''Buddleja salviifolia'', common names sage bush and sagewood, is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

to much of southern and eastern

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

, from

Kenya ) , national_anthem = "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi , ...

and

Angola , national_anthem = " Angola Avante"() , image_map = , map_caption = , capital = Luanda , religion = , religion_year = 2020 , religion_ref = , coordina ...

south, where it grows on rocky hillsides, along forest margins and watercourses. The species was described and named by

Lamarck Jean-Baptiste Pierre Antoine de Monet, chevalier de Lamarck (1 August 1744 – 18 December 1829), often known simply as Lamarck (; ), was a French naturalist, biologist, academic, and soldier. He was an early proponent of the idea that biolog ...

in 1792.Leeuwenberg, A. J. M. (1979) ''The Loganiaceae of Africa XVIII Buddleja L. II, Revision of the African & Asiatic species''. H. Veenman & Zonen, Wageningen, Nederland.Lamarck, J - B., (1785). ''Enc.'' 1: 513. 1785.

Description

''Buddleja salviifolia'' is a large, semi-evergreen shrub, multi-stemmed, with untidy, drooping branches, typically reaching a height of 4 – 8 m. The bark is grey-brown and stringy. The shoots are quadrangular in section, and covered with a dense reddish-brown

indumentum In biology, an indumentum (Latin, literally: "garment") is a covering of trichomes (fine "hairs") on a plant Davis, Peter Hadland and Heywood, Vernon Hilton (1963) ''Principles of angiosperm taxonomy'' Van Nostrandpage, Princeton, New Jersey, pa ...

. The distinctive leaves, with their

rugose Rugose means "wrinkled". It may refer to: * Rugosa, an extinct order of coral, whose rugose shape earned it the name * Rugose, adjectival form of rugae Species with "rugose" in their names * '' Idiosoma nigrum'', more commonly, a black rugose tr ...

upper surfaces, bear a resemblance to those of

sage Sage or SAGE may refer to: Plants * ''Salvia officinalis'', common sage, a small evergreen subshrub used as a culinary herb ** Lamiaceae, a family of flowering plants commonly known as the mint or deadnettle or sage family ** ''Salvia'', a large ...

, hence the specific epithet. The leaf is sessile to shortly

petiolate Petiole may refer to: *Petiole (botany), the stalk of a leaf, attaching the blade to the stem *Petiole (insect anatomy) In entomology, petiole is the technical term for the narrow waist of some hymenopteran insects, especially ants, bees, a ...

, the blade narrowly ovate to narrowly oblong, long acuminate to an acute apex, and cordate at the base. The

inflorescence An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Morphologically, it is the modified part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed o ...

s are terminal conical

panicle A panicle is a much-branched inflorescence. (softcover ). Some authors distinguish it from a compound spike inflorescence, by requiring that the flowers (and fruit) be pedicellate (having a single stem per flower). The branches of a panicle are of ...

s approximately 12 × 8 cm, with occasional auxiliary heads appearing in autumn. The flowers range in colour from white, through cream and mauve to purple; the corollas relatively short, at just 4 mm. However, the most striking feature of the flowers is considered to be their scent, judged by some to the best of all the buddlejas, and even bearing comparison with

Chanel Chanel ( , ) is a French high-end luxury fashion house founded in 1910 by Coco Chanel in Paris. Chanel specializes in women's ready-to-wear, luxury goods, and accessories and licenses its name and branding to Luxottica for eyewear. Chanel is ...

perfume. Hardiness: USDA zone 8.Stuart, D. (2006). ''Buddlejas''. RHS Plant Collector Guide. Timber Press, Oregon. .

Cultivation

The species is relatively common in cultivation; moderately frost hardy and tolerant of dry soils, it is grown in the UK, however its large size and ungainly habit, in the worst buddleja 'bent hatstand' tradition, render it a choice for the larger garden only. Several specimens form part of the

NCCPG Plant Heritage, formerly known as the National Council for the Conservation of Plants and Gardens (NCCPG), is a botanical conservation organisation in the United Kingdom and a registered charity. It was founded in 1978 to combine the talents of b ...

national collection held by

Longstock Park Longstock Park is in the civil parish of Longstock in the Test Valley district of Hampshire, England, and forms part of the Leckford Estate (1520 ha.), wholly owned by the John Lewis Partnership. Description Formerly Longstock Manor, of med ...

Nursery, near Stockbridge in

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English citi ...

. Occasionally in the UK and France it is mislabelled ''

Buddleja myriantha ''Buddleja myriantha'' is a species endemicity, endemic to upper Burma and western China, including Tibet, where it grows along forest edges, thickets and streams at altitudes of 2,000 – 3,200 m.Leeuwenberg, A. J. M. (1979) ''The Logan ...

'', a dissimilar Chinese species.

Uses

Decoctions of the plant are believed to have various medicinal benefits in its native lands. The wood, hard and heavy, has traditionally been used for

assegai An assegai or assagai (Arabic ''az-zaġāyah'', Berber languages, Berber ''zaġāya'' "spear", French language, Old French ''azagaie'', Spanish ''azagaya'', Italian ''zagaglia'', Middle English ''lancegay'') is a pole weapon used for throwing, ...

s and fishing rods. Otherwise, it is used as fuel, and for hedging.

References

External links

PlantZAfrica.com

Images iSpot
* {{Taxonbar, from=Q4984715 salviifolia Flora of South Africa Flora of Kenya Flora of Angola