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Today's show is all about Lavender; this is a plant I know reasonably well because we grow a lot of it, and I wanted to share with you just how incredible this plant is.
I'll share its history, the difference among the species, growing tips if you're interested in growing a plant or two.
Its exceptional medicinal properties and at the end of this posting, I'll give you some simple recipes to get you started.
Lavender is one of the most versatile plants I’ve ever come across. How many plants do you know of that can do all this?
Culinary – cooking, baking to beverages
Crafting
Medicinal and aromatherapy properties
Bath and Body products
Pet care products
Landscaping because its drought tolerant
Pest control – Which originally how lavender got so popular.
In the Middle Ages, lavender was used for its insecticidal properties. They would scatter it on the flowers of castles and sickrooms as a disinfectant and deodorize.
In China, it was used as a cure-all using a medicinal oil called “White Flower Oil.”
In wartime, lavender was used as an ingredient in smelling salts and disinfect wounds.
Other Historical Uses Include
It was thought to have aphrodisiac properties and surprise! It's still on the aphrodisiac list today! It's true. I've heard several women whisper how they feel after using my lavender products. ❤️ 🌹
It was used to embalm corpses
Cure animals of lice
Tamed Lyons and tigers
Repelled mosquitoes (and it still does!)
An ingredient for snuff
Flavoring for vinegars, jellies and salads
Medicinally, lavender was used to treat headaches, hysteria, nervous palpations, hoarseness, palsy, toothaches, sore joints, apoplexy, colic, coughs, and rumbling digestive systems.
Member Of The Mint Family
Lavender is a member of the Mint Family or – Labiatae – a family of flowering plants that are frequently aromatic. The word lavender comes from the Latin verb, lavare, which means “to wash” or “to bathe.”
Large commercial lavender operations are native to the mountainous regions of countries bordering the western half of the Mediterranean region and Europe. But, good news for us, lavender is now grown in all parts of the world.
There are approximately 45 species of lavender with hundreds of various genotypes or what I call cultivators, which now makes it possible to grow this beautiful plant in just about every climate. For simplicity, I'm only going to mention four of the most popular varieties.
Which Lavender I Right For You?
Which Lavender is right for you? That depends on the climate you live in and the soil. Also, depending on where you live in the world, the lavender descriptions change.
So I don’t confuse you, I’m using US descriptions for lavender – if you live across the pond from us here in the US or Australia, you’re lavenders descriptions will differ slightly – know, we’re all talking about the same plants.
So, what’s the difference between English, French, and Spanish lavender?
English Lavender
English (or Lavendula Angustifolia) is the most widely cultivated of the lavenders. Its also called “true lavender”. It has many cultivators that have various colors – white, pink, to dark purples and blues.
This variety can be started from seed, while for others, it's better to use cuttings and root them as starter plants.
English Lavender can be grown in colder climates and containers.
English – lavenders are mostly grown for their medicinal and culinary properties.
French Lavender
French Lavender or L. Dentata is also known as “toothed lavender.” It's not as hardy as English – Lavender Angustifolia – it cant tolerate colder climates, unlike other lavender varieties. French does well up to zone 8.
French Lavender has the same flower structure as the English, but it has a longer stems. English tends to be smaller compact plants, and the French can grow 3 feet wide and tall.
The French lavender has the most extended blooming times than the other lavenders and is primarily grown in Spain and warmer regions of the world.
For scent – French – L. Dentata varieties don't compare to the English – Lavender Angustifolia species if you want to grow lavender for the scent stick with the English types.
Spanish Lavender
The next lavender species is Spanish Lavender or L. Stoechas. Things get confusing, depending on where you live. Stoechas is a French Lavender and referred to as such in some parts of the world. But here in the US, we call it Spanish Lavender. Depending on where you live, this lavender may be referred to as L. Stoechas or French Lavender.
Spanish lavender flowers are a little different looking than the English and French. It has lance-shaped leaves at the top of the bud. Think of it as having little bunny ears. They come in different colors, and some have beautiful dark purple flowers that are stunning in one's garden.
Their scent is not as strong as the Lavender Angustifolia or English lavenders. These lavenders are cultivated for their beautiful flowers.
