How To Grow Lavender

Lavender belongs to the Lamiaceae family. Basil, rosemary, mint, and sage are all this herb’s relatives. The greyish foliage that is adorned with pops of purple is breathtaking. Learn how to grow lavender and add to the beauty of your home or garden!

The beautiful flowers are usually offered in shades of violet to mauve, but there are pink, blue-white, and blue varieties.

Lavender is among the most sought-after gardens around the globe. It’s delicious in tea, with cake or even in ice cream and of course, butterflies and butterflies it attracts. It’s also excellent for stress relief.

Propagating lavender isn’t difficult. One of the easiest methods of growing lavender is to make cuttings. The ideal time to start cuttings is following the blooming.

Pruning lavender at least two times every year is a great method to keep it healthy and bushy, and there’s nothing wrong with repurposing the cut-offs of regular pruning to make more gorgeous lavender plants.

I’ll explain all you should learn about propagating lavender cuttings. It will also give you detailed step-by-step directions.

Check out How to Grow Basil and Herb Gardening for Beginners for more!

Why lavender?

The scent of lavender is loved worldwide due to its aromatic essential oils, widely used in aromatherapy and the perfume and toiletry industries.

However, the benefits don’t end at that point; they have many ways to use them in the home or garden and attract various pollinators that will simultaneously help the rest of the garden and the natural world.

The flowers are awash in nectar and draw butterflies, bees, hummingbirds, and pollinators. Under ideal growing conditions, the plants can live for up to 20 years.

How to propagate lavender

Unfortunately, the lavender seeds are extremely slow to begin to grow. Buying seedlings is easier to add these lovely plants to your garden.

The good news is that propagating lavender cuttings from cuttings is an easy process that will give many flowering plants in one propagation session. New plants will be available in just a couple of weeks.

Are you convinced that owning more than enough lavender plants is possible?

Soil quality

Lavenders are opposed to soils with low or medium fertility regarding soil nutrients. When the soil becomes overly high in nutrients, this can cause the foliage of the lavender and, consequently, there will be lesser flowers.

Lavender grows best in gardens with chalky soils since chalk provides adequate drainage and tends to be somewhat alkaline.

The lavenders thrive in places where the majority of plants struggle. They encourage gardeners to give them the difficult conditions they need.

Lavenders can thrive in moderately acidic soils. However, they prefer soils that are non-pH neutral (pH 7) or slightly acidic (up to 7.5% pH). 7.5).

Multipurpose compost with amendments of grit and soil can be used to grow lavenders in the context of pH levels, so there is no reason to be concerned when you plant into pots and fill raised beds.

Soil drainage

A soil that can provide adequate drainage can be the main element for cultivating lavenders.

Lavenders originate from the Mediterranean and thrive in full sunlight with minimal rainfall and soils with sandy clay that drain extremely quickly.

It is not necessary to be in a Mediterranean climate to cultivate lavenders. Still, it would be best to replicate the dry, sandy soil conditions to allow the plants to flourish and bloom efficiently.

Lavenders growing in gardens with clay or other cold slow, draining, wet soil are vulnerable to root rot. The lavender won’t last without amending the soil before planting lavender.

If your garden drains slowly or is prone to retain lots of water, there are three options to grow lavender.

When to cut for propagation?

If you’re new to the art of plant propagation, cutting lavender during summer is a great method to begin as they are easy to root and give you a lot of new plants at no cost.

It is also possible to take summer cuttings from many other species, such as rosemary penstemons and roses.

The most suitable type of cut will depend on the kind of lavender you want to use and the time of the year. Softwood cuttings are plentiful during spring, and you can collect more without harming the plant you are cutting.

They are quick to root but aren’t as durable as hardwood cuttings. Softwood cuttings are offered in spring. It is possible to get hardwood cuttings either in autumn or spring.

How to take cuttings from lavender?

Select non-flowered plants from this year’s growth, and ensure they’re free of disease and pests.

It is possible to start lavender by using wood or softwood cuttings. Cuttings of softwood are taken from the soft, flexible edges of the growing plants. Hardwood is denser and more resistant to bending than softwood. When forced to bend, it can snap.

Select side shoots as cuttings and removes them from the stem using small strips of bark or heel, which are still connected.

It’s also advisable to use a mature lavender plant cutting rather than one new or undeveloped one. This way, you’ll be certain that enough energy will allow the cuttings to develop solid roots.

Make sure your knife or garden scissors are sharp. When your knife is worn down, it can break or crush the stem, causing damage to both the cutting and the plant you’re cutting.

Sharp blades cut cleanly into the stem, allowing the rest of the plant to heal rapidly and the cutting to create roots.

Where to cut lavender?

Select non-flowering shoots with an unnaturally woody base, but the tip is soft and green. Your cut should be between 3 and 4 inches long, but the cutting of an older plant may be a bit more.

