Leucophyllum frutescens – Purple Sage.
Family Scrophulariaceae.
Purple Sage, also known as Silver leaf or Texas sage, is one of the 12 to 15 species.
Leucophylum frutescens is well known as a garden plant.
Compact, evergreen shrubs growing to around 1.5 m high and wide.
The alternately arranged, ovate to obovate leaves are around 2.5 cm long.
The base is wedge-shaped, the tip rounded and the edges are smooth.
The leaves are silvery, grey or grey-green due to the dense stellate hairs.
Inflorescences are solitary, axillary flowers about 2.5 cm long and wide on short stalks.
Flowers are purple, violet or pinkish.
The 5 densely hairy sepals have long, pointed lobes.
The lower half or so of the 5 petals form a corolla tube with flaring lobes.
Flowers are bilabiate with 2 lobes in the upper lip and 3 in the lower.
There are short, simple hairs around the lobe edges and on the inner surface of the lower lobe.
Running down the lower lip are 6 rows of darker purple spots with a pale halo around each.
There are long, simple hairs in this area internally.
The 4 stamens, inserted near the middle of the corolla tube, do not extend beyond it.
The superior ovary, of 2 fused carpels, has a single style that extends beyond the corolla tube.
The large stigma is covered with tiny papillae.
The fruit are small capsules with 2 chambers.
There are a number of cultivars, similar in form, size and leaves with flowers in white,
light purple or magenta-pink.
J.F.
