| Description | Baja pitcher sage (Lepechinia hastata) is a semi-evergreen sub-shrub tender perennial that can grow up to 6 feet tall and slowly spread through underground rhizomes. Its flowers are panicles of magenta-pink flowers. |
|---|---|
| Pronunciation | (lep-i-CHIN-w-ya) |
| Plant Type | Perennial Tender |
| Hardiness Zone | (7)8 |
| Sunlight | full, mostly sunny is best |
| Moisture | average, dry |
| Soil & Site | average, dry |
| Flowers | The flower is often described as a spike. But the florets (small flowers) are attached directly to the stem on spikes. As seen in the attached pictures, the flowers are borne on small branching stems, and the middle flower blooms first, called axillary cymes. The flowers are magenta-pink. |
| Leaves | soft grey-green, hastate-shaped, aromatic |
| Stems | rhizomes |
| Dimensions | 3-4 plus feet in warmer climates |
| Maintenance | deadheading |
| Propagation | seeds, cuttings, division |
| Native Site | Baja Mexico, Socorro Island, and Maui, Hawaii (Could the Hawian plants be human-introduced?) |
| Misc Facts | The genus was named for the 18th-century Russian physician, naturalist, and explorer Ivan Ivanovich Lepechin. AKA: Pakaha, False Salvia, Baja Pitcher Sage, Pitcher Plant, and Island Pitcher Sage |
| Author's Notes | This was a tricky plant to find botanical descriptions for. |
| Notes & Reference | #156-San Marcos Growers website (www.smgrowers.com), #276-Academic accelerator (academic-accelerator.com/encyclopedia/) |
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