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Salvia divinorum Cultivation The Easy Way |
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Written by Dan McDonley
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Monday, 21 December 1998 |
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Page 1 of 5 Salvia divinorum is the queen of magical mysterious plants. She requires patience, understanding, and acceptance of her often terrifying lessons. She won't tolerate being just a curiosity, or used for thrill seeking behavior. She desires that you create a relationship with her. Even if you have never seen a live Salvia divinorum plant and have only used the dried leaves, that relationship must still be cultivated. Those who choose to not do this are usually scared shitless when they finally do force a breakthrough. But by growing this magical teacher she learns about you and what your intentions are.
Growing her in itself is a magical experience. Yet there is probably no other plant that instills such an utter fear in beginner cultivators. When I went to bring her home from the greenhouse I bought her at, I almost expected to see her in some specially controlled atmospheric chamber with tubes and misting nozzles everywhere, and the dull whine of compressors and life support systems. Instead I was handed this tough looking little plant with a thick stem and yellowish green leaves that was sitting on the table by the door of the greenhouse. In awe of this little plant I brought her home and started to grow her.
One thing to this day has always amazed me about this plant though, its amazing characteristic for adaptability. With the right setup it can not only survive any climate, but you can even go on vacation for two weeks and still see her alive when you come back. Yet not just alive but thriving! In this article I hope to dispel the myths about this wonderful plant and give you some tips on making Salvia divinorum wonderfully easy to grow and care for.
So to start off, I'm going to give you my secret setup that will keep your plant healthy even if you forget to water, mist, or even if you go on vacation for 2 weeks.
First thing you will need is a very large clay pot. At least one foot in diameter for one plant and the larger pots for 2 or more plants. Remember that salvia like lots of room to spread her roots and doesn't take well to transplanting too often. Take your rooted cutting or small plant and get it ready for transplanting. Take ¼” polyester rope (must be polyester, nylon or anything else probably won't work) and put it in a pan of water for 10 minutes. Then feed it through the hole in the bottom of the pot so you only have 1-2 feet of rope hanging out the bottom. Then start spiraling it through the soil in the clay pot.
The easiest way to do this is to put a couple of inches of soil down and circle the rope around a couple inches from the sides and each time it nears itself put another layer of soil in. Remember it's very important to leave about 1-2 feet of rope hanging out the bottom of the pot when you begin. As you approach the top with layers of soil and circling rope its time to put your rooted cutting or small plant in now. Once its in, keep spiraling the rope up to the top of the soil. Once the soil is level with the soil you transplanted in with the plant take the rope and circle it around the stem of the plant so it is flat with the top of the soil. If you look from the top it should look like a spiral. It should not look like you wrapped your plant in rope.
Then cover with soil till you cannot see the rope anymore. Next find yourself a milk crate or other platform with a hole in it to let the rope go through. Find an empty container around the house and put it under the platform and let the rope hang into it. The closer the water level is to the bottom of the pot the more efficient the wicking will work. Water your plant thoroughly to start the system. There you have it, you have just created a wicking system that will water your plants continuously at a rate they choose. A soil mix that works well with this system is ½ rich dark potting soil, (without vermiculite or perlite added) ¼ vermiculite, and ¼ or a bit more perlite. The richer the potting soil the better, which is much like the soil in Salvia's native region. The vermiculite holds moisture and the perlite promotes aeration of the soil and along with the clay pot will make sure enough air gets to the roots.
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