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Lavender

Lavender

Lavender (Lavandula) is a welcome addition to any garden, with its beautiful flowers and
wonderful aroma. Lavender is a Mediterranean herb, so it thrives in hot, sunny locations. A perennial,
lavender grows from 1 to 3 feet (0.3 to 0.9 m) tall.
Introduction
Mr. John Doe

Head Director

Description

Optimal Time/Temperature for Germination:
There are many species of lavender available for home growing. Whether they flourish or fail will depend on the conditions in the area in which you live. The types of lavender sold at your local nursery or garden center will usually be compatible with your area’s conditions, though you can check the label on the plant or ask a nursery employee if you are unsure. Lavender plants grow in hardiness zones 5 through 10. Munstead and Hidcote Lavender are two especially hardy varieties. The best time of year to grow lavender is fall. Lavender requires low to moderate rainfall and moderate sunlight to thrive when planted, so October’s less intense sun and moderate rainfall make it an optimal season for planting lavender.
Optimal Soil Conditions:
Choose a spot in your garden where the plant will receive full sun for at least 8 hours a day. The spot should also be as sheltered as possible to protect the plant from wind. Dampness is the enemy of lavender, so your most important consideration should be to choose a location where the soil is well-drained. The soil should be light, fluffy and well-aerated for optimum lavender-growing conditions. Lavender grows best in slightly alkaline conditions, with an ideal soil pH level of between 6.7 to 7.3. If necessary, you can add a little lime to increase alkalinity (The amount you add will depend on your type of soil and the test recommendations.) To improve soil’s drainage, you can mix in a little silica sand before planting. Silica sand offers many benefits: it drains well, does not cement, and is very reflective, which helps reflect sunlight onto the plant. This is especially helpful in colder and wetter climates. Alternatively, try planting your lavender on a raised bed, at the top of a slope or beside a wall to maximize drainage. If growing in a pot, consider setting the pot upon a bed of stones or gravel to optimize drainage. If growing in the yard, prepare the soil to receive the lavender and optimize its growing conditions by placing two heaped handfuls of 1-inch (2.5-cm) round stone, along with a 1/2 cup (118 mL) total of lime, well-composted manure and bone meal into the hole. Mix well, then cover this blend with a light layer of soil. The stone will help with drainage, the lime will alkalize the soil, while the bone meal and fertilizer will help to get your lavender plant off to a good start.
Seed Planting Depth, Spacing and Procedure:
While it is possible to grow lavender from seeds, this is not recommended as the seeds require scarification and chilling and can take nearly a month to germinate. Best grown from transplants – Lightly prune your lavender before planting. This will give the plant shape, ensure good air circulation through the stems, encourage new growth, and prevent the center of the stems from becoming woody, which is a common problem with lavender. Good airflow is especially important if you live in a more humid climate. You should water the lavender plant in the pot you bought it in, at least an hour before planting. This will ensure that the roots are hydrated, but not damp, before going into the soil. Use a trowel to dig a hole in the location you have chosen for your lavender. The hole should just be deep enough and wide enough to contain the roots when you spread them out. Remove the lavender plant from its nursing pot and gently shake to remove any excess soil from the roots. The lavender should be planted into its new home with bare roots, to ensure it quickly and easily adapts to its new growing environment. Carefully place the lavender plant into its prepared spot and rest it on a layer of soil slightly above the stone blend you mixed earlier. Make sure the roots do not come in direct contact with the blend. Fill in any extra space around and above the lavender’s roots with soil, lightly patting it into place around the base of the stems. If you’re planting more than one lavender plant, leave about 36 inches (91.4 cm) between each plant. This will guarantee good air circulation and allow the lavender space to grow. If you’re planting the lavender in a pot or container, choose a very large pot — the root system for lavender is much larger than the actual plant.
Best Companion Plants and Plants that Hinder:
Many gardeners have reported that gophers leave all of their lavender plants well alone. They may well dislike the fragrance. Do not plant mint, camillias, hostas, or impatiens nearby. Good companion plants are echinacea, roses, yarrow, sedum, alliums, African daisy, zinnia, gaillardia, rosemary, thyme, sage, and oregano.

