After … Key facts for French Lavender…, Lavender means summer, and the Mediterranean with its distinctive fragrance. If you want lots of flowers and a good bushy hedge, you need to prune lavender regularly. How to Prune Lavender in Summer. We use gas-powered hedge trimmers to prune the 30,000+ plants in our fields. If you have pruned well in the spring, then only a light prune/harvest will be required at the end of summer. Follow us. Although the plant will grow fine if it isn’t pruned, your lavender will never be more beautiful than if you care for it regularly. We hope you have learned from this article the ways and the time when to prune your lavender. When you are pruning lavender, it is best to do it regularly and spring is a great time to start. Follow the contours of the plant. August is the time to give your lavender its summer chop. The Royal Horticultural Society is the UK’s leading gardening charity. Required fields are marked *. Properly pruned lavender shrubs (Lavandula spp.) And surf, climb, kayak… pretty much anything that brings me outdoors. You should cut them about ½ of the height of the plant while leaving plenty of green leaves intact. Remove non-flowering shoots, about 10cm long, with a woody base and a tip with new growth. Because there are different types of lavender out there, each type requires a unique way and timing of pruning. Professional growers prune lavender bushes with a sickle, but clean, sharp hand clippers are also effective. This can be done through: 1. preparingcuttings 2. harvesting and growing from seeds Let’s take a lo… When it's time to prune your lavender, regardless of its variety, tailor your pruning to the age of the plant: Start pruning your lavender plants while they are still young. This type of lavender is the most delicate type when it comes to fragrance and color. Jobs for the Weekend . Fill plastic pots with peat-free multi-purpose compost, water and then push the cuttings into the compost. This plant can straggle if not properly pruned at the right time. Take semi-ripe lavender cuttings in late summer. If you begin by pinching tips of new growth when the plant and its growth are very young, it will respond vigorously with dense branching that helps form a good shape and a lot of blooming growth to work with later. This will keep your plant neat and tidy! French lavender (Lavandula dentata), flowers for most of the year so it can be hard to choose the best time to prune. Learn here about pruning Lavender plants. This will give the laundry a nice smell. Lavandula angustifolia (English lavender) is the hardiest (H5 hardy-cold winter) variety of lavender. Read also: All there is to know about lavender; Health benefits of lavender; Trimming lavender. Pruning Lavender is Essential Chris Mulder, Barn Owl Nursery In my experience, I have found that pruning lavender plants in the spring and summer, and lightly in September, helps them to look and grow better, over a longer period of time. Prune and Tidy Lavender in the Summer. Garden clippers or hedge shears (pictured) or even scissors work great for a few … You want to heavily prune and shape young lavender plants for two reasons: 1) It helps develop a tight, compact, shaped base that will keep the plant healthy for years to come, and 2) Pruning in the fall drives energy away from the plant surface and down into the roots, which is what you want for the winter. If you're growing lavender as a hedge, prune lightly in summer. 10 Minute GardenerMark Abbott-Compton Don’t shear straight across. Container plants will need more water, but are still relatively easy to care for throughout the year. After blooming, remove wilted flowers and preserve the shape of the lavender shrub with the following steps: Here is a video on how to correctly prune your own lavender. Using a pair of sharp scissors will work unless you have an actual hedge trimmer. Maintenance pruning on lavender also keeps it from seeming bare or sparse. While the plant is in bloom, usually in mid-summer, gather up the flower stalks and once again prune the plant back to 2 - 3 inches above where the soft, green growth begins on … To prevent lavender shrubs from developing in this way, they typically tend to prune often, at least once a year; since the woody parts tend not to produce buds, pruning is done just after flowering, when the bright purple flowers are passing to lilac-gray; it can be pruned by going almost to the end of the branch, or at least a few centimeters above the area where the new leaves begin. I used to prune my lavender rather warily. When to give your Lavender plant a hard pruning depends on what geographical location you are in. This may not be necessary, though it can help to keep plants healthy and full. A. Pruning is essential to keeping lavender looking young, healthy and vigorous, but now is not the best time to prune. Some shrubs can