<i>Salvia </i>plant named ‘Tidal Pool’

Abstract

The new and distinct cultivar of perennial Salvia plant named ‘Tidal Pool’ characterized by its large, violet-blue flowers with lighter blue interiors from dark violet-blue buds and calyxes strongly blushed with dark greyed-red, densely arranged in verticils. The new plant has a medium height, compact, rounded, low, broad habit with stiff, heavily-branched stems and a strong vigorous growth rate and gray-green foliage. ‘Tidal Pool’ is useful for landscaping as a specimen plant or en masse.

Claims

1. The new and distinct perennial Salvia plant named ‘Tidal Pool’ as herein described and illustrated.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) The photographs of the new plant demonstrate the unique traits and the overall appearance of Salvia ‘Tidal Pool’. The colors are as accurate as reasonably possible with color reproductions. Variation in ambient light spectrum, source and direction may cause the appearance of minor variation in color. The plant used in the photographs was a three-year-old plant grown in an open, full-sun trial garden at a wholesale perennial nursery in Zeeland, Mich. with supplemental water and fertilizer when needed.

(2) FIG. 1 shows the plant habit in full flower in a landscape.

(3) FIG. 2 shows a close-up of the flower scape with the buds, flowers, stems and calyxes.

DETAILED BOTANICAL DESCRIPTION

(4) The following descriptions and color references except where common dictionary terms are used are based on the 2015 edition of The Royal Horticultural Society Colour Chart. Salvia ‘Tidal Pool’ has not been observed under all possible environments. The phenotype may vary slightly with different growing environments such as temperature, light, fertility, soil pH, moisture and plant maturity levels, but without any change in the genotype. The following observations and size descriptions are based on two-year old plants growing in an outdoor full-sun trial garden at a wholesale perennial nursery in Zeeland, Mich. Plants were given supplemental water and fertilizer and plant growth regulators were used for the greenhouse trials only. Botanical classification: Salvia nemorosa; Parentage: Female or seed parent was ‘Azure Snow’; male or pollen parent ‘Crystal Blue’; Plant habit: Winter-hardy herbaceous perennial; multi-stemmed, compact, rounded, with mostly basal foliage, and flowers in several tightly arranged verticils on branched upright racemes displayed above foliage; in flower with panicles to about 47 cm tall and about 76 cm wide at the fullest point; cauline foliage extends up the stems about 22 to 29 cm; about 24 to 34 flowering panicles per plant; Propagation: By basal vegetative shoot cuttings; time to produce a rooted stems about two weeks; Growth rate: Rapid, vigorous, finishing in a 65 mm container in about 7 weeks from rooted cutting, and from 65 mm container to flowering 3.8 liter container in about 8 weeks; Root description: Fine, well-branched; color dependent on age and soil type, from cream to dark tan in color; Foliage: Opposite; simple; slightly rugose; lanceolate; margin irregularly crenate and sparsely ciliolate; adaxial surface glabrous, and abaxial puberulent; acute apex and base cordate to truncate; leaf blades about 12.5 cm long and 5.5 cm across, decreasing in size distally; average about 10.5 cm long and 4.5 cm across; faint sage fragrance; Foliage color: Young adaxial surface nearest RHS 137B, young abaxial surface between RHS 138A and RHS 138B; mature adaxial between 137A and RHS 137B, mature abaxial nearest RHS 137B; Venation: Reticulate; impressed on adaxial side and costate on abaxial side; pubescent abaxial, micro-puberulent adaxial; Vein color: Adaxial midrib nearest RHS 145D; adaxial primary and secondary veins nearest RHS 137B; abaxial midrib nearest RHS 148D; abaxial primary veins nearest RHS 148C and secondary veins gradually darkening to nearest RHS 146B toward leaf margin; Petiole: Slightly concavo-convex; pubescent to glandular; to about 5.0 cm long and 5.0 mm wide, average 4.0 cm long and 4.0 mm wide at base, decreasing distally; Petiole color: Adaxial nearest RHS 146B along margins and center nearest RHS 145D; abaxial margins nearest 138A and center nearest RHS 145C; without significant anthocyanins; Flower description: Perfect; bilabiate; zygomorphic; fused corolla portion glabrous adaxial and puberulent abaxial; Flower size: 16.0 mm long to tip of exserted stigma, 8.0 mm tall, 6.0 mm wide; corolla 13.0 mm long, 8.0 mm tall and 6.0 mm wide; corolla fused basal portion 6.0 mm long, 4.0 mm tall and 2.5 mm wide; Inflorescence: Panicle; upright with upright branches at about 80° angle above horizontal, rarely compound branched; branches to 28 cm long and 3.0 mm across base; flowering portion 22 cm tall and 12 cm across with branches; verticillate with flowering generally beginning