Lavender Herb Questions

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General Information

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Question

I have just potted two lavender plants and they seem to be dying - they are going brown. We used a large pot as recommended by the shop, we've added a few bits of crockery to cover the hole in the pot and help drainage as recommended, we added some potting compost and we water it regularly - but still the plant looks like its dying.
Please help.

The Green Chronicle replies...

Hi,
have you over-watered the lavender do you think? Lavender needs free draining and light soil to prosper. You might try re-potting in a sandier or grittier potting mix. This is the perfect time of year to take a few semi-ripe cuttings to propagate some new plants - just in case.

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Comment Script

Hi,
I am a new gardner and I put 3 lavender plants in a trough about 8 weeks ago . The lavender plants in a house near me are a beautiful shape with the stalks almost upright buut mine are growing outwards and then upwards . Can you tell me what I have done wrong ?
Thank you .

#11 - Liz Johnstone - 06/11/2010 - 08:48

Hi I have bought a lavender about 2 months ago and recently transplanted it to a bigger pot. After about 2 weeks it started to grow buds and now the stems are drooping have I over watered it? Have I put it into the wrong kind of compost? please advise I would hate to loss yet another lavender

kind regards

#10 - Nancy - 05/23/2010 - 12:12

If your lavender is in a pot, then I would recommend watering it regularly during the summer months as even though lavender is drought tolerant, in a pot it dries out much quicker and has a limited amount of soil to get any moisture from.

To stop the lavender going woody you want to be cutting your lavender down to around half an inch above the hard wood and this should hopefully encourage new growth from the bottom of the plant.

For more info see our guide to growing lavender - http://www.yorkshirelavender.com/how-to-grow-lavender

#9 - Sam Goodwill - 01/29/2010 - 03:49

Hey folks,

I have a potted lavender plant that is dying and I can't figure out why. It is in the sunniest spot of the yard and I hardly ever water it. The one I bought two years ago is flourishing and it gets even less sun that this one. Any ideas???

#8 - Patricia - 10/07/2009 - 15:09

I recently purchased a lavender plant and sat it in my window sill where it gets partial sun. It was doing wonderfully until I decided to open the window one day and the wind made all the flowering stems go limp. I stuck support rods in the pot and tied the limp stems to them, hoping they might stand erect again. Is this good, or is there something else I should do? Once wind knocks these stems down, will they eventually return to erect position on their own?
Thanks so much for the help. Also is water once a week too much? They have drainage, normally if the soil is dry about two inches down then I'll water, is that a good method?

#7 - Emily Bloom - 04/09/2008 - 13:09

Hi. I have a row of lavender plants that I planted just above the soil to allow for drainage. They have been growing for about 2 1/2 years now and have been fine but this summer i have noticed the leaves near the base of the plant have gone grey and the branches are starting to go yellow. It appears to be spreading. Should i be worried?

#6 - Hayley - 01/07/2008 - 18:39

Do you know whether your lavender is hardy or tender? If it is one of the tender varieties you would definitely need to protect it from frost.Lavender should only be pruned (see answer below)after flowering in late spring not just before a hard winter.The black leaves are probably dead.

#5 - mary - 10/13/2007 - 08:19

Thanks, Elaine! Now all of sudden I'm getting black leaves.....what causes this? Also, should I prune it back in the Fall 12 inch plant in a pot on my balcony and I don't want to cut it too far back. Since it is in a pot, should I bring it in this winter? I live on the ocean and it gets very cold and windy here in the winter. Sorry to be such a novice, but these forums are great and I thank you very much in advance!

#4 - Mary Harrison - 10/10/2007 - 15:54

Most lavenders do not flower in their first year. See what happens late next spring.

#3 - Elaine - 09/22/2007 - 04:51

I planted a lavender plant in late spring. It has full sun, I don't water it very much and the pot drains well. It appears to be growing fine, but it hasn't bloomed. Do they sometimes not bloom the first year?

#2 - Mary Harrison - 09/21/2007 - 12:16

Lavender can be trimmed after flowering in autumn or if you live in a wet, cold climate it is better to trim it in spring. The thing to watch is not to cut into the old wood as this can prevent the growth of new shoots.

#1 - Simon - 05/30/2007 - 11:58

I'm wondering what to do each spring with my lavender plant. Should I cut it back or does the part that appears dead come back to life? Not sure just how to treat it. Thanks for any tips you can offer.

#0 - Joyce Nagle - 05/30/2007 - 08:10


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