White Sage and the Sage family of plants has many mysterious associations around the world as a plant that can benefit us in multifarious ways. Indigo Herbs has acquired an untainted Californian White Sage leaf incense for traditional use in cleansing either ourselves or an environment. This incense can be used, other than just to create a nice aroma, in the traditional Native American ritual of ‘smudging’.

The Native Americans used White Sage as a flavouring in their food, as a medicinal plant and to make ‘smudge sticks’. To make a smudge stick Sage leaves were bundled together, tied into a thick stick of leaves and then burned. The stick would then be carried around the desired environment to cleanse and purify negative energies and pollutants that couldn’t be seen by the eye. The action of the thick white smoke filling a room or person would clasp hold of stagnant energy and when the smoke vanished from sight, so would the monovalent spirit or unwanted feeling. In this way the process has been used by tribes of Native Americans for centuries. Salvia apiana, the Latin name for White Sage, comes from the Latin root ‘salvare’, which means “to heal”, giving greater meaning to the idea of sage as a medicinal and cleansing plant.

This evergreen perennial can grow up to 5 foot in height and has very distinctive large wide soft succulent light grey leaves. The plant flowers in summer and bloom on spears of floral clusters. Flowers can change from white to a light pink/purple. The plant is generally native to the south western United States and north western Mexico but is now grown commonly all over the world where the winters do not become too hostile.