Garden sage varieties for kitchen & garden

When one speaks of sage, one usually means the popular garden sage (also called spice sage). In our overview we present the best garden sage-Splaces before.

In addition to the numerous Species of sage, you will mostly find varieties of in the local gardens Garden sage (Salvia officinalis). The variety ranges from vigorous to compact, from single-colored to multi-colored, to varieties that do not bloom at all.

Is garden sage hardy?

Before you rush to buy a sage, you should inform yourself in advance about the respective variety properties. Because sage is fast planted, but many of the varieties offered in the garden center are just as quickly wiped out during a harsh winter. Some of the goods on offer come from wholesalers in France, Italy or Spain. Garden sage varieties that cannot tolerate the climate here are also cultivated there. Be careful with the multi-colored varieties such as ‘Tricolor’ or ‘Purpurascens’. The disappointment is great when the beautifully grown plant does not survive the winter. That is why we should cultivate multi-colored sage in a tub and overwinter it. In wine-growing regions, these varieties can also be planted in a protected area. Protection with brushwood or fleece is still necessary.

Garden sage varieties for the kitchen

All types of garden sage are actually suitable for cooking. However, if you want an aroma that is as intense as possible, the ‘Extrakta’ variety is particularly good. The spiced sage varieties ‘Berggarten’ and ‘Windeck’ are very broad-leaved and save a lot of work and time when preparing meals. If you want to use sage for smoking, you can use very aromatic and slightly resinous varieties such as ‘Extrakta’ or ‘Nazareth’.

The best garden sage varieties

The following overview is intended to give an introductory insight into the respective suitability of the variety of spicy sage:

Compact growing garden sage:

• Alba: White flowering sage variety with a fairly compact habit; also suitable for keeping pots; intense, pleasant aroma; slightly bitter.
• Mountain garden: Variety of sage with large, broad leaves; therefore ideally suited for the preparation of Saltimbocca or similar; very good aroma; quite compact growth.
• Nana Alba: Like Nana, only with white flowers; pleasant aroma; well suited for cultivation in pots.
• Nana: As the name suggests: very compact variety with small, narrow leaves; ideal for culture on the balcony.

Normal to vigorous garden sage:

• Crispa: Sage variety with a very special look: the leaves are quite broad, fluffy and clearly curled at the edges; very good aroma.
• Extract a: Breeding with a very high content of essential oils; particularly intense in taste and also suitable for smoking; Since you only need a few leaves for seasoning, one plant in the garden is usually sufficient.
• Nazareth: Very downy and silvery variety from Israel; Leaves are elongated, narrow; very good, intense aroma.
• Non-flower: Anyone who does not grow sage as an ornamental plant, but only to harvest the leaves, should use this variety. This does not form flowers and can put all of its energy into the formation of shoots and leaves. Flavorful and very good.
• Rosea: Particularly beautiful, pink flowering variety; for a cultivar quite small leaves, but with a sweetish aroma.
• Windeck: Leaves similar in size and good aroma to Berggarten, but more vigorous; rather unsuitable for a culture in a pot; but very good aroma and ideal leaf size for processing in the kitchen (saltimbocca, etc.).

Garden sage with variegated leaves:

• Creme de la creme: Variety of sage with a creamy white varnish, especially on the edges of the leaves; two-tone: cream white - green.
• Aurea: well-known variety of sage, which is also often referred to as golden sage; golden yellow to green yellow variegated leaves; good taste.
• Purpurascens: Leaves of the higher lying and younger shoots are purple in color; later they turn green-greyish; beautiful appearance, good taste, but similar to the Tricolor variety, only partially hardy.
• Tricolor: Variety with a particularly beautiful leaf look: the leaves are variegated white-green, with the leaves of the higher-lying shoots turning purple to pink. Requires a very well protected location in Germany as it is less tolerant of frost than other varieties.