Linking with lavender

The System

'Linking with Lavender' is an example of a neighbourhood growing scheme with the objective of establishing a good population of plants for pollinators in an urban setting.  As a system it relies on a local community garden taking responsibility, as a growers hub, for propagating and distributing plants in pots to its neighbours.  At the end of the flowering season the pots are collected and returned to the hub to be made ready for the next year.  Costs can be met by a local sponsor, by householder subscription or a time banking scheme.  Of course it is also possible for individuals to purchase plants and pots outright.  The advantages of pot plants is that they can be used to green-up a patio or paved front garden.  Also a pot system ensures that the growing medium is standardised so facilitating comparisons of pollinators between places.

The Plant

Lavender, or rather lavenders, are naturally native to dry, sunny countries. Their habitat begins in Provence, and extends south, all around the Mediterranean.

Like many scented plants, lavender belongs to the Labiatae or mint family, together with thyme, rosemary, hyssop, savory and many other aromatic plants. Three species of lavender exist in the wild, in the south of France, Italy or Spain:

• • Lavandula latifolia or spike lavender;

  • Lavandula angustifolia or true lavender, also called fine, medicinal and English lavender;

  • and Lavandula stoechas, also known as French lavender.

Spike lavender

Spike lavender grows on stony chalk-based soils at altitudes below 600 metres. Its flowers are at their best in late summer. The tightly packed bracts on a central spike contain tiny flowers, light mauve or pale blue, with grey calyxes. The leaves are large, grey and scented, and the fairly small clumps smell strongly camphorous. This rarely cultivated lavender is usually picked wild and distilled for its essence, which is used in aromatherapy. In the past it was used as an ingredient in oil paints and in the days when paints were made in the studio, artists like Titian and Veronese used lavender oil. In fact, its presence or absence in pigment analysis is a means of dating a painting.

True lavender

True lavender grows in full sunlight on well drained ground and on limestone outcrops 700 metres above sea level, clambering up the slopes of Mediterranean mountains as high as 1,400 metres. Its preferred home is Provence in France, but it also grows in northern Spain and Piedmont in Italy. The woody stock roots firmly in the soil and produces a low clump bearing narrow, linear grey leaves. It comes into flower in mid-range altitudes towards the end of June, but at altitudes above 1,200 metres this is pushed back to the beginning of August. The inflorescence takes the form of short spikes bearing rings of dozens of tiny flowers that in themselves are minuscule. They only have a single corolla whose upper lip is drawn back. Their colour varies from pale blue, through mauve to violet. The plant's precious substance, its essential oil, is mostly contained in the calyx, in cells entirely protected by microscopic hairs. This is what enables the plant to lie for a few days after cutting without this in any way affecting or altering its essence.

The two species interbreed, due to cross-pollination by bees, producing L. x intermedia, known as lavandin.

These hybrid plants grow vigorously and bear many of the characteristics of their parent plants. However, their essential oil is less refined and always more camphorous. It took a long time to realize that the plants were sterile hybrids that do not produce seeds and therefore need to be reproduced from cuttings.

French lavender

L. stoechas, French, tufted, Moorish or butterfly lavender, is the only variety that grows well in acid soil. It grows in France in the Maures and Esterel mountains and on islands of the Levant (also known as the Ffyeres), but is also found in north-eastern Spain, Greece and Turkey. It flowers once at the end of winter and again in autumn, producing square purple spikes topped with small violet leaves that look like two little wings. It gets its name of 'papillon' or butterfly lavender from these leaves, and there are other grey leaves all along its short stem.

In Spain, apart from the naturally occurring spike and true lavender in the north-east and the lavandin cultivated on the high arid plains of Valladolid north of Madrid, there are three wonderful wild species that grow naturally in the south of the country:

• • L. lanata (woolly lavender),

  • L. dentata (another French lavender) and L. multifida (French lace lavender).

L. lanata forms a low cushion of ash-white, woolly leaves. It produces dark violet spikes at the end of summer. The leaves of L. dentata are light green, with finely serrated edges and the plant produces light blue flowers that last for most of the year. L. multifida, with highly aromatic, finely indented leaves, presents violet-blue flowers from March to November.

Island species

Species of lavender have evolved in Madeira and the Canary Islands, L. pinnata (Spanish mountain lavender), L. canariensis and L. minutolii.

