''Salvia reptans'' is a widely distributed herbaceous perennial native to the mountains of the Trans-Pecos in Texas, and in Mexico and

Guatemala Guatemala ( ; ), officially the Republic of Guatemala ( es, República de Guatemala, links=no), is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico; to the northeast by Belize and the Caribbean; to the east by H ...

. It typically grows in dry stream beds and gravelly soils. It was introduced into horticulture in the 19th century and was previously known by the

synonyms A synonym is a word, morpheme, or phrase that means exactly or nearly the same as another word, morpheme, or phrase in a given language. For example, in the English language, the words ''begin'', ''start'', ''commence'', and ''initiate'' are all ...

''Salvia angustifolia'' and ''Salvia leptophylla'', both of which refer to the slender leaves. The specific epithet ''reptans'' refers to the plant's creeping habit. The form of ''Salvia reptans'' commonly grown in gardens is unusual in that it produces numerous lax or decumbent stems. The other form, which is native to western Texas, grows upright to 3 feet in height. The variety ''S. reptans'' var. ''glabra'' also grows wild in Texas. In horticulture, ''Salvia reptans'' reaches 3 feet wide or more with abundant thin, black stems. The stems can make a

groundcover Groundcover or ground cover is any plant that grows over an area of ground. Groundcover provides protection of the topsoil from erosion and drought. In an ecosystem, the ground cover forms the layer of vegetation below the shrub layer known as t ...

. The narrow mistletoe-green leaves are sparse. The 0.5 inch flowers have blue corollas in dark calyces.

Notes

reptans Flora of Texas Flora of Guatemala Flora of Mexico {{Salvia-stub