White Buffalo Sage

If there’s any herb that has a long and storied history, it’s the white sage plant, also called salvia apiana.

Used heavily amongst California tribal people for centuries (and still in use today), this plant has many names given by the tribes who use it. The Tongva or Gabrielino tribe traditionally called it kasiile and found it on hills around the area now known as Los Angeles. A similar pronounciation, qas’ily, was used by the Chumash people who lived along the current Santa Barbara coastline. The inland Luiseno tribe referred to this plant as qaashil. To Kumeyaay peoples who were in the area around modern-day San Diego, it was known as shlhtaay.

Now, of course, all of these people in their many and varied locations throughout the state usually just call it white sage, or sometimes California white sage.

Viewed as a sacred plant, it also has been traditionally used for food, medicine, and many other purposes.

While an individual salvia apiana plant can survive for many years in the wild if the surroundings are right, most people find it a bit more complex to grow in the garden. Yet it can be a beautiful and worthwhile plant to have on hand.