How to trim your lavender shrubs to avoid overgrowth. Take lavender cuttings from all your varieties every June and July. I love lavender! Lavender is prized for its richly fragrant flowers and aromatic foliage. Choose young two- to three-inch shoots that have just started to harden up. 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. Pinch back newly planted Lavender plants. French lavender (Lavandula dentata), flowers for most of the year so it can be hard to choose the best time to prune. Here is a brief video about pruning lavender that I found to be very helpful. I have seen much better results in terms of blooms, pruning English lavenders in the Spring then in the Fall whereas French lavenders tend to prefer Fall pruning due to their earlier flowering time. They have different blooming times, but the pruning techniques are pretty much the same. French lavender is shorter-lived and less hardy, so more likely to be affected by frost or poor weather. When Is The Best Time To Prune? The Royal Horticultural Society is the UK’s leading gardening charity. In one instance, I was asked by a fellow gardener if “renewal pruning” was good for lavenders. To rejuvenate a woody plant, prune in mid-August to just above a green shoot and hope for the best. English lavender is easily distinguished from its European cousins, as it has a straight-up uniform flower. Pruning lavender is important in keeping a lavender plant producing the type of fragrant foliage that most gardeners seek. A frost can kill off new plant growth. Lavandula stoechas is commonly referred to as French lavender. The better the soil, the better your plants will grow. That way you have lavender in flower in your garden all year round. Of the different types of lavender, the one that responds best to hard pruning is a type of French lavender called Lavandula dentata. Learn here about pruning Lavender plants. Hard pruning of lavender – not the usual solution. Unlike many perennial plants and shrubs that can be pruned now, it is best to wait to prune lavender until after bloom in spring or in early fall before any danger of frost. When pruning it's important to retain the green foliage and don't cut back into the old wood. If lavender isn’t pruned regularly, it will become woody and produce fewer fragrant leaves and flowers. Prune back after flowering, avoiding pruning into old woody growth. ... space is dedicated to Lavender. Prune these lavender in spring when all frost is finished for the season. For some lavenders (midseason lavenders like English lavender), August is the best month for deadheading. If you’re wondering how to prune lavender and when to prune lavender at the correct time, have no fear. Your plant should be quite a bit larger this year, with more blooms. Ideal techniques and timing will differ between varieties, however the general rules still apply. However, avoid pruning in late fall because frost can damage the new growth encouraged by pruning. Pruning lavender. The technique in this post is for English lavender, not French lavender but the method is similar. This easy-to-grow shrub thrives in a sunny spot, in free-draining soil or a container. Pruning lavender in late summer to fall helps open the plant’s interior to allow good air circulation and also removes some of the branches, which can ultimately help prevent winter damage. Get involved. 2-3 feet will give each plant the space it needs to grow and prevents lavender from casting shade on one another which will restrict flowering.. Spacing lavender. English varieties tend to flower in the warmer months, whereas French lavender will often flower in winter. Pruning French Lavender Never prune French Lavender hard as they are unlikely to recover and do not like being cut back to bare stems. How Far Apart to Plant French Lavender. Like building a house a good foundation is the key to success in your garden. Pruning French lavender. English Lavender; French Lavender. Lavender can be become very leggy and bear few flowers. Prune regularly. Lavender in full sun can be expected to grow vigorously each year, so take this opportunity to reform your plants into the green mounds that are lavender’s signature shape. The English lavender cultivars (L. angustifolia) usually require more pruning to hold their shape than the lavandins (L. x intermedia). The question when to prune Lavender depends on what type of pruning is being done. Lavender can grow out of control unless it is forced into submission! Yes, I realize it looks a bit lost, but in a year or two it will look like a miniature French countryside! Second Year Lavender Pruning . Individual plants dotted around the borders look excellent. Although summer, after the plant flowers, is the best time to prune, you can prune into late summer or early fall. ... French lavenders (Lavandula stoechas and cvs., Z 8–9) 5. Commercial lavender growers will plant French lavenders 2-3 feet apart. Follow us. Jun 22, 2020 12:03am. A well-pruned plant can last for more than 25 years without becoming woody. Taking lavender cuttings. You should cut an inch or two into the green leafy growth to give the plant a more … Find