How to Grow Lavender in your Garden
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Planting Lavender
Lavender is a versatile garden plant. Attractive scented foliage provides a background for other flowering plants. Many varieties bloom two to three times a year.
Lavender requires good drainage and prefers at least 6 hours of direct sun a day.
Try to plant from spring until early summer. Plants put in the ground in late summer seem to have a harder time surviving the first winter.
How to improve drainage
If you are not sure about the drainage, dig a generous hole and mix the soil with sand before returning the soil mixture to the hole.
Plants or Seeds
Seeds
Let's face it. Most of us like to save money and if you want a field of lavender, planting seeds seems the economical way to go. I have found lavender easy to grow from seed - similar to starting tomato seeds. The seed packages used to recommend that the seed be put in the refrigerator for a week or two before planting, but the seed I have at the moment doesn't state that. Use a sterile potting mixture and when the seedlings are ready to transplant, I would add 1/3 sand to the new potting mixture.
Here are a few things to consider:
L. angustifolias cross pollinate quite easily, so in a package of seeds there can be some differences from plant to plant. By this I mean the flowers may not be all the same color so you may have light purples and darker purples. If you want a border, where all the plants are identical, you are better to purchase the plants you want. L. a. 'Lady' is a small variety bred to produce true from seed.
L.x intermedias are sterile and do not produce seed at all. There is no choice but to take cuttings from your existing plants or purchase plants.
L. stoechas seed is available. Like the L. angustifolias, cross pollination can be a problem. Other lavenders usually grow true from seed, but seed is not often available.
Plants
Even with plants there can be some variation with varieties like L. angustifolia 'Munstead' and L. angustifolia 'Hidcote', which are widely grown and often started from seed.
That said, there is a wide variety of wonderful plants available in sizes from 2" pots to gallon containers.
While mature lavender plants can withstand dry conditions, new plants require water. Treat your new lavenders like geraniums. Water thoroughly, let the soil dry and water thoroughly. The second year, you should find the plants don't need as much water.
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