Among the various types of lavender, the most highly perfumed of plants, there are three basic kinds, known individually as English, French, and Italian lavender. There are many hybridized versions, some of them quite hardy and successful, like L. allardii, which is larger than most lavenders and has the long flower spikes and smooth leaves of English lavender, while the foliage has the indented edges of French lavender. There are several strains that have been developed from English lavender. Some are “Hidcote Giant,” dwarf “Hidcote,” and “Munstead.” “Canary Islands” lavender (or “fern-leaf” lavender) looks quite different again with gray-green, finely cut foliage which has the same slightly eucalyptus scent as the purple blooms carried at the tips of very long stalks; the mature plant looks like a thick, leafy cushion with graceful stems curving upward from it. Flower colors available in English lavenders are beautiful and varied and may be snow white, dusty pink, shades of blue, and then going through the spectrum of mauves from pale lavender to deepest purple.
English lavender seems to be everyone’s favorite. It is a bushy, small shrub growing 3 feet (90 cm) high, with silvery, smooth, pointed leaves and highly perfumed, tiny mauve flowers which grow at the end of long, spiky stems. When the bush starts blooming in summer it is a beautiful sight, especially if several plants are massed together as a hedge. This type of planting suits all the lavenders. English lavender is the most often used for making lavender articles and the highest concentration of essential oils is in the flowers.
French lavender is the hardiest, and in many ways the most rewarding of the varieties to grow. It can reach a height of 5 feet (1.5 metres). The bush blooms continuously for about nine months of the year, especially if mature flower stalks are cut back regularly to where two new shoots are beginning to branch. This helps to keep the bush a good shape while preventing it from having to feed flowers which are past their peak. These blooms can be dried for potpourri and sweet bags. Their perfume, although excellent, is not as potent as that of English lavender. The blooms are pale mauve and grow in a close head to the tip of a long, square stalk. If the location of the plant is particularly sunny, there will be a greater depth of color in the flowers. French lavender heads are very attractive bunched closely together for posies. The gray leaves are rough and serrated, densely covering the bush, giving it a thick, hazy look. Use them dried in mixtures for potpourri and sleep pillows.
Green lavender really has green blooms, fat heads of them with miniature white flowers starring each one, and two white “rabbit ear” petals on top. It must be a variation of Italian lavender because of the leaf and flower formation, although green lavender grows into a thicker, taller bush, about 3 feet (90 cm). Tike Italian lavender, the fragrance is not strong. When two or three bushes are massed together, they are quite spectacular in a subtle way when in bloom, especially at dusk when the flowers emanate a magical, luminous glow. Propagate by taking cuttings in spring, and grow in the same position and soil as other lavenders.
Italian lavender is sometimes known as Spanish lavender, and occasionally, but wrongly, as French lavender. It is a scarcer variety than the others, but well worth cultivating. This type does not usually grow more than 2 feet (60 cm) high. Although similar to the other lavenders, it is also different enough to make a contrast in the garden. The gray leaves are tiny, smooth, and pointed and grow abundantly all over the bush. We have a curved hedge of 10 bushes growing together at the top of a low embankment, and from mid-winter through to early summer they are covered with deep purple flowers that look rather like smaller versions of French lavender flowers, except for a little top-knot of petal tufts at the end of each flower-head. Blossoms and leaves of Italian lavender are not as highly perfumed as other lavenders, but the blooms make attractive posies. It was sometimes known fondly as “sticadove.”
The plant commonly known as “lavender cotton” does not belong to the Lavandula family, making it confusing for identification, so it seems a good idea to mention it here. We have seen two kinds. The first has fragrant foliage, resembling delicate gray coral, and round yellow flowers. It is a decorative addition to any garden; we saw long hedges of it lining the kitchen garden of a small chateau in France. In fact it was one of the herbs extensively used in outlining intricate knot gardens. The other type has bright green, needle-like foliage, very upright and bushy, and flat button-heads of lime to lemon blooms. This one is recommended for hedging too, and is scented. Tavender cotton (or cotton lavender) likes to grow in the same type of soil as the lavenders, light and well drained in a sunny position where it will reach a height of about ½ feet (45 cm), sometimes more. It is successfully propagated by taking cuttings in spring. Prune lightly into shape when flowering has finished. Sprays of this herb were once laid m drawers to keep away moths, and oil for perfume from the plant is used industrially. The leaves and flowers of both kinds are excellent in potpourri, adding color and scent.
