Mealycup sage takes its epithet from the floury white powder coating the calyces and upper stems of its flower spikes. Native to the south-central United States and northeastern Mexico, it grows naturally in prairies, meadows, and woodland edges, which tells you something useful about its preferences: full sun, decent drainage, and no particular fussing. It forms rounded clumps 1 to 2 feet tall and wide, with coarsely serrated, aromatic green leaves and slender violet-blue spikes that begin in spring and continue intermittently until frost. Pruning after heavy bloom cycles helps the plant put out compact new growth rather than getting leggy.

Different cultivars extend the color range into purple, white, and bicolor forms, and the strong upright spikes hold well as cut flowers. Bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds all work the blooms. Outside its perennial range in the outer coastal plain, it performs beautifully as an annual across the piedmont and mountains. One caution: good air circulation is necessary to prevent downy and powdery mildew from establishing in the dense foliage. The overall picture is a plant that earns its place in any sunny bed or border through sheer reliability.