take severe pruning and hatracking, but pruning lavender too hard wouldkill it. Fill plastic pots with peat-free multi-purpose compost, water and then push the cuttings into the compost. Pruning lavender helps to trigger bushy growth, and gives you tons of flowers too. These include the two following techniques: No comments yet – be the first to share your thoughts! Autumn is the time of the year to take care of your lavenders. Keeping up with this repeated pruning will result in magnificent plants. Tips for Pruning Lavender in Summer. Cut back up to one-third of the leafy section of the stems, shaping the lavender into an evenly rounded … You may also use flowers that are still open and place them in a closet in a pouch, pot-pourri or bowl. Maintenance pruning on lavender also keeps it from seeming bare or sparse. Cutting back lavender plants is important for the health of the plant. This will make sure it stays compact and strong. Prune early bloomers in springafter the first flush of growth. Lavender as a plant can be used as an insecticide. Seasonal Pruning – When is the best time to prune lavender? We use gas-powered hedge trimmers to prune the 30,000+ plants in … These fast-growing perennials require little upkeep and are very easy to grow. The best time to prune subshrubs that bloom in spring and early summer is when leaf buds emerge in spring. Start pruning your lavender as soon as you have it. How and when to prune lavender varies depending on the type of lavender you’re growing. Lavender is a woody plant that needs pruning to grow back better. Lavender or Lavandula is a genus that comes in more than 70 different species of flowering plants, we will discuss the 3 most common ones you’ll find out there. To hang your lavender to dry, use a rubber band to tie the stems together. In your own garden, as you are preparing your other plantings for the winter, add "prune the lavender" to your fall gardening checklist. Light pruning is best after the first harvest, followed by a heavier one during summer or fall. Always leave at least two inches of softer greener growth above the brown woody base of the … While the plant is in bloom, usually in mid-summer, gather up the flower stalks and once again prune the plant back to 2 - 3 inches above where the soft, green growth begins on the lower part of the plant. Blue Line: We prune our lavender in early April (New Zealand autumn).Prune back all shoots at least 1/3 of the plant. The flower stalk can be harvested and used either dry or fresh. Trim them in the afternoon where the oils are at their strongest. Ideally, pruning lavender in spring and fall is a great idea, if you can squeeze that into your garden chore schedule. Easy to grow, lavender lets us savor the sun through its fragrance. develop a pleasant mounded shape that helps showcase the spikes of small purple flowers during early summer. Pruning lavender is much more necessary for older plants, and the variety you own will have an effect on its lifespan. That’s true, but it doesn’t mean that the only solution for an old lavender is to pull it out! Shaping the plant into a round “mound” will train the plant to grow into a round shape for years to come. Prune all the way down into the woody stems. Lavender is a very diverse plant and comes in different shapes and colors. With … Don’t hesitate to occasionally prune during the blooming if you wish to harvest lavender flowers. The right time to prune lavender is after the blooming, at the end of summer. Take care not to cut into the woody part of the plant which can cause damage. Prune right after the first flowering and again in late August after the last flush has faded. Your plant should be quite a bit larger this year, with more blooms. Lavandula, more commonly known as lavender, is famous for its fragrant flowers and foliage. English Hybrids are known for being a little weaker than their English cousins and thus require extra care and gentleness. Summer Fruit Tree Pruning . It’s one of the hardier and most commonly grown lavenders with … Your email address will not be published. Like rosemary, a brush against the foliage is enough to release the lavender scent.It is long-blooming, and their purple, blueish and sometimes pinkish-white flowers, contrasting against the dark green or greenish-gray foliage, never fail to impress in a summer garden.Below are tips on where to plant a lavender … In your own garden, as you are preparing your other plantings for the winter, add "prune the lavender" to your fall gardening checklist. This is why before you prune it, you need to first know which type of lavender you have in front of you. You can tell when it’s ready because the flowers have gone grey. Non-English Lavender has a different way of pruning. Prune lavender that is 2 years or older in the spring. Join the RHS today and get 12 months for the price of 9. English