Growing Lavender
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Problems growing Lavender?
Do you have problems growing Lavender? It's such a lovely thing to grow; it smells beautiful, and looks wonderful gracing pots and the edges of paths and borders. It also provides much needed nectar for the bees and butterflies.
You can hang it in your cupboards or sew it into sachets to keep your clothes free from moths. It also makes a wonderful addition to scones and icecream, and if you are feeling adventurous, you can distill your own Lavender essential oil from the flowers.
Lavender can be difficult to grow, and if your Lavender plants are leggy, and the flowers sparse, that can be really disappointing. As with all plants, it's important to get the growing conditions of Lavender right. They are not difficult to please, and will reward you with flowers and heavenly fragrance all summer if you plant and look after your Lavenders correctly. Just follow the advice in this lens and you won't go far wrong. Happy growing.
Contents at a Glance
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First some inspiration
(Image unattributable: if you have the copyright, let me know)
Here it is...lovely Lavender, full of colour, perfume, goodness and beloved by the bees.This is why it's worth growing Lavender.
Grow Lavender and help the hard pressed bee...
By Thomas Tolkien from Scarborough, UK (Bumble bee on lavenderUploaded by herkuleshippo) [CC-BY-2.0], via Wikimedia Commons
Bees are in trouble the world over, and whilst we still don't have a definitive answer as to why bee poulations are falling drastically, and bee diseases increasing, we do know that loss of a nectar sources, agricultural mono cropping and foraging exhaustion plays a part. This means that we are in trouble too, as all our crops depend upon pollination by bees.
And Lavender likes dry, poor soil.
By Marek Gehrmann (Own work) , via Wikimedia Commons
'Poor soil' can be any soil that hasn't been fertilised or manured.
'Free draining soil' means soil that remains dryish, even in wet weather, because it freely drains, is gritty and does not absorb or collect moisture.
The best and most fragrant plants that I have ever seen were growing out of cracks in exposed rocky outcrops and along sandy pathways.
If you can't meet these criteria your lavender growing efforts will be dissapointing. I don't grow Lavender in my heavy clay soil; the results are always disappointing as the plants grow weakly, become leggy very quickly, and die off completely if the winter is wet or very cold.
Lavender can survive short spells of quite low temperatures, frost, snow and frozen ground. I know because I grow it in places where it gets frozen and covered in snow every winter. How well it survives seems to depend upon unknowable factors that vary from plant to plant.
What will kill it dead, or leave it ruined and bare is wet, cold soggy ground. So really the main factor that dictates survival is how free draining the soil is.
Because Lavender is Drought Tolerant.
Lavender is drought tolerant, but newly planted Lavender plants will need watering after planting, and during the first growing season whenever the soil gets dry, but once they are established watering is rarely necessary.
Lavender growing in pots will always need watering when the soil gets dry, as there is no place for their roots to seek out water.
So if your soil is rich or gets soggy in winter, grow your Lavender in pots
If your soil is like mine and is rich and clayey, or gets very wet in winter, the only thing to do is grow your lavender in pots or window boxes in a mix of compost and sharp sand. If you are going to grow your plants in pots then use terraccotta and not plastic, and make sure that there are adequate holes in the bottom for drainage.
Once you have planted Lavender
All kinds of creatures come to drink the nectar in the flowers
By Jastrow (Own work) , via Wikimedia Commons
This is the Hummingbird Hawk Moth feeding on lavender flowers in Auvergne, France. Their little wings go so fast that they are a blur. They absolutely adore Lavender, and I get them in my garden in the South of France, but not in England.
Inspirational books on Lavender growing
Delve deeper into the may varieties of Lavender you can grow
Only Plant Lavender When The Soil is Warm
Plant your lavender plants once the soil is warm at the beginning of the growing season, never when the soil is cold and wet.
Do not feed or mulch Lavender
You can kill Lavender with kindness
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Do not feed or fertilize your plants as this will make them become weak, spindly, and prone to disease.
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Do not mulch your Lavender with organic matter as this will make it rot at the base of the stems.
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You can top dress pot grown plants with shingle, pebbles or crushed shells. This, keeps soil from splashing the leaves, stops the pot from drying out too quickly in hot sun, and looks very decorative.
Clip Lavender every year
Without pruning lavender becomes straggly and full of old, unproductive wood within a few years.
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Only cut off the soft growth that has leaves and grew in the present year.
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Avoid cutting back into old, established wood. It can be done, but you really need to know how and when, and this will vary from plant to plant, and from one year to the next. Cutting back hard can result in a re-envigorated plant, but it can also kill the plant, and it takes experience to get it right.
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If the plants are to be left to flower on in the garden, dead heading will extend the flowering season considerably, but pruning must be done well before cold weather sets in, or left untill the following late spring.
What To Do About Pests and Diseases Of Lavender
There are few problems that affect healthy Lavender plants. Most disease and pest attacks occur when plants are stressed and weak due to poor and unsuitable growing conditions.
Capsid bugs occasionally become a problem when their larvae create frothy bubble nests amongst the leaves in summer. A few nests hardly matter, but if your plants begin to look overwhelmed and unsightly, a sharp blast of water from a garden hose will dislodge them easily.