L. pinnata has silver-grey lobed leaves and L. minutolii has feather-like leaves. Gardeners have been able to cross them with northern plants to create new hybrid varieties growing in the gardens with the coldest European climates.

Lavendula canariensis

The Pterostachys Lavenders

Pterostachys Lavenders get their name from the "winged spikes" in direct reference to how their flowers are borne atop their stems. These Lavenders either do not have as pronounced a fragrance nor the sweet true fragrance associated with the English varieties but are still members of the genus Lavandula. These Lavender plants are still well worth growing for their beauty and the variety they bring to a Lavender flower garden.

The following are Pterostachys Lavenders:

Lavandula abrotanoides- Also known as southernwood Lavender. This plant has many branched leaves and divided foliage. It is aromatic but not of the Lavender smell you are acquainted with.

Lavandula buchii- Violet Lavender blue flowers with a pleasantly aromatic scent.

Lavandula burmanni- This pterostachys Lavender plant has a camphor like aroma.

Lavandula canariensis- A plant that originated in the Canary Islands bearing dark Lavender blue flowers and has dark green foliage. Picture of Lavandula canariensis.

Lavandula heterophylla- This Lavender has a camphor and Lavender mix when it comes to it's aroma. Also known as Sweet Lavender it is a very large hearty grower.

Lavandula multifida- The term multifida means "much divided" in Latin. This frost tender plant has lovely ferny foliage and bears dark Lavender blue flowers on trident or "winged" stems. See a picture of a Lavandula multifida flower.

Lavandula maroccana- Lovely electric blue flower color makes this plant desirable.

Lavandula pinnata- This also goes by the name of Jagged Lavender or Lace Lavender and is quite similar in appearance to that of multifida. The blooms are much bluer in color and the foliage is very lacey and delicate looking.

Lavandula pubescens- This Lavender has slightly hairy fern-like leaves

Today botanists have listed more than 30 varieties of lavender.

Garden lavenders

Lavender  is a robust and very tolerant plant. Ideally it likes full sun, alkaline soil and good drainage, and will fail if kept dormant in cold water. With regards positioning, lavender does best when exposed to full sun for at least 6 hours a day. A pot can be moved with the sun.  In summer it will respond to some watering and plants in pots could be lost through underwatering.  It is long-lived, developing woody branches, and its flowers become sparser and sparser in proportion to the woody growth. The secret of keeping a lavender bush in good shape is to clip it in spring, but not cutting into the old wood, or it may not survive. Then, after it has flowered, cut back to the leaves with perhaps a third trim in October to keep the shape. With this treatment it will hold a tight ball.  There are different types, different varieties and different colours to choose.

The two most common varieties are L.a. 'Munstead' and L.a.'Hidcote'.  'Hidcote' is a deeper mauve and a bit more vigorous than the paler, bluer, faster growing 'Munstead'.

Lavandula lanata, or woolly lavender, makes a dome of soft woolly leaves, which then throws up spikes twice as high again, topped with purple flowers.

Lavandula stoechas, or French lavender, has unusual mauve bracts on top of the flower spikes and very narrow leaves that grow markedly up the stems.

L. dentata has leaves that are prettily ribbed or crimped and the flowers are also topped with bracts, although of a paler, blue colour. It is not entirely hardy so needs protecting during a cold winter or bringing indoors.

Lavandula latifolia is an upright species, with broader leaves, and is crossed with L. angustifolia to make Lavandula x intermedia, which is sometimes known as Old English lavender, and this has produced perhaps the biggest type of lavender you can buy called 'Grappenhall'.

All the intermedias will clip to a good, rounded shape and self-seed in and around gardens, giving rise to suggestions of 'wild' plants.  This behaviour is increasing in the south of Britain and may be an indicator of climate change.

Lavender will grow from seed under glass as well as take easily from cuttings. Cuttings are best taken either from non-flowering stems as softwood cuttings in May, or as semi-hardwood cuttings in late summer from new growth. Overwinter the rooted cuttings in a cold greenhouse or cold frame and plant out in spring.

Lavender is prone to cuckoo spit, the white frothy liquid caused by the immature nymph stage of froghoppers. It does little harm and the best way to get rid of it is to spray with water. If the weather is particularly wet, you may get grey mould or botrytis. Cut back any affected bits.

https://www.mountainvalleygrowers.com/lavendercareandtips.htm