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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>Betsy21</span> Wed, 03/11/2015 - 10:59
My sage is young. We just started it and a few other plants inside. The sage plants are small and all stem with only a few leaves, If more than one on each stem. It does seem healthy. If i cut back 1/3 of the plant like I read on other comments, would it hurt the plant? It has had no blooms yet. Should I wait to harvest until it has grown a little larger and we have transplanted it, or go ahead and harvest? I've always done well with growing flowers but we are new to herbs and veggies.
<a title="View user profile." href="/author/editors">The Editors</a> Fri, 03/13/2015 - 10:55

Hi, Betsy,  It sounds like your plant is too small to cut back at this time and too small to have blooms. You want to have enough overall growth—stem strength, leaves—for it to survive any cutting (harvesting). (It's impossible to give you a height and leaf count recommendation, btw.) You also want it to be hearty enough (same factors) to survive transplanting.

There are several types of sage; some are tender plants that should be treated like annuals. If you know or can find out the type you have, you might get specific advice from your local garden center or send it here and we'll see if we can clarify the matter.

 <span>Lalo</span> Mon, 11/03/2014 - 07:21
I live in a flat, on 12th floor and have a balcony. I would like to grow sage, but it gets very windy. Would you know if a sage plant will tolerate these conditions. Thanks
<a title="View user profile." href="/author/editors">The Editors</a> Mon, 11/03/2014 - 08:01

On a windy balcony, your best bet is probably short, shrubby plants. Sage would fit into this category. Rosemary, mint, and lavendar might work well, too.

 <span>Marilyn Moskwik</span> Tue, 10/07/2014 - 11:47
I just received a year old sage plant (Oct. 7th) that was in a pot with other herbs. I'm in zone 5 and don't know whether I can safely transplant to the garden as the plants are crowded and lanky. Can I leave in the garage over the winter or do they have to be inside with light. I have a cat and I'm afraid of it chewing. Thanks for your response. Unsure
<a title="View user profile." href="/author/editors">The Editors</a> Wed, 10/08/2014 - 15:43

Sage is winter hardy and will survive outdoors in zone 5. You can plant it in the garden and add some mulch around the stems if you like. Sage is evergreen so you may be able to harvest leaves during the winter months. If the leaves die back it will shoot up new growth from the roots in the spring.

 <span>Erogers</span> Tue, 10/07/2014 - 17:55
I have three cats and none of them mess with mine. However the cat hair sticks to the leaves.
<span>Lennox</span> Mon, 09/29/2014 - 22:08
My sage isn't even a year old. I bought it this summer. I was curious about its woody stems at the bottom. Is it common for the stems to get woidy/hardwood early? It's a very healthy plant. Also I was wanting some different sage to grow any suggestions?
<a title="View user profile." href="/author/editors">The Editors</a> Tue, 09/30/2014 - 09:34

Hi, Lennox: It's perfectly natural for your sage to develop woody stems, although you will want to keep them cut back to just above any growth buds. Depending on where you live, you might try a multicolor sage as mentioned above. Good luck!

 <span>Dale Allen</span> Fri, 09/19/2014 - 07:31
my new sage plant did really well, we had a frost (in the 20s ) last night I had it covered but something knocked the cover off, can I still use it this year can it be saved