Salvia melaleuca is a perennial undershrub that is endemic to the north central region of the Eastern Cordillera in Colombia

Colombia

Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...

. It is a close relative of S. rubescens, with a villous and much larger corolla than that species. Salvia melaleuca grows approximately 0.5 to 2.5 m (1.6 to 8.2 ft) high, has a red corolla that is 3.5 to 4.5 cm (1.4 to 1.8 in) long, with the upper lip typically 9 mm (0.354330708661417 in) long but sometimes up to 15 mm (0.590551181102362 in).

Subspecies

It is divided into two subspecies: S. melaleuca subsp. melaleuca and S. melaleuca subsp. totensis. Subsp. melaleuca has leaves that are smooth on the upper surface, and racemes with 6-10 verticillasters that are up to 25 cm long. Subsp. totensis has leaves that are hairy on the upper surface, with racemes that typically have 3-5 verticillasters, growing to 10 cm long.