History and mythology
All the lavenders are native to the Mediterranean regions; the variety we call English lavender was not cultivated in England until about 1568. It was a favorite with the ancient Greeks, and one herbal writer of old says that it was known by the name of Nardus, from Naarda, a Syrian city near the river Euphrates, and that it was this herb which St. Mark referred to as “spikenard” in the Bible. Shakespeare refers to it, calling it “hot lavender” in The Winter’s Tale.
Cultivation
The three basic types of lavender can be propagated from seed. If a hybrid lavender sets seed which is then planted, the new plants will probably revert back to the original type, so these must be increased by taking cuttings. If starting from seed, do this in spring by sowing into shallow drills in prepared seed boxes. Tip cuttings of any variety are taken when the soft, new leaves are firm enough not to wilt when they are put into a pot of sand. This is usually in late spring. When the seedlings are big enough, or when the cuttings have made roots, plant them out in a sunny, well-drained position. This is very important for lavender, as it will not grow sturdily nor flower well, if planted in a shady or damp place. When lavenders are in a position they like, the difference in the size of the bushes and the depth of color in the flowers is very marked.
Harvesting and processing
The best time to pick and dry English lavender is before the last flowers on each stalk are fully opened. This is when their oil content is highest. Harvest the stalks on a dry day before the heat of the sun has drawn out the volatile essence, then tie them in bunches and hang in a shady, airy place to dry. When ready, strip the flowers from the stems and store them in airtight containers. When the plants have finished flowering, prune them hard, but not to ground level!
Leafy and flowering stalks of French lavender may be cut at any time for drying, providing there is no moisture in the air and harvesting is done before midday. Hang in bunches and dry like English lavender. Prune bushes quite severely when they finish flowering.
Various uses
Culinary
Lavender is not usually thought of as a culinary herb these days. Several centuries ago, many sweet-scented flowers were employed in the kitchen quite extensively, and there is a recipe by “W. M. Cook to Queen Henrietta Maria, 1655” for a conserve of lavender flowers, which consists of lavender petals finely chopped, then mixed with icing sugar and enough rosewater to make a thin paste to spread as a fragrant icing on plain cakes and biscuits. Lavender vinegar is made by infusing whole lavender stalks, with their flowers, in white vinegar for several weeks.
The Lavandula vera plant is known as “el khzama” in Morocco, where the dried flowers are an important ingredient in a herb and spice mixture known literally as “top of the shop.” The piercing pungency of lavender is valued because it complements the delicious scent of the other herbs. In a similar way lavender is also used in a French provincial savory mixture with thyme, marjoram and rosemary. Dried rosebuds from the damask rose, “rous elword,” are also an ingredient for a savory herb blend, and are also a separate ingredient in some Moroccan stews, especially those featuring rabbit. Orange blossoms from bitter orange trees are used in the same way.
Medicinal
The piercing, exquisite perfume of lavender flowers has a similar reviving effect as smelling salts when inhaled, for it is known that lavender calms the nerves and relaxes tensions. A bath at night impregnated with a few drops of lavender oil soothes and relaxes the peripheral nerves, while lavender flowers in a sedative tea mixture will help to bring on sleep. The leaves, as well as the flowers, have this wondrous effect. When you are stripping a quantity of dried lavender, notice how drowsy you become. Besides this, lavender was recognized as having a good effect on the digestion. Lavender essence has been widely used as a remedy for giddiness and faint¬ ness, nervous palpitations, and flatulence. It was administered by putting a few drops on sugar or in a little milk. Oil of lavender is still used by modern herbalists to rub into rheumatic joints to ease pain. It is also claimed that rubbing oil of lavender on burns assists with healing scar tissue.
Cosmetic
Lavender toilet water seems always to have been available. It is antiseptic for the skin, refreshing, and is especially recommended for an oily complexion and pimples. Fresh or dried lavender flowers or leaves tied in a muslin bag and infused in hot bathwater give the skin an all-over fragrance (use oil of lavender instead if you wish). Who does not respond to the wholesome smell of lavender- perfumed sheets and pillow cases? Lavender-perfumed notepaper and cards were once very much in vogue too. Lavender is indispensable in potpourri mixtures, in lavender-filled clothes hangers, in lavender bags, and for making lavender “bottles.” Because of its soothing qualities, lavender is essential inside “sleep pillows.” The warmth of the head releases the perfume and induces tranquil slumber. Not only the flowers are used, but the leaves as well. Never throw away the foliage: besides being perfumed, it provides valuable bulk when needed.
Companion planting
Lavender associates well with thyme in the garden. As an aromatic herb it has a good influence on vegetables growing nearby, helping to make healthier plants with more flavor. When in bloom, lavender attracts honey bees and butterflies It also helps repel moths and other undesirable insects in clothes cupboards and in carpets.
