White Sage

White sage appears to be a beautiful white goddess that must have come down straight from the heavens. It is a 5-foot tall plant that possesses well-crafted white flowers that give a hint of lavender sometimes. Even its scalloped leaves are white that are arranged oppositely. In a nutshell, the whole white sage plant is nothing but an emblem of perfection, safety, and purity.

White sage is a highly esteemed member of the mint family, Lamiaceae. For ages, white sage is being burnt as its smoke is well-reputed for dispelling the negative energy from the vicinity. It is an ancient practice that originally sprang from Native Americans where they used it for their religious customs. Other than that, this smudging technique helps purify the air by killing bacteria, viruses, fungi, and good for nothing insects. The smudging also clears the harmful allergens, pollutants, dust particles, and molds which prove to be quite fruitful for the patients of asthma and bronchitis.

White sage smudge is also hailed as a potent mood elevator. It magnificently elevates mood, curtails stress, and reduces pain. It is packed with various biologically active components like cineole, camphor, thujone, borneol, and viridiflorol that help white sage attain the respect it deserves.

White sage can be grown both indoors and outdoors. Its seeds are always there to ask for a lot of light to germinate robustly so they are sprinkled over the soil surface, without any further soil cover over them.

The white sage plants can be started in spring. It should be given well-drained, sandy soil, and water for growth. They are historically famous for being extremely drought tolerant, so even after becoming an adult plant, they require little or no water at all to survive.

For indoor plants, once they form true leaves, they can be transplanted to the garden beds to give them space to flourish. This transplantation should be carried out in fall and after the deed, the soil is watered immensely for setting the plant in the soil.

White sage seeds take around 14 to 21 days to germinate. Soon the white sage sends out sprouts that grow up and form true leaves. The greyish-green leaves later turn white.

White sage undergoes inflorescence in the summer season. The elegant white flowers are truly loved by bumblebees, carpenter bees, and hummingbirds where they perform its pollination.

After the pollination and fertilization, a light brown fruit forms that possess seed that can be used for further sprinkling and propagation of white sage production.

The aerial shoots of white sage are mostly preferred for harvest. They are harvested just before the flower buds are about to open because, at that time, the leaves contain a lot of essential oils and other important phytochemicals.

The aerial shoots of white sage are pruned from the junction of the main stem by making use of pruning shears.

White sage leaves can be easily wrapped in the paper towel and stored in the refrigerator to last for at most five days, but not more than that. To increase the threshold of their spoilage, they are covered in olive oil and then refrigerated to last for around two weeks.

White sage is more than just a smudging agent. It is now being incorporated in various medicinal preparations to seek its benefits.

• Tincture - Infuse freshly chopped white sage leaves in grain alcohol for 4 to 6 weeks. Strain the liquid and place it in a dark and dry place.
• Tea - just one white sage leaf is simmered in a cup of water. It is made sure that the water does not roll to boil. The leaf can be left in the tea and it is also not sweetened. It is ingested neatly (without the addition of anything). 
• Salve - White sage essential oil can be paired with lavender oil and melted beeswax to form white sage salve.
• Syrup- White sugar is dissolved water on the flame. Then the saucepan is removed from the flame, and white sage leaves are left in it for few minutes. The liquid is stored in an airtight, sterilized container. 

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