Salvia chamelaeagnea

Salvia chamelaeagnea is perennial, a much-branched shrub with stems slightly square in cross-section. The opposite leaves are hairless, leathery and gland-dotted; paddle-shaped and sometimes toothed along the margins.

The flowers are usually blue, mauve or pink, but may occasionally be white as in the photo, borne at the tips of leafless branchlets. Two-lipped flowers, up to 2,8 cm in length, grow in whorls. The upper lip is longer, the stamens protruding from below the hood of this upper lip.

The hairy calyx enlarges at the end of the flowering phase to hold the fruit. Flowering commences late spring and continues until autumn.

The plant occurs mainly in the Western Cape, from Namaqualand to Oudtshoorn. It is usually seen on flats and sandstone slopes (Manning, 2009; iSpot).