How to Grow Lavender

Every garden should have a few lavender bushes. Some varieties flower from mid-June to September. The silver foliage deserves a space on it's own merit.

They keep themselves neat and tidy with a single annual pruning and they are relatively free from pests and disease. The final bonus is that they withstand drought extremely well.

Species and Varieties
There are in excess of 50 species of Lavender plants which come in a wide variety of sizes, hardiness, flowers and foliage. The main varieties widely available are discussed below.

English Lavender (Lavandula.angustifolia)

Lavandula.angustifolia Size of height and spread is normally within the range 45cm to 75cm (1�ft to 2�ft). Given time these lavenders form mounds and this looks impressive when lots of tem are planted together.
The flowers appear from late Spring right through to late summer. Lavandula.angustifolia is often incorrectly referred to as Lavandula.officinalis or vera.

Lavandin or Dutch Lavender (Lavandula.x intermedia)
The stems of Lavandins are longer than English Lavender and when mature these plants have a height and spread of about 90cm (3ft). This makes them ideal as low hedging plants.

Lavandula.stoechas

These lavenders are not so easy to grow in temperate climates such as the UK because they do not survive our wet winters very well.
They produce dark purple flowers up to 4cm (1�in) long. Impressive but only suitable for very free draining soils. Best suited to being a specimen plant in a pot or tub where soil conditions can be closely controlled.

Lavandula.stoechas Kew Red

Lavandula.dentata
These lavenders are half hardy. They are identified by the leaves which have deep "teeth" up their entire length. The flowers (bracts in truth) are unusually shaped and appear on the ends of very long stems.

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