Spanish lavenders grow well in acid soils in hot, dry climates, for example, the Mediterranean. Here in the Northeast, we consider Spanish lavenders as annuals, unlike English and some French cousins, which are grown as perennials.
If you live in the United States Southwest, Spanish Lavender may be the perfect lavender for you.
Lavandin
The fouth lavender species I'll discuss is a hybrid, lavandin. Also known as Lavendula. x-intermedia . This plant is a cross between Lavender Angustifolia (an English Lavender) and lavender Latifolia (a Portuguese Lavender). These plants generally have a longer stem and bloom later than the Angustifolia's or English lavenders.
It's important to note that Lavendula. x-intermedia are sterile plants. Meaning they don't produce seeds for reproduction. So if you want to grow lavender from seed, English, French, and Spanish (with a few exceptions of other species not discussed today) are your only options.
To reproduce Lavendins Lavendula. x-intermedia, they must be propagated. Meaning, growers take small cuttings from a mother plant and root them in some growing medium.
Note on starting plants from seed: Be aware there is a low germination rate for starting English and French lavenders from seed. I recommend you buy starter plants and propagate cuttings.
Hundreds Of Cultivators
There are hundreds of different cultivators in this group that are popular in commercial nursery production. Lavendula. x-intermedia varieties are a favorite commercial plant for essential oil production.
I mostly grow English and Lavendula. x. intermedia because they do well in my area. I have some plants that are over 20 years old. But they are woody and miss shaped from years of heavy snowpacks.
Shopping For Lavender
If you're shopping for lavender plants, it's essential to know the type of plants your local nursery sells.
I’ve found some plant sellers are not as informed with lavender as they should be. Last year a customer came to me at the farmers market with a lovely lavender plant in hand. The vendor told her the plant was an annual, which surprised me. It didn’t look like a French or Spanish Lavender. A quick search of the name of the cultivator on my smartphone told me it was English. It was a Lavender Angustifolia and indeed would do very well in our area.
So when shopping for lavenders, if the plant doesn’t give the Latin species name, google the cultivator’s name on the plant identification tag. You should be able to find out what species a cultivator comes from pretty quickly.
Examples On How To Identify Lavender
When shopping look at the plant tag. If the tag says Lavender ….
- Lavender – Grosso – its a Hybrid, Lavandula. x-intermedia. It does well in diverse climates, including colder and wetter zones.
- Lavender – Munstead is a Lavandula angustifolia (or English LavenderLavender). It should do well in colder and wetter climates.
- Lavender – Madrid Blue is Lavandula Stoechas (or Spanish Lavender). It only does well in hot, dry climates. If you live in a colder wetter climate, stick it in a pot and grow it annually.
- Lavender – Linda Ligon is a Lavendula dentate (or French Lavender). It does well in hot, dry climates but can tolerate up to zone 8.
Just remember – there are other lavender species out there. I’m only mentioning the four most common plants in this podcast. See the resource list below for recommended books on Lavender.
Growing Lavender
For this section, I’m talking mostly of Lavender Angustifolia (English lavender) and Lavendula. x-intermedia’s (lavandin hybrids.) These lavenders are the most commonly sold and grown commercially globally, with some exceptions, of course. The Spanish Lavender or Stoechas I would plant and care the same way as the English or hybrid plants.
Tip 1: Lavender must have full sun – that’s ten or more hours of daylight.
Tip 2: Lavender is a drought-tolerant plant and can thrive in areas where other plants cant. It prefers dry sandy, well-drained soil.
It cannot survive in moist, rich organic soil.
The ground needs to be well aerated.
It does not like to have “wet feet” and are lavenders are susceptible to root rot and other fungal diseases.
Some growers prefer to grow in rocky soil.
Tip 3: It prefers a ph of 6.5 – 7. If your ph is low, add dolomite lime and a little organic compost to level Ithe ph out.
Tip 4: Spacing – How close together should you plant your lavender. If you’re using it as a garden accent, determine which lavender species you are growing. Lavender Angustafolia’s (i.e., English) need about 30 inches of room. These plants tend to be low growing but spread wide.
