There are about 1000 species of Salvia L. in the world， and a large number of species have been developed in many aspects of medicine， ornamental， edible as well as essential oils and health care. In China， there are abundant germplasm resources including 84 species and 24 varieties， while only one native species， Salvia miltiorrhiza Bunge， is widely cultivated and used for medicinal purpose. It is urgent to investigate and classify their growth habits， morphological characteristics and horticultural characteristics， in order to promote their efficient development and popularization. Based on classical taxonomy and solid data obtained from field investigation and cultivation observation in the past 13 years， this article focuses on the classification and characterization of the horticultural characteristics of Salvia L.， including six aspects， such as end-use， flowering period， flower color， flower size， stem characteristics and garden shape. Spring-flowered （April-June）， summer-flowered （July-August）， and autumn-flowered （September-November） types were classified according to flowering periods， while purple， blue， red， pink， yellow and white flower styles were categorized based on flower colors. There were four levels for flower sizes： small （<1.5 cm）， medium （1.5-3.0 cm）， medium-large （3.0-4.5 cm）， and large （＞4.5 cm）， and three forms for stem types： trailing， cespitose， and erect. Notable flexibility were displayed in garden shape by a number of germplasms. The majority of domestic sage resources are the cespitose herbs with medium-sized （large） purple and blue flowers that bloom in the spring. This study improved the applied classification system of Salvia L.， and provided reference for further development and extensive application of Salvia L. species in China.