How to Plant, Grow, and Harvest Sage

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Do you want to add a resilient and easy to grow herb to your backyard garden or herb garden? Sage (salvia officinalis) is just what you're looking for. Learn to plant, grow, and harvest sage plants, a hardy and delicious herb, perfect for beginner and experienced gardeners alike. 

​One of the Mediterranean herbs, sage is a wonderful addition to any vegetable garden. It is easy to grow and preserve for use later, and its gray-green leaves add color variety to any container, raised bed garden, or flower bed. Sage is also pretty hardy in cold winters, so it is an accessible herb for many gardeners. 

Why grow sage?

This herb is best known for its flavorful addition to the Thanksgiving meal. But it's so much more than a turkey's favorite seasoning! Sage, a member of the mint family, is also a key herb used in sausage making and is great for adding to freshly ground poultry or pork.

There are several varieties of sage and this fragrant herb is used for medicinal purposes, culinary uses, and as an attractive garden flower. Not all sage plants are edible, but all make a great addition to a home vegetable or flower garden. (Be sure the sage you've selected for your herb garden is edible!) You can successfully grow sage in your home garden with these helpful tips.

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Is Sage a Perennial Herb?

As with many things gardening, it depends. Whether this culinary herb is a perennial depends on your growing zone. Those in zones 5-8 will be able to grow sage plants as perennial herbs. For those in the warmer zones, sage will likely be an annual. 

The perennial plants will actually grow into a low shrub over the course of a couple of years, and they produce beautiful purple sage flowers in the early spring, though likely not in the first year.

How To Plant Sage

Location, location, location is always important when choosing a place to plant culinary sage. Sage enjoys full sun and a place with well-drained soil. Be sure the soil is rich in organic matter on top of that good drainage.

Though sage is a hardy plant, sage seeds may not germinate well. To make up for this low germination rate, be sure to plant 2-3 times more seeds than you need to help ensure a good plant yield. (Grab some quality sage seeds at Eden Brothers Organic!)

Plant seeds ¼-inch deep and 1-inch apart in spring after all danger of frost has passed. Lightly cover with soil and water. Seeds will take about 3-weeks to germinate, keep soil moist.

Another option would be to buy young plants from your local nursery or hardware store. This is an easy option if you want to avoid the low germination rates of sage seeds. 

Be sure to pick a healthy plant with full, green leaves, and always feel free to lift the plant out of the plastic planter and check the roots. Nobody wants to buy a plant with root rot. Also check the leaves for any size of powdery mildew, which sage can be susceptible to if it doesn't get good air circulation.

How to propagate sage plants

Want to propagate a new plant from a friend's existing sage plant? For best results, start new plants with a cutting from old plants. Cut off a young shoot 3-inches below the leaf crown, avoid the woody stems and go for the young pliable ones. 

Remove lower leaves so the cutting has three pairs of leaves at the top. Place the cut end of the stem into a container of moist potting soil.

Cut the bottom out of a plastic water bottle and place over the cutting to create a mini greenhouse. This will help keep your new plant at a steady temp, and will help to keep the soil from drying out too quickly. 

It will take 4-weeks for the cutting to develop a root system and begin to grow. When new growth appears transplant the new sage plant outdoors or into a larger container.

Caring For Sage Plants

Grow sage in a sunny location and provide the plant with plenty of humidity (especially if growing indoors). Plants will need to be misted daily, grown in a grouping with other container plants, or placed in a pebble tray of water to provide the needed humidity. If you live in the south like me, a humid environment is never a problem!

For outdoor growing, choose a sunny location and plant in the spring, so your plant will be well established before the cooler temperatures comes later in the year. 

Mildew, weak stems, and leaf spot are common sage diseases and all of these are caused by improper watering. Don’t get foliage wet when watering plants and allow soil to dry out between watering.

This can be done by watering in the morning, giving moisture a chance to soak into the soil, but the sun will quickly dry any water left on the fresh leaves. 

Sage also does well being pruned. and the best time is in early spring. Don't cut sage down to the ground, but instead prune plants using sharp pruners, taking care not to remove more than a third of the plant.

Harvesting and Using Sage

o harvest sage's aromatic leaves, collect the entire stem by cutting it off near the plant stalk. Use entire stem in recipes, tied into a bouquet (which makes it easy to remove before eating.) You can also strip off fresh sage leaves, chop, and add to recipes.

Dry sage by bundling 6 cut stems together and tying them to create a bunch. Hang upside down in a warm location to dry, store in an airtight container for later use. See my full post on How to Dry Sage for several methods for drying, including drying in the oven. 

Sage is used to add flavor to meat dishes and improve overall health. The herb contains vitamins A, B6, C, E, and K, calcium, and antioxidants. It’s often used to treat digestive issues, improve oral health, lower bad cholesterol, and stabilize blood sugar. The New York Times actually has a delicious recipe for Pasta with Butter, Sage, and Parmesan that you should whip up the next time you're looking for comfort food with this delicious herb. Plus, it's a great way to use up fresh herbs and have a quick dinner on hand. 

So, why wouldn't you add this versatile and tasty herb to your indoor or outdoor herb garden? I'd love to know if you have any tips for growing or using sage. Comment below to share with our growing community!

Learn to grow other herbs

• How to Plant, Grow, and Harvest Thyme: A popular herb with tiny leaves, this tasty addition to any meal is easy to grow and a delight to use.
• How to Prune Basil for Larger Yields: One of the world's most popular herbs, basil grows larger and bushier with just a few quick snips of pruning. 
• How to Grow Dill: It's not just for pickles, the flavorful leaves of this common herb are perfect on many dishes all summer long. Find out how easy it is to plant and grow!
• How to Dry Basil: Do you have more basil than you know what to do with? Find out how easy it is to dry basil for use all winter long. Use it in soups and stews, curries, and more!
• How to Save Basil Seeds: This popular herb is easy to grow and even easier to save seeds from. By simply letting basil blooms dry out on the plant, you can save your own basil seeds to use year after year in growing basil in the home garden. You'll never need to buy basil seeds or plants again!

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