent for many years. The ornamental value of its flowers should not be underestimated. The long flowering period until autumn has also earned it the name autumn sage.
If peach sage is cultivated under ideal conditions, it will grow for several years. In his homeland he remains outdoors all his life. In this country it has no chance of doing so because it is not hardy.
Peach sage should stay in the pot in this country
Since the peach sage cannot tolerate frost, it has to move twice every year. In autumn we go to warm quarters. The move outside follows in the spring. If it were in the garden bed, it would have to be constantly replanted and dug up again.
This time-consuming and energy-sapping work for the sage is saved if the plant grows permanently in a pot. The associated mobility makes wintering a lot easier.
Summertime and wintertime
Let's use the term summer time to summarize all the days that this sage can spend outdoors. These are the warm, sunny days from mid-May to around the end of October. In some years when the climate is favorable, he is allowed out earlier or gets an extension.
The rest of the year, even if it extends from autumn to spring, is like winter for him. Because no matter whether the temperatures are just above zero or it is freezing, the sage has to spend this time indoors.
Ideal place to stay during the “winter time”
The location must be chosen with care because the sage will remain there for many months. These are the criteria:
- it should be bright
- with temperature values of 10 to 15 °C
- then the plant gets a break
- alternatively, overwintering at room temperature is possible
Prune and care
Cut peach sage back to about a third before overwintering. Place the scissors just above the new growth. Also remember that sage occasionally thirsts for water, even in winter.
Tip
Currant sage, which comes from Central America, is also not hardy and has to overwinter under similar conditions as peach sage.
