In the dreary days of this past winter one 3’ tall compact shrub with silvergrey green velvety leaves caught my attention while driving. The leaves radiated white as if flowers were blooming on them. Millions of tiny hairs on the leaves probably created the white effect. The plant was new to me and rare to Columbia, I thought.
Since its leaves dazzled in winter, I suspected it had surprises in summer as well. The shrub was clustered with a purple barberry and a quince in the front lawn of a residence.
When I stopped to ask the property owners the plant’s identity, they had no clue. They were enjoying the garden created by the previous owner and kindly permitted me to snip a specimen to use in finding the identity.
Lori Watson and her plant sleuths at Mill Creek Greenhouses inspected the sample and determined it to look like a Texas sage. But this isn’t the common garden sage, Salvia spp., of the mint family aka Texas sage.
Silvery grey green foliage of Texas Ranger in winter.
The evergreen shrub known as Texas sage is Leucophyllum frutescens of the figwort family. Other confusing common names are purple sage, Texas ranger, Texas silverleaf, barometer bush, and cenizo. The plants are related to penstemons and snapdragons rather than to salvias and mints.
The sun–loving shrub is native to the desert southwest and is a popular water–conserving ornamental. Depending upon the species bell–shaped flowers appear from spring to fall in white, pink, purple, or blue. Flower nectar attracts butterflies and hummingbirds, and leaves are larval food of the Calleta silkmoth and Theona checkerspot. Soil moisture or rain triggers flowering, hence came the name barometer plant.
The plant tolerates all soils that drain well and thrive best without fertilizer or compost. The plant is resistant to all pests and diseases except cotton root rot, which is more likely to manifest in poorly drained soils.
The landscape uses are many. In the desert southwest, shrubs are often grown in large containers near driveways. The plant is also used for foundation plantings, hedges, barriers, windbreaks, screens, or solo show stoppers. Texas A & M University has been a leader in introducing many new cultivars including ‘White Cloud,’ ‘Green Cloud,’ ‘Compacta,’ ‘Silverado,’ ‘Thunder Cloud’ and ‘Rain Cloud.’
Soft velvety leaves are covered in millions of hairs that reflect light.
Gardeners propagate the shrub from seed and cuttings.
Besides stopping passersby with its beauty in four seasons, the Texas Ranger is said to be off limits to deer.
Flower form of Texas Ranger resembles penstemon and snapdragons.
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