How To Grow Lavender

22.07.2024 - 10:31 / gardenersworld.com

Lavender is a Mediterranean evergreen shrub, grown for its fragrant leaves and bee-friendly flowers. There are hardy, half-hardy and tender species of lavender to choose from.

Lavenders work in a variety of situations, from wildlife gardens to cottage gardens and even formal gardens, such as planted beneath shrub roses or used as a low-growing lavender hedge. Many lavenders thrive in pots.

The type of lavender you grow will depend on personal choice, including flower colour and shape, plus the shade and fragrance of the foliage (some lavenders have silvery-grey leaves, while others are more green). Several pointers to consider when choosing which lavender to grow in your garden include: English lavender, Lavandula angustifolia, is hardier and longer-lived than the French and Spanish lavenders Lavandula dentata and Lavandula stoechas; it’s thought that bees are more attracted to English lavender than French or Spanish lavender.

While traditional English lavender varieties ‘Hidcote’ and ‘Munstead’ are undeniably lovely and rightly popular, intermediate lavenders, sometimes called ‘lavendins’, have several advantages over English varieties. These hybrid lavenders have Lavandula angustifolia and Lavandula latifolia as their parents. They are more robust than other lavenders and therefore more tolerant of wetter soils and colder winters. They’re larger in habit than English lavenders and flower for a longer period, providing more flowers for you to enjoy, and more pollen and nectar for bees. Popular hybrid lavenders include Lavandula x intermedia ‘Edelweiss’ and Lavandula x intermedia ‘Grosso’.

Grow lavender in full sun in well-drained soil. Half hardy and tender lavenders, such