Salvia officinalis, the common sage or just sage, is a
what?
A: A perennial, evergreen subshrub, with woody stems, grayish leaves, and
blue to purplish flowers.
It is a member of the mint family Lamiaceae and native
to where?
A: The Mediterranean region, though it has been naturalized in many places
throughout the world.
It has a long history of what?
A: Medicinal and culinary use.
In modern times it has been used as an ornamental what?
A: Garden plant.
The common name "sage" is also used for what?
A: Closely related species and cultivars.
When was salvia officinalis described by Carl Linnaeus?
A: In 1753.
It has been grown for centuries in the Old World for
its what?
A: Food and healing properties.
The binary name, officinalis, refers to the plant's
what?
A: Medicinal use.
Cultivars are quite variable in what?
A: Size, leaf and flower
color, and foliage pattern, with many variegated
leaf types.
The Old World type grows to how tall?
A: Approximately 60 cm (2 ft) tall and wide.
What color are its flowers?
A: Lavender flowers are most common, though they can also be white, pink, or
purple.
When does the plant flower?
A: In late spring or summer.
The leaves are oblong, ranging in size up to what?
A: 65 mm (2+1⁄2 in) long by 25 mm (1 in) wide.
Leaves are grey-green, rugose on the upper side, and
nearly what underneath due to the many short soft hairs?
A: White.
Salvia officinalis has been used since ancient times
for warding off what?
A: Evil, snakebites, increasing women's fertility, and more.
The Romans referred to sage as what?
A: The "holy herb," and employed it in their religious rituals.
Pliny the Elder said the latter plant was called salvia
by the Romans, and used as a what?
A: A diuretic, a local anesthetic for the
skin, a styptic, and for other
uses.
Charlemagne recommended the plant for cultivation in
the early Middle Ages, and during the Carolingian Empire, where was it
cultivated?
A: In monastery gardens.
In Britain, sage has for generations been listed as one
of the what?
A: One of the essential herbs, along with parsley, rosemary, and thyme (as
in the folk song "Scarborough Fair").
What kind of flavor does it have?
A: It has a savory, slightly peppery flavor.
In Italian cuisine, it is an essential condiment for
what?
A: Saltimbocca and other dishes, favored with fish.
In British and American cooking, it is traditionally
served as what?
A: Sage and onion stuffing, an accompaniment to roast turkey or
chicken at
Christmas or Thanksgiving Day.
Other dishes include what?
A: Pork casserole, Sage Derby cheese and Lincolnshire
sausages.
The essential oil contains what?
A: Cineole, borneol, and thujone.