HERB - Favorite Herb

[Christine A Seelye-King]

>Lavender is a very tender and often difficult plant to grow. 
Very True

 >The species we buy is lavandula augustafola(sp?) and it is a true 
>lavender.  We bought a frilled edge leaf species last year which was 
>kept in a pot because it was not winter hardy and we brought it in 
>when fall settled in.  It did not survive.

You might have done better to let it winter over, if you get some more,
try it, what have you got to loose!  I think the secret to good lavender
plants is LOTS OF DRAINAGE .  I have mine in large, hollow, terra-cotta
pipes (rectangular with rounded corners) that stand about 3 feet high. 
(I found these things on the side of the road one day, I believe they are
supposed to be chimney parts.)  I have them up on end, and then I filled
the bottom of them with broken tiles, cracked pottery(potsherds!), broken
bricks and the like, then a layer of gravel to fill in the cracks,  then
sand and finally soil mixed with lots of sand.  It retains water well
enough to stay moist, but drains fast so that the lavender never sits in
water.  The plants respond very well to it, and even in the ground, they
seem to do much better planted on a slope and/or in sandy soil.  
Good luck!
Christianna

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