Once you’ve found the perfect tree, slowly pull the 10cm Stem away from the side and remove it from the plant at the bottom of the stem.

Think about the height of your plant. If your plant is five or six inches high, it is best to be patient before cutting. It is best to leave the amount you’re taking.

Take the lower leaves off

Take all the leaf leaves off the bottom 2 inches (5 centimeters.) of the stem. Next, carefully scrape off the skin of the lower portion of the stem using the help of a knife.

The cut is made with a length of untreated stem that is easily put into the soil. Put the cutting aside while you are preparing the container.

Why use hormone powder?

It isn’t always required for rooting softwood cuttings. This is true for lavender cuttings, too, that will often be rooting without the assistance of a rooting hormone. It will, however, greatly improve the chances of success and reduce the risk of disease-related problems.

The hormone that stimulates root growth is a hormone that stimulates root growth near the point of cutting. This makes the growth of roots more likely it also enhances root growth and gives you healthier plants overall.

The rooting hormone is typically sold in powder form. It’s sold in nurseries for plants and on the internet. This is the powder that I employ.

Always put just a little powder in an additional container before use instead of dipping it straight into the tub to avoid contamination. Place the cut into water and add the rooting hormone before planting.

Please get rid of any powder leftover. Never put it back in the container.

Growing lavender in a pot

When you are rooting cuttings, it’s always best to prepare an own mix of soil instead of make use of garden soil.
It is important to create holes with the help of pencil up to a minimum of 3 inches.
The hormone that helps the root will not be absorbed when you insert the cutting into the soil.
Use 3 to 4 cutting stems in a 7 to 8-inch container size.
Put the soil in a firmer position around them to ensure that the cuttings remain standing straight and level. After that, to ensure the soil may in contact with the cutting stem or not, lightly push the stem upward
Place your pots inside a warm north or west-facing room that receives at least 6-8 hours of light, indirect lighting throughout the day.
Then, gently cover the pot with an open plastic bag secured around the rim using an elastic band.
Take the bag off after the cuttings have developed roots in 4 to six weeks.

Can you grow lavender in water?

Lavender cuttings can be planted in the water quite easily. Place the lavender cuttings in a vase or container of plain, ambient temperature water.

It should fill the vase between half and three-quarters full. It must be ensured that no cutting stem leaves touch the pot water. The wet leaves will turn brown, which is bad for the plant and unattractive for you.

How long do lavender cuttings take to root?

The length of time required is dependent on the kind of lavender cut you’re using and the method you employ to propagate it. It’s only a matter of weeks, though.

Cuttings made of softwood — that come from young plants that are still able to grow can take anywhere from two to four weeks to develop roots. Hardwood cuttings, taken from mature plants — can take up to six weeks but generally are more robust.

Lavender plant care

Feeding the plants with a quarter-strength liquid fertilizer every week is recommended.

You can increase the amount of water you give while your plant grows properly and reduce watering when new growth appears. The lavender prefers drier soil.

The cutting should be placed situated in an area with ample sunlight.

Winter care

The fall cuttings can be placed in their pots and then kept in a protected area protected from frosty temperatures.

The cold-tolerant English varieties can be left outside and covered with around 3-4 inches of straw surrounding the plants.

The cold-tolerant French and Spanish varieties can be transported to an unheated garage or the potting shed should they require.

Transplantation

If you plan to keep the plant in the pot for longer than two to three weeks, you can transfer it to a bigger pot using regular soil that drains easily. Commercial pots contain plenty of nutrients to sustain the plants with no additional feeding.

Mulch

Consider pea gravel or even crushed rock for mulching instead of water-retentive materials such as straw or compost. They can hold too much moisture at the plant’s base.

Keep mulches at least two inches away from the base and around the crown throughout the entire region.

Lavender plant harvesting

For most lavender species, pruning should be done in summer, spring, or after the harvest. It’s crucial to prune your plants at least a couple of months before the winter season begins to avoid breaking and frost from snow.

Regularly trimming twice per year allows your plant to regenerate fresh flowers and keep in good condition for the coming season.

Pruning your lavender

If you’re looking to decorate your garden or home with gorgeous, fragrant flowers, cutting them back is ideal. Now is the time to level up the maintenance of your lavender plant with these three easy steps!

Clean up your spring garden by removing broken or dead pieces and flowers from the plant.
Get a handful of stems in your hands, and then reduce them to two-thirds of the length of a pair of good pruning shears.
It is recommended to shape lavender into a gumdrop-like shape. Please stop at the point that it is uniform all around.

Final thought

Growing lavender from cuttings is simple and is more likely to succeed than cultivating the plants by seeds. By cuttings, it is possible to be confident that your new plants will look exactly similar to the plants that came from them.