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How to Grow Sage: A Flavorful Guide to Planting, Harvesting, and Using This Classic Culinary Herb

Sage is a useful herb that can be easily grown in your garden.

Botanical Name
Salvia officinalis
Grown as
Perennial
USDA Zones
4a
4b
5a
5b
6a
6b
7a
7b
8a
8b
9a
9b
10a
10b
Toxicity
Non-toxic
Sun Exposure
Full Sun
Water Needs
Moderate
Height
1–3 feet
Spread
1–3 feet
Soil pH
Acidic
Neutral
Bloom Time
Summer
Flower Color
Pink
Purple
Special Features
Container-Friendly
Cut Flower
Fragrant
Long Blooming
Low Maintenance
Attracts Butterflies
Attracts Hummingbirds
Attracts Pollinators
Deer-resistant
Rabbit-resistant
Resilience
Cold Hardy
Drought-Tolerant
Plant Type
Herbs
Written By: Catherine Boeckmann Executive Digital Editor and Master Gardener

If your kitchen had a signature scent, sage might just be it. This aromatic herb brings cozy comfort to every dish it touches—especially that Thanksgiving stuffing everyone asks you for the recipe to. Luckily, garden sage isn’t just delicious; it’s delightfully easy to grow. 

Whether you’re seasoning your Sunday roast or adding a pop of green to your garden, here’s how to plant, care for, and harvest this time-tested kitchen staple.

Sage is a hardy perennial with pretty, grayish-green leaves that are as good in a perennial border as they are in a vegetable garden. It grows spikes of spring flowers in different colors, including purple, blue, white, and pink. According to Rosie Lerner from Perdue, “If left to flower, sage will produce blue blooms that attract butterflies, but this leaves less oil content, translating to reduced flavor in the leaves.” See more flowers that attract butterflies!

Buy Seeds Now

Note: Not all sage varieties are culinary; the most popular kitchen sage is called Salvia officinalis. The origin of the Salvia name speaks to this herb’s age-old medicinal value from the Latin salvus, “to save,” and salvere, “to heal.” Sage contains antioxidants that help reduce the risk of serious health conditions like cancer. It’s also rich in vitamin K, which aids the body in clotting blood.

Planting

How to Plant Sage

  • Plant sage in full sun.
  • Sage should be planted in well-draining soil; it won’t tolerate sitting in wet soil.
  • The easiest and best way to start sage is from a small plant. Set the plants 2 feet apart.
  • You can also sow seeds up to 2 weeks before the last frost date. (See local frost dates.) Plant the seeds/cuttings in well-draining soil 1 to 2 weeks before the last spring frost.
  • For best growth, the soil should be between 60º and 70ºF.
  • Plants should reach between 12 and 30 inches in height.
  • In the garden, plant near rosemary, cabbage, and carrots, but keep sage away from cucumbers.

Growing

How to Grow Sage

  • Be sure to water the young plants regularly until they are fully grown so that they don’t dry out. They’ll need a consistent moisture supply until they start growing quickly.
  • Prune the heavier, woody stems every spring.
  • It’s best to replace the plants every few years so they remain productive.
  • You can grow sage from cuttings!

sage plant

 

Harvesting

How to Harvest Sage

  • Pinch off leaves or snip off small sprigs from the plant.
  • During the first year, harvest lightly to ensure that the plant grows fully.
  • After the first year, be sure to leave a few stalks so that the plant can rejuvenate in the future.
  • If fully established, one plant can be harvested up to three times in one season.
  • Stop harvesting in the fall so the plant can prepare for winter.

How to Store Sage

  • Sage’s flavor is best when fresh, but it can be stored frozen or dried.
  • To dry, hang sprigs in a shady, well-ventilated area and allow them to air dry, waiting until the leaves crumble easily to store in tightly lidded jars.
  • Sage keeps its flavor better if stored in the freezer. Freeze leaves or stalks on a tray, then move the leaves into a zippered bag or container. Some cooks blend the leaves with oil, pack the ground mixture into ice cube trays to freeze, and then transfer the cubes to a container.

Pests and Problems

Types

  • ‘Berggarten’, a robust plant with very large silver-gray leaves
  • ’Tricolor’ sage, for a bit of color in the garden (yellow, mauve, and sage green)
  • ‘Icterina’ has green leaves with yellow edges

'Tricolor' sage

Wit and Wisdom

  • Anyone who has sage planted in their garden is reputed to do well in business.
  • Susan Mahr of the University of Wisconsin–Madison tells us, “Sage is often mentioned as the herb of immortality, domestic virtue, health, and wisdom. Sage was a sacred ceremonial herb of the Romans. It has been cultivated for both culinary and medicinal purposes for many centuries in Europe.”
  • For other greens to use in your cuisine, see the Leafy Greens: Health Benefits page.