Lavender should be pruned right after it its first flowering and again in late August, right after the last flush has faded away. Twice a year pruning will keep your plant healthy and compact. Young plants especially benefit from being reminded “don’t put out new flowers, now it’s … How to prune the different … Prune established plants heavily, pruni… Lavender, a delicate fragrance of French Provence… and more! We aim to enrich everyone’s life through plants, and make the UK a greener and more beautiful place. Seasonal Pruning – When is the best time to prune lavender? Pruning lavender is all about ensuring that this perennial plant thrives year after year. The time in which you prune your lavender plants is very crucial and tricky. If you want to keep your plant healthy then you should prune it twice a year, every year. Spanish lavender needs to be pruned in summer. English Hybrids are strong but aren’t as strong as the normal English kind. However, they do benefit from an annual prune as this will help maximise flowering and keep your plants looking nice and healthy. Before you prune your lavender you need to identify which type you have planted in your garden. But it will be very drought tolerant once established and should require little care. You can tell when it’s ready because the flowers have gone grey. For example, if you prune your lavender during the first year of planting it, it will grow leaves instead of roots, which will later make it a weaker plant that is more prone to dying, and falling in the long term. Pruning time is important, timing is seasonal pruning as well as pruning that depend of how old is your plant. This has worked well for me in my location, but not everyone growing lavender in different climates in Oregon will prune their lavender plants that often. ENGLISH LAVENDER (Lavandula angustifolia) This is the classic English lavender is beloved not only for it’s memorable fragrance, but also for the silvery foliage and stems that add texture to a border. In my experience, I have found that pruning lavender plants in the spring and summer, and lightly in September, helps them to look and grow better, over a longer period of time. Newly planted lavender in the ground should be watered well during its first summer. They should be pruned in late August right after they finish blooming. English Lavender pruning requires you to cut off about 2 thirds of the plant’s height or just above the bottom two sets of leaves on each stem. Grosso is cold hardy and it will not be troubled by winters in mild climates. Do some research for … These Lavenders are usually very gentle and fragile that they require extra care and should be pruned very carefully. Look for new growth spouting through near the base of your plant and cut an inch (2.5cm) above the new growth. Pruning lavender can be very crucial to how it will turn out and whether or not it will eventually thrive like a plant. The next step for trimming lavender is to prune one-third of the plant. Lavender is an easy to grow plant which thrives in sunny borders and gravel gardens and takes very little maintenance aside from a hard annual pruning. When pruning lavender, it’s important to start out with a sharp, clean set of pruning shears. End of March beginning of April is the time to get your lavender pruned for the summer. Wipe down the blades of your pruning shears with rubbing alcohol or bleach to make sure all bacteria and potentially harmful germs are removed from the blades. Swaying at the tip of long scapes, its…, French lavender is a nice alternative to common lavender thanks to its very original flowers. While some plants can go without pruning, lavender likely will refuse to flower next summer if you don't prune it (and, let's be honest, it's all about the fragrant flowers with lavender). Pruning Lavender. Prune one-third to one-half of each shrub back after the peak of flowering. Pull off some of the lower leaves. About 1cm should be below the soil. Pruning the old flowers off Lavender is done every year. To avoid lavender losing its figure, the best technique is to prune on a regular basis. Use secateurs for a single plant and a hedge trimmer if you have many. The Practical Guide to Using Soil Moisture Meter Correctly, 7 Environment Friendly Upcycled Garden Fence Ideas to DIY, Detailed Guide To Building A Koi Pond Easily, How To Make Cactus Soil Mix – Easy Recipe, Easy Outdoor Garden Canopy and Awning Ideas to DIY, A Simple Guide to Making a Potting Bench from Pallets [DIY], Rosary Plant (String of Hearts): Care & Growing Guide. Lavender illustration by M. Jeng. Need advice? Although you may be tempted to prune earlier, it is best to wait until you see a little green before removing the dead tips of branches and old flowers. Growth is rapid in summer. Allow it to dry for a week or two. 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