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Rockin'® Blue Suede Shoes Salvia hybrid

Flower Season
  • Spring
  • Summer
  • Fall
Mature Size
3'4" 2'6"
Height: 2'6" - 3'4"
Spread: 2' - 2'6"
New Plant
Award Winner
  • Details

    Features

    Garden VALEDICTORIAN.

    Light blue flowers each with a black calyx on tough plants. Hummingbirds, butterflies and bees all love it, which makes it great plant for pollinator gardens.

    Award Winner
    Continuous Bloom or Rebloomer
    Long Blooming
    Heat Tolerant
    Deadheading Not Necessary
    Drought Tolerant
    Attracts: 
    Bees
    Butterflies
    Hummingbirds
    Resists: 
    Deer

    Characteristics

    Plant Type: 
    Annual
    Height Category: 
    Tall
    Garden Height: 
    30 - 40 Inches
    Spacing: 
    18 - 24 Inches
    Spread: 
    24 - 30 Inches
    Flower Colors: 
    Black
    Flower Colors: 
    Blue
    Flower Shade: 
    Crisp Blue and Black
    Foliage Colors: 
    Green
    Foliage Shade: 
    Deep Green
    Habit: 
    Upright
    Container Role: 
    Thriller

    Plant Needs

    Light Requirement: 
    Part Sun to Sun

    The optimum amount of sun or shade each plant needs to thrive: Full Sun (6+ hours), Part Sun (4-6 hours), Full Shade (up to 4 hours).

    Maintenance Category: 
    Easy
    Bloom Time: 
    Planting To Hard Frost
    Hardiness Zones: 
    9a, 9b, 10a, 10b, 11a, 11b
    Water Category: 
    Average
    Soil Fertility Requirement: 
    Average Soil
    Soil Fertility Requirement: 
    Poor Soil
    Uses: 
    Border Plant
    Uses: 
    Container
    Uses: 
    Landscape
    Uses: 
    Mass Planting
    Uses Notes: 

    Use in containers and landscapes. This plant is a pollinator attracting machine, beloved by pollinators of many types. 

    Maintenance Notes: 

    This is a wonderful annual Salvia (except in frost free zones) compact and richly colored it is easy and trouble free. It is sterile so it will not set seed and that means it will just bloom, and bloom and bloom all season without stopping.

    You can easily trim to keep the shape or size where you want it, and it will branch out and become even thicker and more full of flowers.

    Regular watering and fertilizing will keep the plant at maximum color and growth but it is amazingly tough and once established in a pot of the garden will tolerate lower levels of food and water. However, severe drought will cause lower leaves to drop and if this happens give it a quick haircut removing the upper 1/3 of growth and once it back to normal watering it will fill back in.

    Rockin'® Blue Suede Shoes Salvia hybrid 'BBSAL01301' USPP 32,694, Can 6,573
  • 16 Reviews

    5
    12
    4
    2
    3
    1
    2
    1
    1
    Browse reviews from people who have grown this plant.
    • Terrific in this year's garden. It's a round-the-clock buffet for pollinators! By day, it's loaded with many species of bees and butterflies. And at night, it's a treat for moths. By far the most "active" plant in the garden from May to October.

      Dezigner Grrl
      , Maryland
      , United States
      , 39 weeks ago
    • Gorgeous!

      Laura Bachmann
      , Illinois
      , United States
      , 41 weeks ago
    • 7a plant zone. 4hrs of sun and the plant is doing very well. Just move Rockin Fuchsia to a very sunny location to see how they’ll do in 6 -8hrs of sun. The Hummingbirds have the salvias all to themselves because I have other plants for the bees and butterflies to choose from. I also have Vermillionaire plants and the hummers love those to but these salvias are first before they go to the the Vermillionaire’s. I hope PW’s continues with more pollinator plant's. It’s not only enjoyable to watch the pollinators but makes us feel that us gardeners are helping the smallest of creatures to survive.

      Bea
      , Virginia
      , United States
      , 1 year ago
    • My Salvia is just coming into its own and is looking great. Wish I had ordered more!

      Sandra Weatherford
      , South Carolina
      , United States
      , 1 year ago
    • Although described as an annual, this plant survived the winter (and an episode of snow) in Zone 8b. I was about to dig it up in the spring when I realized it was growing back. It bloomed all last summer and has a neat, round growing habit. I also like it has larger, broader leaves than perennial salvias. It grew very well in a full sun location (10 hours) without excessive need for watering.

      Tina
      , 1 year ago
    • A beautiful plant, BUT I got a nasty contact dermatitis ("eczema") from trimming it. I live in Zone 7 so brought it into the garage for the winter. When trimming my wintering fuchsias, I also trimmed the salvia without gloves 3 weeks ago. I'm still fighting the itchy skin problem on my hand. I will keep the plant but handle it very carefully from now on. It grows in a large pot since it must come inside in the winter.

      Kay Haaland
      , Washington
      , United States
      , 2 years ago
    • I love this blue salvia. I live in San Diego zone 10b and these salvias bloom year round here. They bloom a lot more during spring/summer than they do winter but it’s nice to have flowers during our winters here. I love the upright growth and my hummingbirds really enjoy this plant. I have it in a container and so far so good, it grows fine and blooms a lot! So definitely container tolerant - and I can’t say that about many other flowers/salvias that “claim” to be tolerant of containers. I highly recommend this salvia, it’s absolutely beautiful and looks very magical in my fairy hummingbird garden.

      Giovanna
      , California
      , United States
      , 2 years ago
    • My new favorite plant. The hummingbirds love this. I will include this every year in my annual pots.

      Mary Lovejoy
      , Minnesota
      , United States
      , 2 years ago
    • outstanding, did well gorgeous unique color and the hummingbirds love it as well. Will surely order again

      David Goldenberg
      , Pennsylvania
      , United States
      , 2 years ago
    • Beautiful flowers. Bushy and healthy. Not growing nearly as tall as my Rockin Deep Purple which is a big disappointment. Hoping that changes as the weeks go by. My Rockin Deep Purple are twice as tall and they were planted at the same time. All were the same height to start.

      Debbie L
      , Massachusetts
      , United States
      , 2 years ago
  • 36 Awards

    Award Year Award Plant Trial
    2022 Top Performer UGA
    2022 Top Performer Penn State
    2022 Top Performer - Beds, Best of Breed - Beds North Carolina State, JC Raulston Arboretum
    2022 Top Performer Michigan State University
    2022 Top Performer Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden
    2022 Top Performer Boerner Botanical Garden
    2022 Top Performer University of Guelph
    2022 Perfect Score Oklahoma State University Botanical Gardens
    2022 Top Performer Oregon State University
    2022 Perfect Score University of Minnesota - Grand Rapids
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  • 3 Recipes

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