No. Growing lavender plants (Lavandula spp) is rather simple.
It is an herb that thrives when planted in well-drained soil and given access to full sunlight and can endure heat, drought, and wind to a great extent without suffering any negative effects.
Fragrant, with breathtaking color, gray-green leaves, and long-lasting blooms it makes a fantastic addition to any garden.
There are many uses for lavender too. You can simply enjoy its beauty or gather it up and dry it for use in a potpourri, as an aromatic decoration, or in cooking.
Despite the name, not all lavender plants are purple. Some come in a range of beautiful pastel tones like rose, white, pale pink, violet-blue, and yellow. Knowing this, you might want to think about planting several different types. Why not surprise your neighbors who might not know that lavender comes in any color but one.
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Hardiness of Lavender Plants
English lavender plants (Lavandula angustifolia) originated in southern Europe, but also flourish in Mediterranean-like climates.
It can be placed in low-quality soils and is highly drought-tolerant, which means that it is one of the most robust plants.
Since all lavender, regardless of type requires well-drained soil when planted, you might find it a good idea to plant your lavender in containers or raised beds.
It is best if lavender can receive full sunlight daily. Other than that lavender needs little extra care.
Maintenance And Herbs Like Lavender
While there are many benefits to be derived from growing lavender besides what’s been mentioned above – it attracts birds and butterflies for one thing, and it has the additional advantage of repelling deer.
One of the best things about this perennial is that it is a low-maintenance plant.
It’s not in the least fussy or demanding about being kept in precisely the right conditions like other plants can be. It will last for several years if kept under the proper conditions.
Nurse it along when you first plant it, but once it takes root and begins to grow, there isn’t all that much you’ll need to do for it.
Be sure to keep the soil around your plants moist, but be very careful about over-watering. This is a case where more is not better.
The fact of the matter is that most issues that come to light when cultivating lavender occur because the soil is poorly drained.
This will cause root rot or even crown rot. Another good thing about lavender is that it is not normally vulnerable to pests or diseases.
However, because lavender seeds tend to germinate quite slowly, and the plants themselves also grow slowly, it is faster and easier to simply purchase your plants from a garden center.
Lavender is an excellent choice if you love gardening but find yourself in a constant battle to find time for it, or if you just want to fill in certain parts of your garden with a colorful, useful, and aromatic plant.
Pruning Lavender Plants and Stems
If the stems of your lavender plants should become woody with the maturing of the plant, don’t worry because there is a solution.
What you need to do is to wait till the spring, then prune it back to about half its height.
This will encourage new growth and increased flowering.
Moreover, plants that remained unpruned will begin to sprawl, which causes a hole to be left in the center.
During the summertime, clip off the faded or dead blooms to hasten the development of more blooms.
Check Soil pH
If you’re feeling ambitious and want to ensure that your lavender will remain in good health, you can check the pH of your soil. If your soil has too much acid your lavender will not make it.
The plants will look fine from the beginning, but once a few years have passed, you will see that plants have begun dying off seemingly at random.
Add some lime to your soil to help your plants feel better. Determining if your soil is too high in acidity is not all that difficult.
Just purchase a soil testing kit from your local garden center and you can have your answer that same day.
General Advice About Lavender
- 1. Spacing – Lavender plants should be placed in the ground with about 18 to 24 inches between them. Besides providing great drainage, the soil should also be loose. Lavender needs lots of room to grow.
- 2. Weed Removal – Keep your eye on the ground surrounding the lavender plants and immediately remove any weeds you notice before beginning to seed or beginning to spread vegetatively. Although a sturdy plant, lavender is not able to compete very well with weeds and will experience ill effects if weeds are permitted to take away its moisture, nutrients, and sunlight.
- 3. Stems – Spring is the time when you should cut back the stems on your lavender plants slightly. This is when new growth is taking place and will lead to the plants branching out and having a thicker appearance. What you have to do to be successful at this is to make each of the cuts above a node so that the plant is forced to branch out and don’t remove more than just a few inches from each stem tip.
- 4. Re-potting – If you have lavender plants that are growing in containers, you should re-pot them yearly, or more often if you see that the plant roots have become so long that they are growing out of the drain holes of the container, or it looks as if the plant is becoming sickly.
When you go to re-pot it, you might be surprised at how the roots have crowded together, even if the plant hasn’t seemed to be growing all that much.
When all is said and done, lavender is a wonderful plant with few enemies in the world of pests and diseases. Easy to grow and with many ways to use it this is one herb that surely won’t disappoint you.
With its simple maintenance requirements and adaptable nature, it’s well worth your time and effort to cultivate.
Plus, its beauty and fragrance capture hearts and can transform both your garden and home into extraordinary paradises of sensual delight.