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Lavender seeds
Harvesting Lavender For Home Use
Christine Matthews [, via Wikimedia Commons
Cut the flowers on a sunny day when the flowers aren't damp with rain or dew.
Timing is important, as the flowers should be almost, but not fully open, and the crop should have been basking in hot sun in order to develop a full range of volatile oils.
Lavender plants
Butterflies and moths feed on wild flowers...
a short film made by my partner Gerry.
Swallowtails and Black Lace butterflies, Six spot Burnets and Hummingbird moths dance on nectar rich flowers, and finally on swathes of Lavender.
Music by Albeniz
Useful Lavender Links For More Information
Royal Horticultural Society: guide to Lavender care and species.
http://www.squidoo.com/lavender-recipes :Chef Keem's wonderful lens on cooking with lavender
Lavender for First Aid :My partner lens to this one
The Herb Society
Let me know if you are inspired to grow some Lavender
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The_Micro_Farm_Project May 24, 2012 @ 12:18 am | delete
- Beautiful lens! I grow a little bit of lavender in my garden. Thanks for the tips!
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caffimages
May 12, 2012 @ 1:06 pm | delete
- One of my favourite herbs, lavender is still a must have in my garden. A lovely lens I've really enjoyed. Thank you.
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Rob3
Apr 27, 2012 @ 3:19 pm | delete
- Another beautiful lens. There is something special about lavender, it attracts so much wildlife and has a lovely fragrance. Would love to visit the lavender fields in Provence, France - from the photogenic point of view.
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whitemoss
Apr 19, 2012 @ 11:59 am | delete
- Lovely! Blessed and added to my own lens about lavender.
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suzy-t Apr 10, 2012 @ 5:53 am | delete
- Wonderful lens... Lavender is so beautiful...one of my favorite flowers in my garden. I learned the hard way about not fertilizing it a few years ago but it's back and doing better than ever if I keep ignoring it. Blessed by a fellow Squid-Angel...
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Lavender prints at Amazon
Tool Shop
It's important to have good tools. It makes the job easier. It is also a pleasure to use and own good tools. By good tools, I mean tools that are well made, well designed, last, and are comfortable to use.
All the following recomendations have withstood the test of use and time within my garden company, and have been used by me personally in my own garden.
Felco No 2 Secateurs
Felco F-2 Classic Manual Hand Pruner
Amazon Price: $46.89 (as of 06/04/2012)
The Only Secateurs To Use Are Felco Secateurs...
If you are serious about gardening, get a pair of Felco no. 2 secateurs and enjoy the difference.
I was issued with my first pair of Felco secateurs when I joined the Royal Parks as an apprentice gardener. Twenty six years on and I still use them most days in the garden. They cut as well today as they did all those years ago.
Felco F-2 Classic Manual Hand Pruner
Amazon Price: $46.89 (as of 06/04/2012)
List Price: $62.99
I lost them once in a garden, and they were found a year later buried in the compost heap. I had bought a second pair by then, but decided to clean them up as they had sentimental value. They cleaned up perfectly and are still my favourite pair of secateurs.
These are the ultimately engineered secateurs, prefered by professional gardeners every where. Ergonomically designed, they are the most comfortable and efficient secateurs on the market. Nothing makes a cleaner cut than a pair of Felco Secateurs, and cleaner cuts mean quicker wound healing and less die back.
Felco's have a lifetime guarantee, which is a safe bet as they are indestructible. To keep them in pristine condition you can dismantle them easily, for cleaning and oiling, and although I'm not technically minded, I get real pleasure from being able to service my secateurs on a rainy day.
They aren't the cheapest to buy, but they will outlast twenty cheap pairs, so if you are serious about gardening, get a pair of Felco no. 2 secateurs and enjoy the difference.
Spare Parts For Your Felco Secateurs
Felco's have a lifetime guarantee, which is a safe bet as they are indestructible. To keep them in pristine condition you can dismantle them easily, for cleaning and oiling, and although I'm not technically minded, I get real pleasure from being able to service my secateurs on a rainy day.
Brilliant shears
Bahco 23-Inch Hedge Shear P51
Amazon Price: $69.50 (as of 06/04/2012)
Haws Traditional Watering Can
Haws Traditional Metal Outdoor Watering Can. Titanium Finish
Amazon Price: (as of 06/04/2012)
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About Me
by greenspirit
When not enjoying the world of Squidoo, I am a professional gardener, garden consultant and garden manager working in England and France at Green Spirit... more »
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Get The True Fragrance of Lavender With This Pure Lavender Oil
This oil is 'theraputic grade' which means it is pure, safe and unadulterated.
Lavender 100% Pure Therapeutic Grade Essential Oil- 10 ml
Amazon Price: $13.75 (as of 06/03/2012)
Lavender oil has so many uses in the home that I find it impossible to do without it. You can buy good quality oils here at an extremely good price.
Find out about all the amazing things lavender can do at Healing With Lavender
Healing With Lavender
This is a partner lens to Growing Lavender:The Complete Guide