Herbs

About The Author

Catherine Boeckmann

Catherine Boeckmann

Executive Digital Editor and Master Gardener

Catherine Boeckmann loves nature, stargazing, and gardening so it’s not surprising that she and The Old Farmer’s Almanac found each other. She leads digital content for the Almanac website, and is also a certified master gardener in the state of Indiana.

Read more from Catherine Boeckmann

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Comments

<span>Bettie</span> Mon, 04/02/2018 - 15:25
I noticed black specks on my herbs last summer (2017). Also, however, the same black specks were on the green plastic planters the hers were in. I spit on my finger and rubbed the specks with my finger and was able to wipe them off. I looked around and saw the specks were also on my wooden gate and bird bath. When I brought basil leaves in to eat I was able to rinse the specks off. My thought is they were from something the planes spray into the atmosphere and falls to earth. My apple tree was heavy with apples and in either late August or early September it started dying.. branches just dried up and died. I had apples on some branches just shrivled up. Usually see that little buds after the leaves fall off that get bigger and bust open into leaves in the spring . . . but I don't see any little buds or bumps this spring. My zucinni squash was doing great. I had one squash left that I thought I'd give another couple days before harvesting but I came out and all the leaves looked as if they had been dusted with white stuff and the squash was slightly shrivled.. then was ykky looking a couple or few days later.
<span>Oscarvision</span> Mon, 11/06/2017 - 10:21
Could they be the droppings from insects?
<span>Kelly G</span> Sun, 07/16/2017 - 20:55
I took cuttings of my sage and rosemary and arranged them in a vase on my kitchen window sill...I had mysterious black dusty flecks also. I assumed the cuttings were dying and falling apart. But after looking closely I noticed a worm eating my plants! The flecks were what I assume were it's waste. Not sure if it's the same thing but the description of the flecks sound exactly the same...
<span>Nick</span> Thu, 06/01/2017 - 08:29
I have the same issue in Maryland. Mine is outside, did you ever figure out what this was?
<a title="View user profile." href="/author/editors">The Editors</a> Fri, 06/03/2016 - 16:30

Hi, Katie, Sorry for getting back you so late.

This could be Southern blight (you did not indicate your home area). You can learn more about it and what to do here: https://extension.umd.edu/learn/southern-blight 

Or it could be foliar nematodes: click here then scroll to page 7 (this is a large doc): http://www.hort.vt.edu/ghvegetables/documents/Herbs/PestManagementonHerbs_UConnUMass_2011.pdf

That's about all of our "sage advice" in this case. Hope it helps!

 <span>Cheryl</span> Sat, 01/16/2016 - 05:49
I was growing a sage plant in the UK for a year, then over winter I moved to Spain and wanted to take a few cuttings with me. I have now been here for a year and the cutting is still the same size as it was when I brought it here. It gets new leaves, which are very tiny, but dry out and fall off without getting normal size. What am I doing wrong?
<span>Jeff Grady</span> Tue, 05/23/2017 - 13:11
Check the PH of your soil and the water you most commonly feed the safe plants ASAP. Sounds like the soil might be too alkaline for the sage plants. When the PH is too high (alkaline) like your's may be, it will generally stunt the growth of plants completely and cause leaves to turn brown and fall off. Happened to several species in my garden after I moved into my new house. I discovered we had hard water (high levels of calcium, lime and other dissolved minerals that cause alkalinity in the water and subsequently the soil) and so now I only feed my plants collected rainwater through two 65 gallon food safe barrels I purchased for $45 a piece. They are fed by bypass lines on my home's gutter downspouts which were under $30 and easy to install with a saw and a screwdriver. Using rainwater has saved my garden and my money.
<span>Bobh</span> Sun, 11/22/2015 - 20:27
I have 8 sage plants that have been growing from seeds under four 40 watt (supposedly 200 watt equiv) CFLs in a closet on a 18/6 light cycle. They are 83 days old, and I have been harvesting individual leaves for a few weeks now. They are all between 12 and 18 inches tall. Should I modify the light cycle or do anything else to simulate winter, or can I just continue them on an 18/6 light cycle indefinitely? Should I ever move them under my HPS grow light to simulate a fall or winter sun? There is very little information out there about growing sage indoors under artificial lights. Any help is greatly appreciated.
<span>Maggie Marr</span> Mon, 11/02/2015 - 14:58
i have two nice Sage plants in pots sitting on my front porch. What can I do to keep them through the winter. Plant in soil outside? Will they be able to sit out all winter? Should I bring them into my livingroon, there is not much sun and very dry? I would like to keep them through the winter if I can. I live in the Smoky Mountains in East Tennessee.
<span>Brandi</span> Fri, 06/03/2016 - 02:28
Hi Maggie, I have a lovely sage plant I planted in a flower pot a few years ago its still there it has wintered over all this time, even through a rather cold winter a couple years ago, I live in coastal Va. hope this helps