out more about pruning French lavender. It isn’t hard to learn how to trim a lavender with woody stems. Heavily prune established lavender, cutting back all stems by at least a third after the plant is done flowering for the season. French lavenders are short-lived and usually only last for five years. Guide to pruning lavender. It’s an aromatic dwarf shrub with narrow, greyish leaves, and bears dense, oval heads of small purple flowers topped with with a tuft of purple bracts. Lavender as a plant can be used as an insecticide. Join now. Pruning lavender can be very crucial to how it will turn out and whether or not it will eventually thrive like a plant. Many gardeners just deadhead hardy types which leads to leggy plants and few flowers. Hidcote flowers in May or June, so if your prune the lavender in March or April, then the you will stimulate lots of new growth and the lavender can display lots of flowers. Join the RHS today and get 12 months for the price of 9. How to prune the different types of lavender. The Royal Horticultural Society has given it its prestigious Award of Garden Merit (AGM). Most common ways of growing a youthful, round lavender. There are different ways to prune both the French and the English lavender, each has its ups and downs, but we will discover both of them. Pruning lavender – Is it English, French or Spanish Lavender? Before pruning, it’s important to understand which type of lavender you have. Karen says. If you prune them now, you’ll prune off this years blooms-in-progress, even though it may have bloomed twice in a season before. Pruning is key to maintaining good-looking lavender. French or Spanish lavenders (L. stoechas), require even more pruning. Since completing my degree, I’ve been asked time and again how to prune lavender and other subshrubs. Cutting back the old Lavender flower stems can be done anytime after flowering to remove the old flower stems and improve the plants appearance. All of this information is listed below. Prune back after flowering with a sharp pair of secateurs and remove around half to two thirds of the current year’s growth, ensuring you leave new green growth where new shoots will shoot from the following season. Or is there a time in the year when I can hard prune it by about a 1/3, do they ever stop flowering ?. Reader Interactions. Looked after in this way the plant will be very short lived. Appropriate deadheading and pruning of lavender involve the elimination of faded leaves from the plant and bring about higher and improved blossom, making … Cut mature French lavender plants back by one-third to one-half if they don't seem to be getting off to a good start. You may also conduct the annual pruning of lavender shrubs in very early spring to encourage attractive new leaves and flowers, which may be delayed a month by the pruning maintenance. There are three main types of lavender: English lavender, French lavender and Spanish lavender. How to Prune Lavender Varieties. French Lavender has long flowering stems and enchanting, large flowers topped with purple bracts. ... Pruning. November 9, 2020 at . The basic rule of pruning lavender is not to trim into brown, dead wood. How to prune lavender. lavender. In the Garden. Ideally, pruning lavender in spring and fall is a great idea, if you can squeeze that into your garden chore schedule. However, this can be a fun and easy job and should be carried out twice a year — once lightly after flowering and again later to neaten summer's growth. 01:42. Blooming in Brisbane S3 Ep6 part 2 of 3 from Nicole Acworth on Vimeo . By pruning in August, your English lavender plant will remain in good shape for many years. We aim to enrich everyone’s life through plants, and make the UK a greener and more beautiful place. My French Lavender plant is only 14 months old, and it's lovely and bushy and a mass of flowers. I’d also observe that (1) your lavender will try to resume (or exceed) their current size in the future and (2) planting more plants between them may make them all vulnerable to fungal diseases, which happens with inadequate air circulation. Comments. It has always had flowers on it so when do I prune it, do I just give it a trim every so often. French lavender (Lavandula Dentata) Just as popular as English lavender, French lavender billows with strong-scented, grey-green toothed leaves and long, furry, ... Prune plants after the main summer flowering period to keep them looking tidy and dense. The main types grown in New Zealand are English lavender, Lavandula stoechas and French lavender. Pruning Established Lavender Plants . From Italian to French I have look at different varieties and their cultivars, their cultural care, pruning and what are some of the benefits of growing lavender. Lavender Varieties. There are many species, but the two most popular varieties are English and French lavender. Lavender will not regrow from the lower stem sections, so cutting into wood will leave bare spots in the bush and weaken the lavender. How to Trim a Lavender with Woody Stems. The reason for this is lack of or poor pruning. 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