Growing salvia divinorum is an interesting challenge due to the many unique features of this sacred and magical plant. Since salvia divinorum is a cultigen, that is to say divinorum does not exist in the wild and has been bred for certain characteristics by humans. Plant and animal species like this are typically incapable of producing their own offspring, and generally this is also true with salvia divinorum. The divinorum plant rarely produces seed and most attempts to grow salvia divinorum from seed fail. The plant flowers often and it is not hard to induce salvia specimens to flower in greenhouses, but the trouble comes in trying to hand pollinate the otherwise sterile flowers and generate viable seed that can be used in growing salvia.
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Since most grown salvia divinorum is grown from plant cuttings, that is live rooted pieces of a mother plant, we will deal with the process of cultivating salvia divinorum plants from this early clone stage. This is the most common way to get live divinorum plants to grow.
Growing SalviaTo understand what conditions are ideal to grow salvia plants in, one must first understand the environment the salvia plant traditionally grows in. Most reports of explorers to Oaxaca, Mexico report that the plant grows in inaccessible spots, remote ravines and highlands and is then moved by humans to more easily reachable and harvestable locations. These ravines and highlands are humid, high-light and are mostly warm to hot throughout the year. This means that the normal vegetative light cycle for growing salvia for leaves is a 12 hour split, half darkness half light.
The best range of temperatures for growing salvia plants is about 60-80 degrees Fahrenheit, they can tolerate much colder (Almost freezing temperatures) but plant growth slows at the extremes of its preferred range. Growing salvia is also made a good deal easier when you take steps to preserve the plants’ natural affinity to moisture in the air. This can be done by frequently misting your growing divinorum plants with clean water from a garden-mister. This is also an ideal way to clean the leaves of your salvia divinorum plants from any dirt or bugs. Salvia divinorium also grows very well in a humidity tent, that is a greenhouse like setup that traps moisture and heat but lets in light to the plants. Simply wrapping plastic wrap from the lights overhanging your growing salvia divinorium plants will be sufficient.
Remember that salvia plants will begin to grow quite slowly at first, and every time you move a divinorum plant from one pot to another there will be a slow down in the salvia plants’ growth until it has time to recover and adjust to the new growing environment. The larger the plant typically the faster the rate of growth and recovery from transplantations and other stresses, fertilizer generally will help speed this process up also. Make sure, when growing salvia divinorum plants for leaf mass, to use a big enough, otherwise the growing plants roots will be constricted and you will get a smaller yield of salvia divinorium.
Salvia divinorum plants have very weak stems, that are prone to breaking in half when they get too tall to support the weight of all the leaves. When the stem breaks if it is in contact with the soil, as it often is since the plant usually bends over as it breaks, the stem will root in the soil and the salvia plant will survive and you can continue growing salvia.
There are two different strains commonly available in salvia divinorum plant cuttings from vendors, the first specimen brought back to the new world was called hoffman and wasson and it’s the smallest and host hardy of the salvia strains currently being grown. The other most popular variety of growing salvia is blosser/palatable this is the most recent specimen retrieved from mexico (in 1990) and its reportedly easier to eat because it has a much less bitter taste. Read more about how to Buy Salvia divinorum.
growing salvia