clary sage

Names and Synonyms

Common Names

• European sage
• clear-eye
• see-bright sage
• Clary
• clary sage
• Clary-Sage

Scientific Names

Accepted name

Synonyms

• Sclarea vulgaris
• Salvia sclarea var. turkestaniana
• Aethiopis sclarea
• Salvia altilabrosa
• Salvia coarctata
• Salvia calostachya
• Salvia pamirica
• Salvia sclarea var. hispanica
• Salvia sclarea var. calostachya
• Salvia simsiana
• Salvia turkestanica
• Salvia lucana

Regional and Traditional Names

Sources: Wikidata, Catalogue of Life

Taxonomical Classification

This plant belongs to the kingdom Plantae and is classified under the phylum Streptophyta and class Equisetopsida. Within the subclass Magnoliidae, it falls under the order Lamiales and the family Lamiaceae. Finally, it is categorized under the genus Salvia.

Sources: The World Checklist of Vascular Plants (WCVP)

Distribution

This plant exhibits a diverse geographical distribution across several key regions of Europe. In Northern Europe, its presence can be noted within the borders of Great Britain. Moving into Middle Europe, the species is found in both Germany and the Czechia-Slovakia region. Its range extends further south into Southwestern Europe, specifically covering the Baleares islands. Additionally, the plant can be located in the Mediterranean territory of Corse.

Sources: The World Checklist of Vascular Plants (WCVP)

Botanical Identification

Ecology

The ecology of Salvia sclarea is characterized by its ability to thrive across a diverse range of environments and significant altitudinal gradients. It is commonly found inhabiting varied landscapes such as crop fields, mountains, old fields, roadsides, and sandy terrains. This species demonstrates a broad adaptability to elevation, with a documented distribution spanning from a minimum of 1100 m AMSL to a maximum of 2400 m AMSL.

Elevational range max:

2400 m AMSL

Elevational range min:

1100 m AMSL

Habitat :

crop fields, mountains, old fields, roadsides, sand

Life history

The life history of Salvia sclarea is characterized by a versatile lifecycle that can be classified as annual, biennial, or perennial, depending on the environmental conditions and growing season. As a plant, it adopts a life form categorized as a hemicryptophyte, meaning its perennable buds are located at or just below the soil surface, protected by leaf litter or soil. This growth strategy allows the species to persist through unfavorable seasons while maintaining a robust developmental pattern suitable for its natural habitats.

Life form :

hemicryptophyte

Lifecycle :

perennial

Morphology

The morphology of Salvia sclarea is characterized by its growth form as a non-woody herb, specifically classified as a forb. It is a self-supporting plant that does not exhibit climbing behavior, such as a vine or liana, and functions as an independent organism rather than a parasite. As a terrestrial species, it is neither aquatic nor an epiphyte. The plant's stature is relatively modest, with a height that typically ranges from a minimum of 0.2 m to a maximum of 1.2 m, maintaining a mean plant height of approximately 0.8 m.

Aquatic :

terrestrial

Climber :

self-supporting

Epiphyte :

terrestrial

Growth form :

herb

Growth form :

forb

Parasite :

independent

Plant height max:

1.2 m

Plant height mean:

0.8 m

Plant height min:

0.2 m

Woodiness :

non-woody

Physiology

The physiology of Salvia sclarea is characterized by a C3 photosynthetic pathway, which dictates its carbon fixation processes and metabolic efficiency. Its vegetative structure is defined by broad foliage, with leaf width consistently measured at a mean of 12 cm, maintaining a stable width ranging from a minimum of 12 cm to a maximum of 12 cm. The leaves exhibit significant longitudinal development, reaching a maximum length of up to 23 cm. Regarding nutrient cycling and symbiotic relationships, the plant does not function as a nitrogen fixer, relying instead on soil nitrogen availability for its growth and development.