Lavandins or Lavendula. x-intermedia (the hybrids) grow high and wide. Give them 36 inches between each plant.
Tip 5: To mulch or not to mulch – that is the question? Lavender does not like to be crowded by weeds, or in hotter drier climates watering a will be needed. It will be a personal decision and dependent on your environment and how much upkeep you want to do.
We grow some munstead (an English variety) in landscape rock, and they do well—the rest of the munstead's and grosso's we mulched. We have very dry sandy, rocky soil to begin with, so the mulching helps with keeping moisture around the plant when we go weeks without rain.
Lavenders are drought-resistant plants, so we're lucky it rains enough in the northeast; we don't have to worry about irrigation during the year's driest parts.
If you live in a hotter drier climate, putting in irrigation and mulching would probably be a good idea. But for those mid to northern states, where everything is flowering and green, I wouldn't put in irrigation but mulch instead in sandy, rocky soil. The other benefit of mulch is that it helps keep the ph down.
There are other ways to maintain your lavender to keep them high and dry other than mulching.
Raised mounds – and plant on top of the mound. It is done in wetter climates.
Row Plastic – Put down row plastic, then poke a hole in the plastic and plant your lavender. Then grow grass in between the rows and mow when it gets high.
Plant in landscape rock
Weed barrier over dirt, then mulch or use landscape rock
Tip 6: Lavenders can be tight woody shrubs and need to be pruned to keep their shape and encourage growth.
Year 1 of planting: remove new flowers and give your plant a good haircut, using good pruning shears. I use a small handheld battery-powered sheers. A link to Amazon will be below in the resource section.
Cutting promotes growth and helps keep the plant the shape you want or need. By year two, your lavender will have doubled in size.
Tip 7: Year 3 and beyond, your lavender will continue to add new growth after pruning – but prune wisely!
Pruning too severely will kill your plant. Never prune old wood unless its dead
Don't prune in cold temperatures – wait until ground temps are above 50 degrees.
Tip 8: Understand the type of lavender you are growing and its size and uses.
English lavenders are smaller growing and from small mounds. They are perfect for edging along walkways.
Tall-growing lavenders such as Lavindins make excellent hedges, and when their flowers reach their tallest, they sway in the wind, similar to tall grasses.
What Do With Your Lavender
Congratulations! It's your 2nd year, and your lavenders haven't died! Its time to harvest your stems, and you ask yourself NOW WHAT?
Well, that depends on the type of lavender you planted. Hopefully, you did your homework, and you know the kind of plants you have, and it will be easy. Here is a list of lavenders that are perfect for what use.
First up!
Culinary Lavender
English Lavenders or Lavendula Augustifolia are generally preferred for culinary purposes because these varieties have a sweeter taste and little camphor flavor. Some lavenders are lighter and sweeter than others, so experiment and grow various them versus just 1 type.
Medicinal Lavender
French Lavenders or Lavendula dentate – are best for making bath and body products, hydrosols, essential oils, sachets, and floral arrangements. These lavenders have high camphor content and are better for their medicinal properties, such as aromatherapy.
Spanish Lavenders or Stoechas – are best for landscaping. They are too bitter for culinary uses and don’t have a strong enough scent for medicinal or for crafts. However, they make any garden or landscape stunning!
And finally…
Lavendula x-intermedia – the hybrid. Not recommended for culinary uses as it has the highest camphor content of all the lavenders. It is too bitter to use.
However, it’s perfect for cosmetics, perfumes, hydrosols, essential oils, and some floral arrangements. I grow this variety for its high essential oil content and ease of drying and de-budding for my bath and body products.
Recap
– We know lavender has been around for hundreds of years.
– We have an idea of where and what types of plants to grow.
– We have an idea of what to do with your lavender after you harvest it.
But the big question that I get the most of why does it make me feel so calm?
I’m glad you asked! Lavender has excellent medicinal properties. So before I get into this information, I need to be clear –
I am not a doctor, The information I’m presenting here is for, and educational purposes only, and in no way am I diagnosing and or treating anything. If you have questions about your health, please see a licensed medical professional in your area.
