How to grow Lavender

Lavender hates wet conditions, especially over winter. The image on the left shows lavender growing in the Pennine district, which is a very wet part of the UK, and it looks very bedraggled.

1. You can add horticultural grit (sold at garden centres). If your ground is heavy or becomes waterlogged in winter, you can ameliorate this by adding horticultural grit. Dig a larger planting hole and add grit around the perimeter. Alternatively, you can dig a gravel trench to create a greater area of free-draining soil. There is no guarantee of success. Gardeners in the South and East, with drier gardens and free-draining soil, will be wondering what on earth I am on about, recommending all these trenches and grit. But having grown lavender in a Pennine garden and a garden in the east of England, there is a huge difference in growing conditions.

2. If poor growing conditions prevail, you may be more successful growing lavender in containers, which are always drier, and you can fill them with suitable free-draining compost. If you want lavender as part of the garden border, you can always sink the containers into the border.

3. An excellent alternative to Lavender, which will grow anywhere and is very tough, is Nepeta. It features clouds of soft blue flowers, much loved by bees, and blooms all summer long.

There are varieties of Lavender said to be more tolerant of wetter conditions. Breeders developed Lavender 'Havana' for wetter growing conditions.

I planted it in a wet Pennine garden close to the water table

It did emerge from the winter wet in better shape, so worth a try, and a nice-looking lavender. I found this to be one of the best Lavenders for wet soil.

Available from Suttons are Lavender 'Havana' and a good selection of lavenders.

Lavender is ideal for growing in containers because it prefers drier, free-draining soil and is drought-tolerant.

It is essential to place the container in a sunny spot to ensure lavender gets the benefit of full sun.

As for pot size, it is tempting to put the lavender in a large pot, thinking it will grow into all the space. Plants can fail to thrive if you plant them in an oversized pot. It is better to pot up in stages into a slightly larger pot, then a slightly larger one, and finally, into the eventual large pot.

When a plant is in a container that is too large, over-potting happens. While the plant may sometimes adapt, conditions such as overly wet compost, excessive rainfall, or unfavourable weather often hinder growth. In these circumstances, poor aeration around the roots reduces nutrient uptake, resulting in slow growth and poor performance.

Pot up in two/three stages and keep lavender on the dry side in a sunny spot.

This is Lavandula stoecha, also known as French Lavender and as fathead lavender.

It requires similar growing conditions to English lavender, but can be trickier. Lavender stoecha is more difficult to grow in less-than-ideal conditions and generally it is more tender.

Think of L. stoecha as the English lavender's more sensitive cousin. In perfect conditions, it will grow well in the UK. Those perfect conditions are sunny, well-drained soil which does not retain water, sheltered and not prone to frost, snow or cold winters. The more your garden differs from the perfect conditions, the less cooperative it becomes. Various sources describe Lavender stoecha as both H3 and H4 hardy, but ideal growing conditions determine those ratings. 

Improve growing conditions by growing in containers, which will certainly make the growing medium drier. However, in areas of higher rainfall, it will suffer and also, if there is less sun; container growing cannot overcome all obstacles.

Typically, it grows to around 60 x 60cms and is similar to English lavender. Prune lightly after flowering, or in March before the new growth.