Leaf length max:

23 cm

Leaf width mean:

12 cm

Nitrogen fixer :

no

Photosynthetic pathway :

C3

Reproduction

The reproduction of Salvia sclarea is characterized by a sexual reproductive cycle, as asexual reproduction is absent in this species. The flowering period typically commences in June and extends through July. The plant produces seeds with a highly specific mass profile, featuring a minimum seed mass of 0.0024 g, a mean seed mass of approximately 0.0025166665 g, and a maximum seed mass of 0.003 g. Regarding the dispersal of these seeds, the species exhibits an unspecialized dispersal syndrome, which is further supplemented by anthropochorous mechanisms, indicating that human activity plays a role in the movement of its seeds.

Dispersal syndrome :

unspecialized

Dispersal syndrome :

anthropochorous

Flowering time :

Jun

Flowering time :

Jul

Reproduction asexual :

absent

Seed mass max:

0.003 g

Seed mass mean:

0.0025166665 g

Seed mass min:

0.0024 g

Sources: Global Inventory of Floras and Traits (GIFT)

Plant Parts

Salvia sclarea has 2 reported plant parts identified across 2 scientific publications and several other databases that are studied for medicinal purposes. The most consistently reported plant part include root, seed.

Root

1. Journal of ethnopharmacology

Seed

1. Chemistry & biodiversity

Chemicals

Salvia sclarea has 90 reported phytochemicals identified across 2 scientific publications and several other databases. The most consistently reported chemicals include LINALYL ACETATE, Linalool, Sclareol, rosmarinic acid, FE.

LINALYL ACETATE

1. Dr. Duke
2. Natural product communications
3. International journal of phytoremediation
4. Pharmacognosy research
5. Scientific data

Linalool

1. Antioxidants (Basel, Switzerland)
2. Natural product communications
3. International journal of phytoremediation
4. Pharmacognosy research
5. Scientific data

Sclareol

1. Dr. Duke
2. International journal of phytoremediation
3. Scientific data
4. Advances in biochemical engineering/biotechnology

rosmarinic acid

1. Dr. Duke
2. Pharmaceutics
3. Plants (Basel, Switzerland)

FE

1. International journal of phytoremediation
2. International journal of molecular sciences

Tannin

1. Dr. Duke
2. Plants (Basel, Switzerland)

ZN

1. Plants (Basel, Switzerland)
2. International journal of molecular sciences

alpha-TERPINEOL

1. Dr. Duke
2. Antioxidants (Basel, Switzerland)

1,8-Cineole

1. Dr. Duke

3-OCTANOL

1. Dr. Duke

Activities

Salvia sclarea has 355 reported activities identified across 2 scientific publications and several other databases. The most consistently reported activities include Antimicrobial, Antioxidant, Analgesic, Antiasthmatic, Anticonvulsant.

Antimicrobial

1. Pharmaceutics
2. Toxics
3. Plants (Basel, Switzerland)
4. PloS one

Antioxidant

1. Dr. Duke
2. Plants (Basel, Switzerland)
3. Combinatorial chemistry & high throughput screening

Analgesic

1. Dr. Duke
2. Combinatorial chemistry & high throughput screening

Antiasthmatic

1. Dr. Duke
2. Combinatorial chemistry & high throughput screening

Anticonvulsant

1. Dr. Duke
2. Acta tropica

Antifungal

1. Toxics
2. Natural product research

Antitumor

1. Dr. Duke
2. Combinatorial chemistry & high throughput screening

Cardiotonic

1. Dr. Duke
2. Acta tropica

Cytotoxic

1. Dr. Duke
2. Plants (Basel, Switzerland)

Perfume

1. Dr. Duke
2. PloS one

Medicinal Uses

Salvia sclarea has 10 reported medicinal uses identified across 2 scientific publications and several other databases. The most consistently reported uses include Oxidative Stress, Parkinson's disease, antioxidant, apoptosis, brucellosis.

Most Reported Uses

Preparations