For those who want to do a deep dive on herbs, the reference manual I’m using is David Hoffmann’s book, Medicinal Herbalism: The Science and Practice of Herbal Medicine.
Lavender’s herbal actions are carminative, antispasmodic, relaxing nervine, antidepressant, rubefacient, emmenagogue, and hypotensive.
And, if you don’t know what I mean by “herbal actions” download the document above.
Lavender has been known to relieve headaches related to stress. It may also be useful in clearing depression if used in conjunction with other remedies and promote natural sleep.
Its properties are also known as a gentle nervous system tonic, which may treat states of nervous weakness and exhaustion.
Safety issues: No side effects or drug interactions have been reported when used correctly. But – remember, overuse of anything can have a negative side effect.
For example, water has no side effects, but if you overdrink more than what your body can handle, it will have dire consequences. It’s the same with anything – too much of a good thing can have adverse effects.
In the herbal preparations section, Hoffman states that drinking lavender tea three times a day is beneficial.
However, he discourages anyone from taking lavender essential oil internally. So only use fresh or dried culinary lavender to make your tea. Don’t add any essential oils.
Lavender essential oil should never be ingested or directly used on the skin. It can be added to baths or added to a carrier oil and then rubbed on the skin, but ingested or directly snorted in the nose.
Now that we understand the different ways you can use lavender –
Lavender Tea Recipe
Here is a basic lavender tea recipe from David Hoffmann’s book page 562.
1 cup boiling water
1 teaspoon of dried culinary lavender buds.
Pour boiling water over buds. Cover and let steep for 10 minutes. Can have approx. 3 x a day.
Roasted Chicken Lavender Recipe
Lavender All-Purpose Lavender Clearner
2 Tablespoons Distilled White Vinegar
1 teaspoon Borax
Distilled Water
¼ cup liquid castile soap
10 drops of lavender essential oil
5 drips of lemon essential oil or 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice.
1. Mix the white vinegar and the borax together in a 16 oz bottle.
Fill the bottle three quarters full of hot distilled water.
Shake well until borax is dissolved.
2. Add the liquid castile soap and the essential oils to the solution and shake well. Use as you would any other all-purpose cleaner.
Reference and Books Section
Please note that many of these links are affiliate links and we earn a small commission if these links are used. There is no extra cost to you. The money earned will help support the administrative and web hosting fees charged to keep this podcast on the internet. We thank you for any support you can offer.
Lavender Cookbook, Essential Lavender Recipe Sampler, by Jennifer C. Petersen
Farm to Bath Lavender Products
Thompson Street Farm teas and other products made from herbs
Lavender Plant Trimmer – Battery powered
Show's Sponsor Info
Farm to Bath| Our philosophy is to live a locally focused naturally beautiful life, a lifestyle choice that is infused into the products we make. The ingredients are locally grown and/or acquired and are as basic and pure as nature itself. Each bar is full of fragrant aromatics that provide a rich moisturizing lather with no artificial colors or preservatives added – naturally beautiful!
My Garden Journal: A How To Garden Book For Kids| Gardening is a learned skill – everyone has to start somewhere, and a journal provides the best way to improve your gardening skills to ensure more successes and fewer failures.
The intent of this journal is to simultaneously teach basic gardening techniques while providing a place to record your journey with important information about the “how, when, and where” to grow food and flowers.
There are suggestions on themed gardens such as “A Harry Potter Garden”, “A Young Chef's Garden”, or a “Monarch Butterfly Superhero Garden” for budding Naturalists and places to either sketch or photograph your plants to remember their appearance for the next growing season.
You'll be amazed at how much you will learn by journaling about your garden!
Music
A special thank you to Gene Tullio for writing and producing this music. He has given me special permission to use this song for the show.
Gene's music can be downloaded from Amazon, iTunes, and Spotify. For more information please contact him at dreamshipmusic@gmail.com
Album: The Dreamship| The Forge Of Life| Copyright 2018
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Thompson Street Farm LLC: https://thompsonstreetfarm.com/
Brenda J. Sullivan Books: https://brendajsullivanbooks.com/