What to do with lavender

[robbra]

My lavender plants have had a short flower season this year, I didn't cut them back last year, perhaps this is why so what is the best way to trim them? Cut them back brutally or gently and is now the time to do it?
Thanks
Rob

[nickdub]

I'd say cut them back now - a bit of liquid feed would probably be a good idea too.

[Jungle Jane]

Don’t be too mad pruning,if you cut into dead wood it doesn’t grow back,trim as low as you can but there always needs to be a bit of life on the end of the shrub as it’s an evergreen. If it’s finished flowering pinch the heads off & prune a bit now or later,I tidy it up at the end of summer usually or in the autumn,not in the winter

[robbra]

Thank you both, I am disappointed in the length of time flowering compared to last year and the bees didn't come in the same numbers either. I wasn't sure how or when to tackle it so I think a bit of pruning to start with so I can at least get to the front door and a bit more later on.
I might even keep the cuttings in an old pillowcase 'cause I love the smell, that and tomatoes, but what I'll do with it is anybodies guess.
Thanks again
Rob

[carolefu]

I think it all depends how long you've had the lavender in your garden. I read somewhere that it's good to split the plant every 3 to 5 years, trim each 'splitting', but not too much.

[robbra]

Hello Carole,
About three years I think, would you do it the same as with rhubarb, a quick slash with a spade?
I really don't know

[happyhumph]

Have noticed a few lavenders this year that have finished flowering already but have a second batch of buds forming lower down

[robbra]

I'll have a look when I take the knife to them.

[ESBkevin]

Take a few cuttings before trimming. It's not the best time of year for it, but it gives you an insurance against total loss.

[mothhawk]

Lavender does not take kindly to splitting because it generally has only a single stem and root system so damage that by trying to divide and will very probably die. The best way forward is to take some cuttings of semi ripe growth (still green stemmed but fairly stiff) and when they have rooted replace the old plant.

I take 3" long shoots and pot them in J.I. number 1. Water well but don't cover the pot with a bag or put in a propagator, just stand in a shady place and make sure the soil doesn't dry out, but don't waterlog it.

I've just done 3 pots with 8 cuttings in each (5" pots). I usually get most of them rooting and see signs of new growth after about 8 weeks.

Alternatively, if the plant is still a reasonable shape and has not grown tall and leggy, simply trim off the flowers with secateurs down to where you see the summer growth of new leaves. Don't cut into old brown wood - that will not regrow. I grab a bunch of stems with one hand and shear them off. You don't have to do each stem individually On my lavender hedge I use garden shears

[bikermike]

On a related note, my lavenders are not getting very big. I've got one I grew from seed, and it's got lots of woody bits, but is still only about 1' tall.

Are there specific bushy varieties for hedging?

[robbra]

Lots of info here, thanks.
Mine aren't big, a foot high and 18 inches out from the wall so I think it's a haircut first and sit and wait.

[mothhawk]

Bikermike, you may have one of the cultivars or dwarf varieties such as "Hidcote".

My hedge is the common lavendula angustifolia and is about three feet high, though now with the flowers on it is about four and a half feet tall. The flowers don't all grow straight up but grow out sideways too so the hedge at present is a good three feet wide. I grew it from cuttings off one plant, and it took three years to get this tall.

Now I try to keep it well trimmed so it doesn't get any taller, and of course the downside when it gets tall is that I have a lot of bare stem showing at the bottom when it's not in flower.

I'm considering taking it out this winter and replacing with dwarf lavender. I've taken 3 pots of cuttings of the dwarf ones I have, but it won't give the same look, I know.

[veggiechicken]

MH Could you underplant the tall lavender with the dwarf ones, so they conceal the bare stems?

[Babru]

I would echo most of what's been said here. However my gardening mag had a lavender article which said that if pruned correctly, a lavender plant can last up to 20 years! Cut back after flowering, an inch of growth from the top, then tidy again in early spring. Also, it's OK to cut into wood if there are little shoots already visible below.

I've just planted a lavender hedge with Grosso cultivar I bought in Lidl. I'll report back in 20 years to tell you how I got on.....