at lower verticils and advancing up the scape, but not all flowers at each verticil opening at the same time giving the effect of a scape being in continuous flower for longer periods; typically six flowers per verticil; average distance between verticils about 9.0 mm, greater proximally and less distally; about 16 verticils per plant; about 200 to 300 flowers per branched panicle; Flowering period: Flowering beginning late spring for about six weeks and repeating if initial inflorescences removed; Peduncle: Quadrangular; pubescent to glandular; to 40.0 mm long and 5.0 mm across at base; Peduncle color: Between RHS 146A and RHS 138A; Flower attitude: Flower midline projected about 10 degree angle above horizontal and hood petal about 30 degree angle above horizontal; Flower longevity: About four days on the plant or as cut flower; self-cleaning, petals not persistent; Flower fragrance: None detected under present growing conditions; Flower buds one day prior to anthesis: Arcuate dorsally, flat ventrally and flattened slightly laterally; with rounded apex; puberulent to glandular; about 9.5 mm long, 4.0 mm tall and 2.0 mm wide; Bud color: Exposed dorsal hood blend between RHS 93A and RHS 93B and ventral labium nearest RHS N88C; abaxial calyx nearest RHS 138A, with veins and strong blushing dorsally nearest RHS 187A; Petals: Bilabiate corolla; upper hood lip and lower lip (labium) with three lobes; Hood (upper) petal: Glandular abaxial, glabrous adaxial; about 13.0 mm long, 4.0 mm tall and 2.0 mm across; folded along longitudinal axis; apex rounded and emarginate, with 1.5 mm deep notched apex and base fused with labium in proximal 6.0 mm; Hood color: Adaxial between RHS 93B and RHS N88A, abaxial nearest RHS N88B; Labium (lower) petal: Consisting of three lobes, two proximal side lobes and larger center lobe; Center lobe.—Obcordate, cupped; truncate emarginate apex with notch about 1.0 mm deep; margin slightly crenulate; puberulent in center 3 mm of abaxial base before tube, glabrous adaxial and distal abaxial; size about 10 mm long (including fuse base) extending 4 mm beyond fusion point; natural width 5 mm and when spread to 6 mm. Center lobe color: Adaxial nearest RHS 93A and abaxial nearest RHS 93A; Side lobes: Lanceolate; apices rounded; base fused to corolla tube; revolute; puberulent to glandular abaxial and glabrous adaxial; size about 1.5 mm long from fusion and 1.0 mm wide; Side lobes color: Nearest RHS 93A adaxial and abaxial; Androecium: Two, fused with labium, contained within hood petal except when triggered by pollinator; Filament.—Glabrous, fused in proximal 13.0 mm from base of labium; arcuate around inside of hood petal; about 9.0 mm long beyond fusion and less than 0.5 mm diameter with 2.0 mm long trip mechanism longitudinally folded at base; color of filament nearest RHS 84D; color of trip mechanism base and center nearest RHS 84D. Anther.—Glabrous; oblong ellipsoidal; dorsifixed; longitudinal; about 1.0 mm long and 5.0 mm diameter; color nearest RHS N192A. Pollen.—Abundant; less than 0.1 mm circumference; color nearest RHS 13B. Gynoecium: One, arcuate around inside of hood petal; Style.—Exserted; about 17.0 mm long and 0.5 mm diameter; color in distal 2.0 mm nearest RHS 86D and below nearest RHS 84D. Stigma.—Bifurcate and curved in the terminal 2.0 mm; about 0.3 mm diameter; apex acute; color nearest RHS 86A. Ovary.—Superior; four seeded; color nearest RHS 145D. Fruit: Nutlet, one to four per flower; globose; about 1.6 mm diameter; color between RHS 200A and RHS 202A; Calyx: Campanulate; fused in basal 4.0 mm; tube about 7.0 mm long and 3.0 mm tall at mouth and 2.0 mm wide; lower set bifurcate in distal 2.0 mm; upper set of trifurcate in distal 1.0 mm; Sepals: Five, three upper and two lower; linear; acute apex; fused in basal 4.0 mm; Sepal color: Adaxial proximal 3 mm nearest RHS 137C with veins nearest RHS 137C, distal portion nearest RHS 138A; abaxial nearest RHS 138A, in high light exposure with veins of and dorsally strongly blushed with nearest RHS 187A; Bracts: Each verticil subtended by two opposite deltoid bracts; apex narrowly acute, base sessile and truncate, margin crenate; glabrous adaxial and puberulent abaxial; bract size up to 33 mm long and 16.0 mm wide, decreasing distally; Bract color: Adaxial surfaces nearest RHS 137A with midrib nearest RHS 145D, abaxial nearest RHS 137A with midrib nearest RHS 145D; without significant anthocyanins; Pedicels: Cylindrical; puberulent to glandular; to about 3 mm long and 1 mm diameter; projecting at about a 45 degree angle at flower anthesis; Pedicel color: Between RHS 186C and RHS 138B; Culture: Plants of Salvia ‘Tidal Pool’ perform best with adequate moisture and good drainage and are hardy from USDA zone 3 to 8. Disease and pest resistance: Resistant to diseases and pests beyond that common to Salvia has not been noted.