Trimming Texas Sage

Beautiful and tough, Texas sage (Leucophyllum frutescens) is a compact rounded shrub with silvery foliage that produces showy flowers from summer to fall. This semi-evergreen plant requires little maintenance once it’s established since it is both heat- and drought-tolerant. Texas sage doesn’t respond well to fertilizers or rich soils and only needs a light pruning to maintain its shape and overall health. The best time to trim Texas sage is late winter or early spring before new growth begins.

Hand pruners
Rubbing alcohol

Instructions

- 1
  Stand several feet away from the Texas sage and examine the shrub from all sides to determine what really needs trimmed. Repeat this throughout the pruning process to ensure you maintain the plant’s natural form as much as possible.
- 2
  Cut off any damaged, sickly or dead branches on the Texas sage. Make your cut into a healthy section of the plant.
- 3
  Clean your pruning tools with rubbing alcohol after removing any diseased parts of the Texas sage to prevent spreading. Throw these cuttings away and then use a two-step method to trim the shrub.
- 4
  Prune the Texas sage’s branches and stems as needed to form a half-globe.
- 5
  Trim every other branch on the Texas sage back 6 to 9 inches. Make the cuts where the branches fork or split.

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