Host an Event Volunteer Join Tickets

Support the plant database you love!

Q. Who is Mr. Smarty Plants?

A: There are those who suspect Wildflower Center volunteers are the culpable and capable culprits. Yet, others think staff members play some, albeit small, role. You can torture us with your plant questions, but we will never reveal the Green Guru's secret identity.

Help us grow by giving to the Plant Database Fund or by becoming a member

Did you know you can access the Native Plant Information Network with your web-enabled smartphone?

Share

Ask Mr. Smarty Plants

Ask Mr. Smarty Plants is a free service provided by the staff and volunteers at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.

Search Smarty Plants
See a list of all Smarty Plants questions

Please forgive us, but Mr. Smarty Plants has been overwhelmed by a flood of mail and must take a break for awhile to catch up. We hope to be accepting new questions again soon. Thank you!

Need help with plant identification, visit the plant identification page.

 
rate this answer
Not Yet Rated

Thursday - November 21, 2013

From: Las Vegas, NV
Region: Rocky Mountain
Topic: Diseases and Disorders, Soils, Shrubs
Title: Yellowing leaves of Texas Sage (Cenizo) from Las Vegas NV
Answered by: Barbara Medford

QUESTION:

Leaves of Texas Sage are turning yellow. Can you tell me why?

ANSWER:

First, we need to define terms. Once again, the Curse of the Common Name has struck. In our Native Plant Database are two very different plants with the common name "Texas Sage."

  Leucophyllum frutescens (Cenizo)

Salvia texana (Texas sage)

We are betting you are concerned with the Cenizo, a lovely blue-gray leaved shrub that is endemic to Texas,  growing mostly in West and Central Texas. From our webpage on Salvia texana (Texas sage):

"Salvia texana, at first glance, is very much like Engelmanns sage (Salvia engelmannii), an herbaceous perennial up to one and a half feet tall with purple-blue blooms, but Salvia texana has a longer bloom period and its smaller, darker flowers are topped by unopened green buds. It shares a common name, Texas Sage, with Leucophyllum frutescens, more often known as Cenizo, a very different, much larger shrub. Salvia texana is a denizen of limestone soils from north-central Texas south to northern Mexico."

Neither plant is native to Las Vegas NV, so it may very well be that incorrect growing conditions are causing the problem. 

Generally, when leaves turn yellow and it is not the season to do so, it means chlorisis or an absence of some needed nutrient from the soil.

From a previous Mr. Smarty Plants answer on chlorosis:

"Yellowish leaves could indicate chlorosis, or lack of iron being taken up by the plant from the soil. This is often caused  by poor drainage and/or dense clay soil, which causes water to stand on the roots. Again, this could  be a problem caused by planting, perhaps without any organic material added to hole, or damage to the tiny rootlets that take up water and trace elements, including iron, from the soil."

Follow each plant link above to our webpages on the respective plants, comparing your growing conditions in Nevada with those considered appropriate to each plant. From the growing conditions for Leucophyllum frutescens (Cenizo):

"Humidity and high night temperatures are lethal. Cenizos should not be fertilized or over-watered."

The growing conditions for Salvia texana (Texas sage) shows it is a low water plant and: 

"Soil Description: Found in limestone soils of consistencies ranging from sandy to clay and rocky caliche."

 

From the Image Gallery


Cenizo
Leucophyllum frutescens

Cenizo
Leucophyllum frutescens

Cenizo
Leucophyllum frutescens

Texas sage
Salvia texana

Texas sage
Salvia texana

Texas sage
Salvia texana

More Shrubs Questions

Using a brush hog on acreage on Bear Creek in Austin, TX.
July 25, 2012 - We have 8 acres off 1826 situated on Bear Creek. It has open areas with scattered large trees (cedar elm, live oak, white oak). Cedars or junipers only along the the lot lines. We've been told we...
view the full question and answer

Planting time for non-natives in Irving TX
February 07, 2012 - Have dwarf nandinas and two lorapetalums that I want to transplant. Can I do it now February 6th 2012?
view the full question and answer

Leaf loss on Cenizo in Bertram TX
November 17, 2009 - I need help with a purple sage (Leucophyllum frutescens) problem. Most of one of my plants started having paler, more greyish leaves, then the leaves began to fall off. It seemed to still look healthy...
view the full question and answer

Small shrubs for landscape in Kansas
April 20, 2013 - I am intersted in small shrubs for the landscaping in front of our house located in Topeka,KS. Many of the shrubs I looked at are 5 foot in width in height. The plants will receive morning sun.
view the full question and answer

Chickasaw Plum suckering potential in Washington DC area
May 11, 2015 - I have planted some chickasaw plums around the border of my property. My property is surrounded by a wooded area, which then opens into a golfcourse. Is there a chance that my chickasaw plums would...
view the full question and answer

Support the Wildflower Center by Donating Online or Becoming a Member today.