Salvia przewalskii Maxim.

Plants perennial. Stems to 60 cm, branched from base, ascending, densely pubescent. Petiole 6-21 cm, 1-4 cm in stem leaves; leaf blade triangular-hastate to oblong-lanceolate, rarely cordate-ovate, 5-11 × 3-7 cm, adaxially minutely hirsute, base cordate to hastate, margin crenate-dentate, apex acute. Verticillasters 2-4-flowered, widely spaced, in terminal racemes or panicles 8-20 cm; rachis densely pilose; bracts ovate to elliptic, 3-8 × 2.5-3.5 mm, villous. Pedicel 1-5 mm, densely pilose. Calyx campanulate, ca. 1.1 cm, densely red-brown glandular, villous; upper lip triangular-semicircular, ca. 4 × 5 mm, ± 3-mucronate; lower lip ca. 3 × 6 mm, 2-cleft; teeth triangular, apex acute. Corolla purple-red and red-brown or white, 2.1-3.5(-4) cm, pilose, sparsely red-brown glandular on upper lip; tube obliquely pilose annulate inside, ca. 1.7 cm, ca. 2 mm wide below annulus, gradually dilated beyond annulus, exserted, to ca. 8 mm wide at throat; upper lip oblong, ca. 5 mm, margin entire, slightly concave, ciliate; lower lip ca. 7 × 11 mm; middle lobe obovate, apex subtruncate; lateral lobes semicircular. Stamens exserted; filaments ca. 4.5 mm; connectives ca. 3.5 mm, arcuate, arms subequal. Style slightly exserted. Nutlets gray-brown, obovoid, ca. 3 × 2 mm. Fl. May-Aug.

Gansu, Hubei, Sichuan, Xizang, Yunnan

* Forest margins, hillsides, streamsides, thickets; 1100-4000 m.

Flowering from May to August.

Salvia przewalskii var. przewalskii is close relative of Salvia przewalskii var. alba, but differs from the latter in its inflorescences unbranched and branched, racemose and paniculate (vs. unbranched, racemose), corolla purple-red to red-brown (white), leaf blade triangular-hastate, rarely cordate-ovate (vs. lanceolate to oblong-lanceolate), long petiolate (vs. short).

Salvia przewalskii is occurring in Gansu, Sichuan, Xizang, Yunnan of China.

Infrageneric relationships within Salvia and its relationship to other members of the tribe Mentheae were investigated using the chloroplast DNA regions rbcL and trnL-F (Walker et al., 2004). Significant conclusions drawn from the data include: Salvia is not monophyletic, Rosmarinus and Perovskia together are sister to an Old World clade of Salvia, the section Audibertia is sister to subgenus Calosphace or the monotypic Asian genus Dorystaechas, and the New World members of section Heterosphace are sister to section Salviastrum.

Plants perennial. Stems to 60 cm, branched from base, ascending, densely pubescent. Petiole 6-21 cm, 1-4 cm in stem leaves; leaf blade triangular-hastate, rarely cordate-ovate, 5-11 cm long, 3-7 cm wide, abaxially gray-white, densely gray tomentose, adaxially minutely hirsute, base cordate to hastate, margin crenate-dentate, apex acute. Verticillasters 2-4-flowered, widely spaced, in terminal racemes or panicles 8-20 cm; rachis densely pilose; bracts ovate to elliptic, 3-8 mm long, 2.5-3.5 mm wide, villous. Pedicel 1-5 mm, densely pilose. Calyx campanulate, ca. 1.1 cm, densely red-brown glandular, villous; upper lip triangular-semicircular, ca. 4 mm long, 5 mm wide, ± 3-mucronate; lower lip ca. 3 mm long, 6 mm wide, 2-cleft; teeth triangular, apex acute. Corolla purple-red to red-brown, 2.1-3.5 cm, pilose, sparsely red-brown glandular on upper lip; tube obliquely pilose annulate inside, ca. 1.7 cm, ca. 2 mm wide below annulus, gradually dilated beyond annulus, exserted, to ca. 8 mm wide at throat; upper lip oblong, ca. 5 mm, margin entire, slightly concave, ciliate; lower lip ca. 7 mm long, 11 mm wide; middle lobe obovate, apex subtruncate; lateral lobes semicircular. Stamens exserted; filaments ca. 4.5 mm; connectives ca. 3.5 mm, arcuate, arms subequal. Style slightly exserted. Nutlets gray-brown, obovoid, ca. 3 mm long, 2 mm wide.

Growing in forest margins, streamsides, thickets; 1100-4000 m.

Salvia przewalskii is used medicinally.

Salvia przewalskii is a herbaceous perennial plant native to the Chinese provinces of Gansu, Hubei, Sichuan, Xizang, and Yunnan, typically growing along stream banks, forest edges, among shrubs, and on granitic hillsides. It was described and named in 1881 by the Russian botanist Carl Maximowicz after the Russian explorer and botanist Nikolai Przhevalsky, who made several collecting trips to China in the 19th century. The plant is widely known throughout its native habitat for its medicinal properties.

Salvia przewalskii forms a basal clump of yellow-green leaves 1 to 2 feet (30 to 61 cm) high and wide, with flowering stalks rising 3 feet (91.4 cm) above the plant. The 6-12 inch (15 to 30 cm) leaves, with long petioles, have distinct veins on the underside. The inflorescence is branched, with widely spaced whorls of flowers opening a few at once. The 1 inch (2.54 cm) flowers are fat, with an unusual purple-red or red-brown color. The calyx is hairy and glandular, red-brown and two-lipped. It is usually seen only in botanical gardens, though seeds have become available for gardeners since the 1980s. Botanists have segregated the species into four varieties, distinguished by leaf shape and differences in the hairs covering the foliage.