How to grow sage in China? (I)

As the customs may bar a live plant from entering the country, I

would need to find it within. First, what’s the Chinese name for the

common sage?

 

Google translated sage as 鼠尾草. Baidu added 可做調料.  So far, so good.

 

Then Wikipedia showed the herb’s scientific name as Salvia officinalis.

 

Baidu 百科, however, said 鼠尾草’s latin name was Salvia japonica, which

from the web looks quite different from the common sage which came from

the Mediterranean. Wikipedia says S. japonica is native to East and South Asia.

 

基維百科 gave the correct latin name for 鼠尾草，but that seemed it.

Not a single line was written in Chinese about the herb and not a

single link was provided there. So besides its name and maybe Scarborough

Fair, the Chinese knew nothing about the plant?

[7grizzly]

Baidu names 鼠尾草 S. japonica but describes it as if it were S. officinalis.

[7grizzly]

Just looked them up: "Black sage" is Salvia mellifera and "white sage" is Salvia apiana. Both are native to the U.S. and Mexico. Only the "common/garden sage," i.e., S. officinalis, is used in cooking.

It is interesting that Baidu 百科 says 鼠尾草（S. japonica) is from the Mediterranean or "原產於地中海地區", while Wikipedia says S. japonica is "native to several provinces in China and Taiwan." :-)))

REFERENCE:
- https://baike.baidu.com/item/鼠尾草/1187863
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salvia_japonica

[7grizzly]

回複 '暖冬cool夏' 的評論 : Thank you, 暖冬, for reading.

I cook once a week the Italian dish 'sausage and beans' which calls for sage.
I began to grow it with a starter in 2020. More details can be found in this post https://blog.wenxuecity.com/myblog/64243/202006/42548.html.

I'd like to be able to enjoy the dish when I visit somewhere, e.g., China, and wondered how to get the herb there, which led to this post. Maybe unbeknownst to me, it's already growing in there. Or I just have to bring dried leaves with me.

[暖冬cool夏]

You tend to discuss how to grow it in China. Sounds more interesting. Maybe one day we can strike rich by planting it there:)

[暖冬cool夏]

Like “洋蘇草” better:)) though 鼠尾草is more commonly translated.
Sage is so often seen in the wilderness that we can tell black sage from white. I would very much to know how you grow at home and how you use for cooking. We both love the fragrance, bold and refreshing.