Pineapple Sage

Salvia elegans

herb

Pineapple Sage (Salvia elegans) is a tender perennial salvia from the mountains of Mexico and Guatemala, grown as much for its fragrance as its flowers. Crush a leaf and it releases a sweet, distinctly pineapple aroma; in fall, just as the garden winds down, it erupts in spikes of brilliant scarlet tubular flowers that hummingbirds and late-season bees cannot resist. The plant makes a substantial 3 to 4 ft bush by season end. Both the soft green leaves and the edible red flowers are used fresh in fruit salads, teas, summer drinks, jellies, and as a garnish. Hardy only to about zone 8, it is grown as an annual or overwintered indoors farther north.

✅ Plant alongside

Good neighbors that attract beneficial insects or deter pests

• Bee Balm: Another hummingbird and bee favorite that shares the rich moist soil and extends the nectar season
• Zinnia: Long-blooming annual that pulls in pollinators alongside the fall sage flowers
• Tomato: The aromatic foliage helps mask the crop from pests while both enjoy full sun and steady moisture
• Pepper: Shares the same warm-season, full-sun, evenly-moist conditions

🛡️ Pest & disease prevention

Proactive ways to stop trouble before it starts. Tap a name with an arrow for its full guide

• Whiteflies →

  Most common on plants overwintered indoors - rinse foliage, hang yellow sticky traps, and keep good airflow around the plant

• Spider mites →

  Appear in hot dry conditions and on indoor plants - mist or rinse leaf undersides and avoid drought stress

• Aphids →

  Hose colonies off tender shoot tips; ladybugs and lacewings usually keep them in check outdoors

🌾 Harvest & storage

Harvest pineapple sage leaves anytime through the season by pinching young sprigs from the tips, which also keeps the plant bushy; flavor is best before flowering but the leaves stay usable all season. Pick the scarlet flowers as they open to scatter over fruit salads and desserts or to float in drinks. Leaves are best used fresh, as they lose their fruity aroma when dried; for short storage, keep cut sprigs in water like cut flowers.

🥗 Nutrition & benefits

Pineapple Sage is prized for its sweet, fruity, pineapple-scented leaves, used fresh in herbal teas, fruit salads, jellies, poultry dishes, and summer beverages, while the edible scarlet flowers make a striking garnish with a mild nectar-sweet taste. Beyond the kitchen it is a top hummingbird and pollinator plant, its fall flowers feeding migrating hummingbirds when little else is in bloom.