The Blue Steel Russian Sage, otherwise known as the Perovskia Atriplicifolia ‘Blue Steel’ or Mock Orange ‘Aureus’, Sweet Mock Orange ‘Aureus’, Fragrant Mockorange ‘Aureus’, Philadelphus caucasicus ‘Aureus’, is a rather well known shrub plant by gardening enthusiasts around the world.
Best known for its low maintenance and moderate growth, this shrub will likely liven up your house (or garden) with its silver-green colored leaves. But, only if you learn how to take proper care of it for it to thrive.
This is why all the topics you need to know in order to achieve this will be covered in this Blue Steel Russian Sage Care Guide. Ready? Let’s go!
In order to take proper care of your Blue Steel Russian Sage you’ll need to keep in mind the following guidelines:
- Water: The Blue Steel Russian Sage grows best with watering each week. Increase the frequency of watering when it gets hot.
- Light: Keep your Perovskia Atriplicifolia ‘Blue Steel’ in an environment where it can receive full sun on a daily basis.
- Soil: Make sure to keep the Blue Steel Russian Sage in soil with moist but well-draining to well draining properties, so ideally, one that is made of clay, loam, chalk, and sand.
That’s it – sunlight, water and soil! The basic 3 fundamentals for all plant care, and with the Blue Steel Russian Sage this is no exception. With these three elements, your leafy friend will live healthy and happy.
Scientific / Botanical Aspects
In botanical terms, the Blue Steel Russian Sage belongs to the Hydrangeaceae family, the genus Philadelphus and the species Coronarius, hence its scientific (or botanical) name Perovskia Atriplicifolia ‘Blue Steel’ (pe-ROF-ski-a a-tri-pli-si-FO-li-a).
As with other Philadelphus’s, the Blue Steel Russian Sage is a deciduous plant, which means it will shed its leaves annually once autumn comes.
Growing Region
The Blue Steel Russian Sage is a plant native to the North EastTurkey to Caucasus.
As a rule of thumb, we recommend to always keep in mind your plants’ native region and environment, since these are the conditions that your Blue Steel Russian Sage is most accustomed to, thus where it can most favorably.
With this in mind, the Perovskia Atriplicifolia ‘Blue Steel’ will be most used to the heat zones in the 1 – 7 region, as the plant hardiness level falls between 4a, 4b, 5b, 5a, 6a, 6b, 7a, 7b, 8b, 8a and the ideal climate zone is between 1, 1A, 2, 2A, 2B, 3, 3A, 3B, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, A1, A2, A3.
Growth and Size
Growth
In terms of size and growth, the Blue Steel Russian Sage is a relatively moderate grower, which makes things somewhat easy for any plant enthusiast.
Size
But what exactly does this mean for your Blue Steel Russian Sage? How large a pot should you consider, how tall, how wide can it get? Let’s jump in…
The Perovskia Atriplicifolia ‘Blue Steel’ can grow up to 6′ – 8′ (180cm – 240cm) in 6′ – 8′ (180cm – 240cm) and 4′ – 5′ (120cm – 150cm) in 4′ – 5′ (120cm – 150cm).
These dimensions make the Blue Steel Russian Sage a relatively large shrub compared to others, so it’s best to keep this fact in mind since it will affect where you want to keep yours at home.
This is why experts recommend keeping an area of approximately 48″ – 60″ (120cm – 150cm) free so the Blue Steel Russian Sage can spread to its best extent.
Water
In terms of watering, the Blue Steel Russian Sage is a fairly simple plant to take care of.
This is mostly because it has a straightforward watering schedule and somewhat regular watering needs.
Specifically, most experts agree that the Perovskia Atriplicifolia ‘Blue Steel’ grows best with watering each week. Increase the frequency of watering when it gets hot.
Which is why it is considered a plant with relatively average needs in terms of water.
Watering
As a rule of thumb, you should remember to keep your Blue Steel Russian Sage in soil with moist but well-draining to well draining characteristics, as these will guarantee the right conditions for your plant to grow and thrive.
When you consider this, this is why you should aim to choose soil that has good drainage properties to keep the right moisture levels at all times.
In our experience, the famous ‘thumb’ or ‘finger’ test is what works best for the Blue Steel Russian Sage since with it, you will be able to give it the right amount of water, every time – regardless of the environment or placement where you do decide to keep it.
Soil Mix
As mentioned earlier, the Blue Steel Russian Sage prefers to have soil with good drainage properties at all times, reason why you need to make the soil mix out of clay, loam, chalk, and sand.
In addition to this, expert gardeners recommend having preferably alkaline, acid or neutral soil.
Light and Exposure
In terms of light & exposure, the Blue Steel Russian Sage requires full sun in order for it to thrive under the right conditions.
Most experts agree that this shrub will do well as long as you keep it in partial to full sun, and it will be able to grow properly.
Specifically, we recommend that you place your Perovskia Atriplicifolia ‘Blue Steel’ in little to partial shade (only 2-6 hours of direct sunlight a day), to full and direct sun (more 6 hours of direct sunlight per day).
Season
Being a deciduous plant, the Blue Steel Russian Sage will shed its leaves annually once autumn comes.
But, you can expect it to have its ‘prime-time’ during the spring (late), and during the summer (early, mid, late).
Flowers
You can expect your Blue Steel Russian Sage to flower around the spring and in the summer months from April to June (spring), and from July to September (summer).
The Blue Steel Russian Sage produces some beautiful purple, or white flowers around this time of year.
Foliage
The leaves from the Blue Steel Russian Sage have a beautiful silver-green color during most of the year.
In particular, they have a simple arrangement with a opposite organization in its leaves.
You can expect the leaves from your Perovskia Atriplicifolia ‘Blue Steel’ to be around (3-6 inches) in size.
Attracts, Tolerance and Resistance
The Blue Steel Russian Sage is well known for its tolerance to clay soil and animals like rabbit, so don’t worry if any of these come along, your Perovskia Atriplicifolia ‘Blue Steel’ will be fine.
Garden
How should you then organize your garden to include your new Blue Steel Russian Sage? Here are some recommendations by expert gardeners.
Most Perovskia Atriplicifolia ‘Blue Steel’ owners agree that this shrub will look great in most rustic, cottage mediterranean, and xeric gardens of all types.
Other owners consider that they complement well most gardens of coastal garden, city and courtyard, and in informal and cottage styles.
In particular, the Blue Steel Russian Sage’s best location within your garden is in beds and borders, and in hedges and screens, others use it for landscaping in a container, hillside, border, cutting garden, or a wildlife garden.
If you are looking for nice companion plants, this species will look great next to a Weeping Siberian Peashrub.
Conclusion
And we’ve come to an end. Fortunately, that’s everything you need to know about your Blue Steel Russian Sage to keep it safe and sound in your garden or home. Enjoy planting!