Growing Instructions

Crop Maintenance

You should prune your lavender plant about once a year, preferably in spring before the new growth begins. You should prune about one third to one half of the plant when it shows new spring growth. Use pruning shears or hedge trimmer to achieve a tidy, rounded shape. New growth looks like long, thin legs sprouting from the leafing branches. The plant will also begin to form blooms. This is also a good time to fertilize the plant. Pruning your lavender will encourage new growth and stop the plant from breaking open and sprawling. Just make sure not to over-prune your lavender as this may kill new growth altogether.
Moisture Requirements & Solutions:
As mentioned before, dampness is the enemy of lavender and if the roots of the plant become excessively damp, it will kill the plant quicker than any drought or freezing temperatures. In fact, over-watering new lavender plants in spring is the main cause of growth failure. Once the lavender is planted, deeply water it every 7 to 10 days. To achieve the proper level of watering, make sure that the soil dries between each watering, however, the plant itself should not be allowed to become dehydrated. If you are growing lavender in a Northern climate, you will water the plant very sparingly until the summer when temperatures can skyrocket and dry out the soil. You will then want to begin watering the plant every 7 to 10 days. If you’re growing lavender in a pot, make sure the pot has excellent drainage to prevent water from pooling at the bottom.
Weeding Needs & Solutions:
You can prevent weeds from growing around the base of your lavender plant by covering the soil with a thin layer of mulch. Use a light-colored mulch, such as coarse sand, gravel, or oyster shells. Mulch will also help to protect the plant’s roots from winter frosts. Do not use wood mulch, which will retain moisture and can lead to root rot.
Feeding Needs/Optimal Natural Fertilizers:
Lavender is a fairly low-maintenance plant and will only need to be fertilized once a year, if that. Use a light top dressing of mixed compost and bone meal, sometime in early spring. An ideal time to fertilize your newly planted lavender is after the first watering. Allow the soil to dry, then apply the fertilizer.
Pests, Diseases & Solutions:
The two most common pests that affect the lavender plant are whiteflies and spittle bugs. Both can be removed by hand or with a steady stream of water. Check the lavender periodically for reinfestation. Aphids can spread a virus known as the Alfalfa mosaic virus which affects growth and blooming of the plant. Remove any affected foliage and burn it. Be sure to sterilize all gardening tools with disinfectant, chlorine bleach, or isopropyl alcohol to stop the spread of the virus, too.
When to Harvest/Number of days to maturity:
The best time to harvest fresh lavender is when the bottom flowers of each stem are just beginning to open. This is when the lavender is at its most vibrant and fragrant. Cut the flowers at the base of the stems, near the foliage. Then, Prune the plant back to the new growth leaves. This may encourage your plant to bloom a second time, in the fall.
How to Harvest:
If all or most of the blooms have opened on the lavender plant, then it is too late to harvest for herbal purposes. If you plan to dry the lavender, harvest when about3/4 of the blooms have opened. The best time of day to harvest lavender is in the early morning. This will give you the highest concentration of oils inside the plant so your lavender harvest smells or tastes great. If you wait for the later part of the day, the sun may evaporate some of the oils inside the plant. They’ll still smell good, but they won’t be as potent as they were earlier in the day.
Optimal Storage temperature and conditions:
Run your lavender flowers and stalks undercool water, then submerge them in water to remove any dirt or pests. Lay them out on a paper towel and pat them dry to clean them off. Rinsing your lavender is super important if you’re going to eat it. If you’re using it for decorative purposes or you’re drying it out, you don’t need to worry about it as much. To dry lavender, bundle about a hundred of the flowers together and tie the bundle with a rubber band. Hang the bundle indoors in a warm, dark and dry location, suspended upside down from a nail, for about 10 to 14 days. You can use a food dehydrator, hang it upside down to dry in a cool, dark spot in your home, or dry it outside on metal screens in the sun. If you do sun-dry it, it may lighten the flowers just a bit as they dry out. If you opt to hang your lavender to dry, use twine or twist ties to gather the stalks in bunches and hang the bunches upside down off of hooks or nails. Retie the stocks as necessary to keep them together, since they will shrink while drying. Drying your lavender indoors can take a few weeks, while drying them in the sun only takes a few days. If you wish to remove the dried lavender from the woody stems, you can roll the bundle on a metal screen placed over a bucket. This is called “garbling” the lavender. You can use a plastic bag, a glass jar, or a plastic container with a lid to keep your lavender fresh. Seal it up tight so that air can’t get into it before you put it away. Make sure that your lavender is really dry before you put it away! Storing wet lavender can cause mold to develop, which will ruin the scent of your lavender. Dried lavender usually keeps its scent for about 1 season. Storing the lavender away from sun and heat will help it last as long as possible, and it will preserve the natural flavor and scent of the flowers as well. You can store your lavender in your kitchen pantry, a cabinet, or the basement (as long as it doesn’t get below freezing). If you’re keeping your lavender fresh, you can fill up a vase with water, then put your bundle init. This isn’t a long-term solution, but it can keep your lavender fresh for a few days until you’re ready to use it.
Optimal Preserving Procedures:
Seed Saving:
To collect seeds while drying, you can Place or tie a brown paper bag around hanging lavender stalks to catch any seeds that drop out. Shake the lavender in the bag, thrash it or rub it to release seeds after several days of drying if enough seeds have not already fallen out. Separate the small, dark lavender seeds from other plant parts using a screen through which the seeds will pass but larger plant parts get caught or by blowing the plant material gently away from the seeds. Transfer the seeds to an envelope or lidded jar and label with information about the parent lavender plants and the collection date. Store the seeds in a cool, dark and dry place until planting.

Harvest and Storage

Notes

Be careful when cooking with lavender. Too much in your food can taste a bit like perfume, so go slowly at first. To decorate your house with lavender, place the flowers & roots in a vase without water,otherwise, the flowers fall off faster and makes the stems mushy.

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