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|usda_ref=Flora - A Gardener's Encyclopedia
 
|usda_ref=Flora - A Gardener's Encyclopedia
 
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|image=Salvia apiana 2.jpg
|image_width=240
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|image_width=200
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{{Taxobox
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| color = lightgreen
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| name = White sage
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| image = Salvia_apiana.jpg
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| image_width = 240px
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| regnum = [[Plant]]ae
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| divisio = [[Magnoliophyta]]
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| classis = [[Magnoliopsida]]
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| ordo = [[Lamiales]]
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| familia = [[Lamiaceae]]
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| genus = ''[[Salvia]]''
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| species = '''''S. apiana'''''
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| binomial = ''Salvia apiana''
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| binomial_authority = Jepson
   
}}
 
}}
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'''''Salvia apiana''''', also known as '''white sage''', '''bee sage''', or '''sacred sage''', is an [[evergreen]] [[Perennial plant|perennial]] [[shrub]] of the genus ''[[Salvia]]'', the sages. It is native to the southwestern [[United States]] and northwestern [[Mexico]], being found mainly in the [[coastal sage scrub]] habitat of [[Southern California]] and [[Baja California]], on the western edges of the [[Mojave Desert|Mojave]] and [[Sonoran desert]]s.
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White sage is a sub-shrub that can grow over 1 meter tall. The leaves (about 4–8 cm long) are generally basal and are covered with dense hairs, which give them a white coloring. The leaves are widely lanceolate with tapered bases, and the margins are minutely toothed. The [[inflorescence]] is a spike-like cluster with few flowers.  The white [[flower]]s have lavender spots and streaks. The flowers have a bilateral shape and are about 12–22 mm in length.  Both the [[stamen]]s and styles are exserted past the end of the flower lobes.  The 2.5– to 3-millimeter-long [[fruit]] is a shiny, light-brown [[nutlet]].
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White sage is a common plant that requires well-drained dry soil, full sun, and little water.  The plant occurs on dry slopes in [[coastal sage scrub]], [[chaparral]], and yellow-pine forests of Southern California to Baja California at less than 1500 m elevation.
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==Cultivation==
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'''White sage''' (''Salvia apiana''), also known as '''Sacred sage''', is an [[evergreen]] [[Perennial plant|perennial]] [[shrub]] of the genus ''[[Salvia]]'', the sages. It is native to the southwestern [[United States]] and northwestern [[Mexico]], being found mainly in the [[coastal sage scrub]] habitat of [[Southern California]] and [[Baja California]], on the western edges of the [[Mojave Desert|Mojave]] and [[Sonoran desert]]s.
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== Morphology ==
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===Propagation===
White sage is a sub-shrub that is less than 1 m tall.  The leaves are widely lanceolate and tapered at the base.  The margin is minutely toothed and rounded.  The leaves are generally basal, covered with dense hairs, which gives it a white coloring, and are about 4–8 cm long.  The [[inflorescence]] is a spike-like clusters with few flowers.  The [[flower]]s are bilateral, about 12–22 mm in length, and are white with lavender spots and streaks.  Both the [[stamen]]s and styles are exserted.  The [[fruit]] form into shiny, light brown [[nutlet]]s that are 2.5–3 mm in size.
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== Ecology and Reproduction ==
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White sage is a common plant that requires well drained dry soil, full sun, and little water.    They occur on dry slopes in [[coastal sage scrub]], [[chaparral]], and yellow-pine forests of Southern California to Baja California at less than 1500 m elevation.
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[[Bumblebee]]s, [[hawk moth]]s and [[wasp]]s [[Pollination|pollinate]] the White sage, and [[hummingbird]]s also appear to like the plant.
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===Pests and diseases===
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The white sage typically flowers between May and August.
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== Ethnobotany ==
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==Varieties==
[[North American Indians|Native Americans]] had several uses for this plant: seeds were ground into a [[flour]] and used for mush; leaves were used for flavoring in cooking; leaves were also eaten, smoked or used in a sweathouse as a remedy for colds; seeds were dropped into the eye and permitted to roll around under the eyelids in order to cleanse the eyes; and leaves were crushed and mixed with water to create a hair shampoo, dye and straightener.
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White sage is also [[herbalism|used medicinally]]. It can be made into a tea, which decreases sweating, salivation, and mucous secretions in the sinuses, throat, and lungs.  Cold tea can be a good stomach tonic, while a lukewarm tea is good for treating sore throats.  The leaves can also be used as a uterine hemostatic tea for heavy menstruation; however, since it can also decrease lactation, nursing mothers are advised not to use it.
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White sage is considered sacred by many Native Americans since it is used to make [[smudge stick]]s, a type of [[incense]]. White sage is believed to cleanse a space of any evil spirits that may be present. This power is said to be released from the plant by the burning of the leaves, which are typically bundled into a wand or stick. Today many Native American tribes still use the stems and leaves for smudging as part of purification ceremonies.
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==Gallery==
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==See also==
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<gallery perrow=5>
* [[Medicinal plants of the American West]]
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File:Salvia apiana 3.jpg
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File:Salvia apiana Adelaide.jpg
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File:Salvia apiana 4.jpg
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</gallery>
    
==References==
 
==References==
* [http://www.livingdesert.org/plants/white_sage.asp The Living Desert - White Sage fact sheet]
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<references/>
* [http://www.laspilitas.com/plants/604.htm ''Salvia apiana'']
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*[[Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture]], by L. H. Bailey, MacMillan Co., 1963
* [http://biology.csusb.edu/PlantGuideFolder/SalviaApiana/SalviaApianaPage.htm Photograph of White sage]
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<!--- xxxxx  *Flora: The Gardener's Bible, by Sean Hogan. Global Book Publishing, 2003. ISBN 0881925381  -->
* [http://plants.nrcs.usda.gov/plantguide/doc/cs_saap2.doc USDA]
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<!--- xxxxx  *American Horticultural Society: A-Z Encyclopedia of Garden Plants, by Christopher Brickell, Judith D. Zuk. 1996. ISBN 0789419432  -->
* [http://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/cgi-bin/get_JM_treatment.pl?Salvia+apiana Jepson Flora Project]
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<!--- xxxxx  *Sunset National Garden Book. Sunset Books, Inc., 1997. ISBN 0376038608  -->
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==External links==
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*{{wplink}}
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[[Category:Lamiaceae]]
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{{stub}}
[[Category:Plants and pollinators]]
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__NOTOC__
[[Category:Flora of California]]
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[[Category:Flora of the Mojave Desert]]
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[[Category:Flora of Baja California|Sage, White ]]