As far as flowers are concerned, lavender has it going on. This perennial plant blooms attractive, fragrant flowers ranging from white to blue to purple. It fits into a number of landscapes, and it is useful for crafts, cooking, cake decorations, aromatherapy, and alternative medicine. Best of all, lavender will survive a ton of rough conditions, even summer droughts.
If you live in zones 5-8, growing any variety of lavender is pretty easy, as long as it stays in full sun and keeps relatively dry. Cultivate this plant in arid and well-drained soils, surrounded with a dry mulch, such as gravel or sand. Any organic mulch will retain moisture that will likely rot your lavender’s roots.
You can take advantage of lavender’s amazing fragrance by planting close to outdoor living areas, like patios or decks. Raised planters and containers look nice near patios, decks, and walkways, and they can help with drainage even more, insuring that your plant thrives.
Lavender blooms early to midsummer. Conveniently, there is no need for you to fertilize. Your main maintenance task is shearing your plants after flowering to help them bloom and grow bushier. Besides that, just keep an eye on soil moisture and your lavender should have no problem thriving on for several years, growing to about 3 feet tall.
Although you won’t be able to make quality lavender essential oil for medicinal and aromatherapy uses at home, cut lavender can be dried for a surplus of other uses. Candy the flowers, or use them in baking to add a distinct and somewhat sweet flavor. Another sought-out use is tea. Diffuse the dried or fresh flowers with herbal, green, or black teas for a relaxation-inducing mix.
Dried lavender compliments a number of crafting projects as well. It works great for dried flower arrangements, potpourri, wedding confetti, and as a filler for linen sachets that repel moths and make clothing smell fresh.
