Harvesting White Sage
Answered by: Inge Poot
Question from: Rachel R.
Posted on: February 10, 2005

Could you advise me as to how to harvest white sage properly? I was rather pleased to have it growing in my yard and love the smell of it burning but can’t seem to cut any of my beautiful leaves...yet I can see it may benefit from pruning. I live in central California, USA, right on the coast.

Pruning white sage and harvesting it are really one and the same thing, because it is a shrubby plant. And for pruning you should never prune off more than a third of the plant. So cut out the scraggly branches and shorten the rest to arrive at a pleasing shape -just don’t give it an even "haircut" it does not look natural or pleasing! Spring is the best time to do the deed, but you may wish to keep some branches for later harvest.

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